An overhead wire that crippled Sydney’s rail system in May, stranding passengers and causing major delays for days, was detected as a problem as far back as 2020 but never fixed, a scathing review of the beleaguered network has found. Following the review’s release on Tuesday, the Minns government will inject an extra $423 million into the heavy rail network over the next four years, highlighting the need to boost investment in the old system at the same time as it completes construction of three metro rail lines. Binoculars used by rail staff to carry out inspections of wiring were found by the independent analysis to be “insufficient for the job”, and did not detect the issue that led to the meltdown in May. Workers on the tracks near the stranded train at Homebush on May 20. Credit: Wolter PeetersThe review was highly critical of the length of time between a train becoming entangled in the overhead wiring at Homebush on May 20 and the network’s recovery two days later, saying it was “far too long”.