Lift to be built for Redfern Railway Station

In a great win for the local community the Transport Minister announced that a lift would be built to Refern Station platforms 6 and 7, making the station accessible to customers in wheelchairs and parents with prams.

This was one of the first issues the community asked me to take up for them on my election to parliament. 12000 people signed a petition to parliament prior to my election. Inspecting the Redfern Railway Station with community representatives it was pretty clear to me that one of the busiest stations in New South Wales made it virtually impossible for people in wheelchairs to access trains at this station and extremely difficult for parents with prams and the elderly.

Redfern Railway Station is 150 years old with narrow platforms which made providing disabled access quite a challenge. As community representatives put to me quite reasonably; disabled access is only requested so a train from Redfern to Central can be accessible, where access can then freely be obtained to other trains on the network.12000 residents had collected a petition to the parliament prior to my election

The Minister for Transport confirmed on Friday the go-ahead for the lift as party of the Transport Access Program. The preferred option has been selected which will see a lift installed to platform 6 and 7 that allows customers to access frequent services into the city.  This platform also provides access to the busy inner west line which services busy centres such as Newtown, Burwood and Strathfield.

The minister said there is considerable planning work being undertaken at the moment which involves examining the future of this important precinct and the rail corridor - however lift access to Redfern is a pressing issue and that is why the government is providing a solution. I thank the minister for her responsiveness to my community on this issue.

The NSW Government also announced it is also working on lighting and fencing around the lift area to ensure it is as safe as possible passengers and a secure and modern bike cage will also be built on Lawson Street, which will provide passengers with a safe place to leave their bikes.

The project has now been handed to Transport Projects who will begin work on the implementation, including more specific designs and delivery and a construction timetable will be released once that work is completed.