Lift Redfern Campaign: Station Access Now!

FOR as long as he can remember, wheelchair user and street vendor for The Big Issue, Eddie, has backtracked the long way to his office in Redfern because the station doesn’t have lifts.

“There hasn’t been any lift access at Redfern station for a long as I can remember,” Eddie said.

“Originally I am from Victoria and I’ve been back and forth for the last 20 years and in that time Redfern station hasn’t changed; they have not even made one little effort to put in lifts or any sort of access which I think is wrong because it’s not just wheelchair users who access it, there are mothers with prams and the elderly. If those stairs get wet anything can happen.”

For Eddie to reach his Redfern office he is required to backtrack from one station to the next in his wheelchair.

“I live out at Campbelltown now so I have to go all the way to Central and then backtrack through Prince Alfred Park to here,” he said.

“Sometimes it can be quite dangerous coming through there especially when I’m in a hurry. I have to go at full throttle in this,” he said, gesturing at his wheelchair, “and the amount of bumps in the footpath to here has caused me to almost topple and go head over.”

The Lift Redfern campaign has already gathered 9500 signatures with many more people adding their support, including the Lord Mayor. “More than 40,000 people use the station each week day,” Clover Moore said. “Despite being one of the busiest stations in the City Rail network there is no disabled access to Redfern’s platforms. For people who are living with a disability, older people and parents with children this is an intolerable situation.

“Successive state governments failed to carry out this essential work. I raised this issue in Parliament for many years but governments have failed us. The community is fed up with government inaction.

This community has waited long enough - it is time that disability access at Redfern became a reality,” the Lord Mayor said.

To sign the petition visit redwatch.org.au and visit the Lift Redfern facebook page

EDITORIAL:

Kim Shaw Editor, Central Magazine

THE Lift Redfern campaign is a broad-based community campaign that started in January to get lifts installed at Redfern station.
The campaign is supported by a wide range of organisations including local business, cultural groups, the Aboriginal community. community services, resident groups and local political party branches.

Collecting 10.000 signatures on the Lift Redfern campaign petition will trigger a debate in parliament where the issue can be raised and discussed and hopefully some action taken.

The petition calls upon the Minister of Transport to take immediate action to install lifts to Redfern station platforms, rather than promising some contingent building program that will take place at some time in the distant future.

Redfern station serves a growing community of locals. Sydney University staff and students. Australian Technology Park workers. audiences to the many local cultural venues and shoppers.

It is one of the busiest stations in the network yet it stands in a state of shabby neglect.

Check out the Lift Redfern facebook page and visit the residents group website redwatch.org.au to sign the petition and join the campaign.

Source: http://sydney-central.whereilive.com.au/news/story/give-redfern-a-lift/