Anne Stanley (Werriwa, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today is a great day for the community who use Macquarie Fields railway station. The New South Wales Labor government have announced a long-overdue upgrade of the station to provide disability access and other improvements. Ignored for decades by the previous New South Wales governments while stations on the North Shore were upgraded, commuters, mums and dads with prams and those with wheelchairs and mobility restrictions will soon be catered for. The station has been operated since 1888, and, for 136 years, it has only been accessible via stairs, meaning vulnerable members of our community and parents with prams faced an unsafe climb up several flights of stairs or travelling longer distances to other stations.

Today, the member for Macquarie Fields, the Hon. Anoulack Chanthivong, and the New South Wales Minister for Transport, the Hon. Jo Haylen, announced that early stakeholder engagement with vulnerable members of our community has been completed, and residents will soon be invited to comment on the draft proposals. Subject to planning approvals, construction will commence later this year, with the upgrades finally delivered after an 18-month construction phase. The upgrades will include footbridges, lifts, CCTV, improved lighting and other accessibility improvements. I commend the New South Wales Labor government for finally delivering the long-overdue upgrades to my community. It's what they deserve.