SPEECH - SCHOFIELDS STATION PARKING - FEDERATION CHAMBER - 7 DECEMBER 2020

07 December 2020

I rise today to advocate on an issue I've discussed many times in this place: the lack of parking at Schofields train station. Surrounded by growing housing estates, the parking facilities at Schofields Station are woefully inadequate. The car park is full before 7 am, resulting in residents often having to park very far away and trek on foot across uneven terrain to get to the train just to get to work. Following sustained campaigning by myself and Schofields residents, the New South Wales Liberals finally caved and promised they would build a multistorey commuter car park at the station by the end of 2020. The local Liberals even campaigned on the project in the lead-up to last year's state election. Fast-forward 18 months and what do we have? Yet another broken promise. Schofields Station still doesn't have the multistorey car park we were promised and, worse, the New South Wales Liberals have now decided they won't follow through on their promise and have decided there will not be a multistorey car park built at the site. Instead, they will build an at-grade, or flat, car park in an area which many locals believe will just cause more congestion. It is completely unacceptable. Locals are fed up with the spin and broken promises. The overwhelming message is that Schofields Station needs a multistorey car park. Build the car park that was promised.