Amid safety concerns raised by some sectors, the New South Wales government is pushing through with its plan to operate a railway system that is fully automated.

Soon, commuters from Sydney's North West Rail Link will ride trains run by computers and not drivers.

This was announced recently by Minister for Transport Gladys Berejiklian after declaring last year that there was no plan for driverless trains in the bid to create a rapid transit shuttle services.

The change of plan is apparently ignited by the belief that computer operated train service is still the best way to go. Ms. Berejiklian said full automation will benefit commuters as trains are expected to run every three minutes, allowing for more passengers to be shuttled.

"It means we have the capacity to move more people around on the system and obviously not only will this be a huge advantage for people living in the north-west but also for people who'll eventually use the line when we build the second harbour crossing," she said.

As to the safety and security of the system, Ms Berejiklian said there will be an assigned team of controllers to oversee the operations and likewise special train features to ensure passenger safety.

"Fully automated systems have actually glass screen doors on every station platform. It means you cannot access the rail track unless there's a train there with the door open," she said.

At present, there are two consortia bidding for the contract to operate. The contract is expected to be awarded next year.

Foremost provision in the contract is the stipulation of a fully-automated rail system. "That means the trains can be driverless and will be driverless," assured Ms. Berejiklian.

The NSW government gained a supporter in Tourism and Transport Forum chief executive Ken Morrison who has expressed appreciation over the new train service plan. He said it's about time that this mode of transportation was enjoyed by the people of Sydney.

"The big winners are going to be commuters," he said.

He highlighted the fact that Sydney should not be left behind as several countries around the world have actually been using the same kind of automated train service for over 30 years. "And they work well," he said.

However there are of course opposition to this proposal. The Rail, Train and Bus Union expressed serious safety doubts over the integrity of a computer-run railway system.

"If she obviously thinks a computer can stop a train when there are things on the track it's just ridiculous,"RTBU state secretary Alex Claassens said.

"A computer can't do any of that stuff. Years ago they tried a test here with the monorail. They ran the monorail around without a person being up the front. It lasted for a couple of months."

Construction of the tracks will begin next year.