Lifts for Macquarie Fields station a Labor priority

Macquarie Fields train station might yet its lifts in the not-too-distant future if a Chris Minns Labor government is elected in March.

The Labor leader was at this station with NSW Shadow Minister for Transport Jo Haylen and an election promise to make our train stations more accessible, safe and secure with a $300 million investment into the Transport Access Program (TAP). “Every single person in NSW should have the right to access public transport services and all stations should be step free,” Ms Haylen said, committing to treat the Macquarie Fields lifts as a “top priority”.

State Member for Macquarie Fields Anoulack Chanthivong has been waging a dogged campaign to get those lifts, robustly supporting his community who now have to travel to either neighbouring Ingleburn or Glenfield Stations to catch a train if they have mobility issues or a pram or are even carrying their luggage to the airport!

It defies logic why for years, someone like Donna (pictured) needs to travel on her mobility scooter from her Macquarie Fields home to Glenfield Station which takes her a good extra 45 mins to catch a train to the city!

“My community has been consistently short-changed by the Liberal Government when it comes to much-needed transport infrastructure,” Mr Chanthivong said.

“People in Macquarie Fields have been waiting years for a lift at the station, and today I welcome Labor’s announcement to make our stations more accessible.”

Labor will make train stations more accessible and safe, including for people with disability as well as the elderly. This will involve reducing or eliminating steps as well as improving the integration of stations in their local community. It would include commuter car parking where appropriate.

“We need to bring people back to our public transport network. Train patronage still hasn’t recovered two years after the pandemic. That means more cars on our roads, and more people stuck in traffic and getting hit by ever growing tolls,” Mr Minns said.
“That’s why Labor will increase funding to the Transport Access Program so even more stations are accessible to everybody.”
This commitment will allow the program to expand to stations that have missed out on upgrades under the Liberals and Nationals. Labor will combine the existing TAP fund ($342.4 million) with the Commuter Car Parking Program (CCPP) fund ($351.6 million) into a dedicated consolidated fund for upgrading stations. It will top this consolidated fund with a $300 million boost, bringing the total fund to $994 million for these projects.

Labor is quick to point out that Liberals did not follow Transport for NSW’s own analysis of where improvements to stations were most urgently needed, instead they repeatedly prioritised stations in their own seats.

“NSW Labor will end pork-barrelling of transport upgrades, and put fairness, integrity and accountability first and foremost,” Mr Chanthivong says.

“A NSW Labor Government will deliver a long overdue lift, and deliver the people of Macquarie Fields their fair share.”