Editorial
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Dear Minister for Transport Andrew Constance,
We fully understand the Illawarra is not your favourite place to visit.
Ever since you tried to take away our much loved free Gong Shuttle without notice you haven’t been the region’s favourite person.
Truth be told you weren’t much before then either.
In fact, we even ran a front page declaring you the ‘Illawarra's Most Wanted’ and we know for a fact that didn’t go down well.
So in the true spirit of friendship, we’d like to make it up to you.
Mr Constance we understand Labor’s spokesperson for the Illawarra Ryan Park has made a generous offer to take you for a train ride.
Sounds like a lovely offer and Mr Park is a nice bloke.
There could be worse people to take a train ride with.
Only problem is this train ride will be at peak period on the South Coast Line all the way from Sydney to Thirroul.
We hope you like standing Minister?
Mr Park’s offer is for you to truly experience what it is like for commuters who have to put up with our overcrowded trains, something you have failed to fix and appear to have no viable resolution for moving forward Mr Constance.
Never mind.
The scenery is lovely if you can get close to a window.
To help you commit to this kind offer and to perhaps hold out an olive branch in the hope you’ll take a walk in the shoes of someone in our community, we at the Illawarra Mercury will pick up the tab for your fare.
Heck, we’ll even pay for Mr Park’s too and if you can convince the Premier to come along we’ll pay for her fare and throw in a packet of barley sugars as well.
Just tell us where to send the Opal Card and consider them in the mail.
We saw images of you recently looking nice and comfy in the new Intercity Fleet carriages.
All trains look comfy without people in them.
Shame it appears likely it will do little or nothing to address the overcrowding on the South Coast Line.
As the Minister for Transport for the entire state, we hope you take up Mr Park’s kind offer and get a taste of just what it is like for our community.
Read more: Take a peak inside our new intercity trains.
Read more: Fewer seats not a problem, says govt.