The NSW government is behind schedule on not one, but two railway station upgrades in the Illawarra, according to Shellharbour MP Anna Watson.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The two stations scheduled to be upgraded are Oak Flats and Dapto.
At Oak Flats, the government envisages a new commuter car park with 230 spaces.
The planned changes at Dapto are more substantial and include rebuilding the ramp on the eastern side to make it wheelchair accessible, constructing a safer bus access road, upgrading footpaths and improving lighting.
The work on both stations is part of the government's $770 million Transport Access Program.
Ms Watson yesterday claimed the Dapto station project was more than a year behind schedule and the government had pushed back the start date for the Oak Flats car park to later this year.
"Work on the Oak Flats commuter car park was to have started by now, as the NSW government promised, in mid-2013," Ms Watson said.
"Instead, the NSW government has altered the date of commencement on the Transport for NSW website, now indicating that the start of works will occur in late 2013.
"Work on the Dapto station upgrade has also not started despite half of the year having already gone by and a promise in April 2012 from the Minister for Transport, Gladys Berejiklian, that work would begin in the second half of the year [2012]."
Ms Watson criticised the government for changing start dates on its departmental website "hoping that no-one will notice", rather than getting to work.
"It's time to get these two projects under way and it's time for the continual excuses and buck-passing by the NSW government to stop," she said.
"The NSW government promised these projects would be delivered on time and on budget."
Transport Minister Ms Berejiklian said both projects were still on track.
"When I visited the Illawarra recently I was perfectly clear that the accessibility and interchange upgrade would begin at Dapto Station later this year and planning for the car park at Oak Flats station continues," Ms Berejiklian said.
Geotechnical investigations were complete at Oak Flats and construction would start after property negotiations with Shellharbour City Council, but Shellharbour had been dragging their feet on the issue, she said.
The minister also opted to return serve on Ms Watson's complaints.
"Given the Labor Party's legacy to the Illawarra when in government was to announce transport upgrades and then never deliver them, I'm surprised they would have the hide to criticise projects that are actually going ahead," she said.
