Macquarie Fields railway station, first opened in 1888, will finally get a lift.
It is one of seven new stations that will receive upgrades as part of an $800 million election commitment to accelerate accessibility upgrades at stations across NSW.
The announcement is being made this morning at the 136-year-old Macquarie Fields Station by NSW Premier Chris Minns, along with Anoulack Chanthivong, the Member for Macquarie Fields and transport minister Jo Haylen and disability inclusion minister Kate Washington.
Mr Chanthivong, who is also a minister in the Minns Government, has campaigned for a lift at the station since first elected in 2015.
Major construction is expected to begin in late 2024, following the development of planning approval documentation, with work taking around 18 months to complete.
“We have a very diverse community, with many young families and carers with prams, people with disabilities, the elderly, women and girls – to whom this station upgrade is going to mean a world of difference,” Mr Chanthivong said.
“There will be some disruption during the construction phase, however it’s short-term pain for long-term gain – as we know this upgrade will deliver a safer, more accessible and more inclusive station.”
Upgrades to Macquarie Fields Station will include a new footbridge with lifts, stairs, a covered walkway to the platforms, a new family accessible toilet, improved lighting and CCTV.
There will be six accessible parking spaces, two new accessible drop-off spaces and a relocated bus stop on Railway Parade.
Access to the station will be improved with a new pedestrian crossing and signage.
Macquarie Fields Station has never been fully accessible, with the City-bound Platform 1 only accessible via stairs.
More than 10,000 passengers travel through the station every week and the community is home to 2,000 people aged over 60, many of whom have been campaigning for lifts for over eight years.
Their campaign was ignored by the previous NSW Liberal Government who invested in lesser-used stations like Hawkesbury River Station first, which sees only a quarter of the weekly passenger numbers.
Having completed early stakeholder engagement with vulnerable members of the community, Transport for NSW will undertake targeted stakeholder engagement over the coming months. The community will be invited to have their say on the draft concept design toward the end of the year.
