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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
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PUBLIC WORKS COMMITTEE: WAYVILLE RAILWAY STATION PROJECT

Mr SIBBONS (Mitchell) (11:02): I move:

That the 475th report of the committee, entitled Wayville Railway Station Project, be noted.

The committee has received a proposal to construct a new railway station at Wayville to provide improved facilities for commuters and meet necessary disabled standards. The cost of the project is $16.5 million. The Wayville railway station project is being undertaken as part of the rail revitalisation project and will be located approximately 3.9 kilometres from Adelaide on the Seaford line.

The Wayville railway station will replace the nearby Keswick station and remove the need to construct a temporary station facility for the Royal Adelaide Show at the Wayville Showgrounds each year. The Wayville railway station will incorporate the following elements:

architecturally-designed canopy shelters;

platforms designed to minimise the step and gap between platforms and trains;

overpass with lift and stairs;

closed-circuit television surveillance;

real-time passenger information display systems on each platform to inform customers about train arrival times;

a central network-link public address system to facilitate real-time passenger information announcements;

and an emergency telephone centrally located on each platform.

The project will be completed by November 2013. Given this, and pursuant to section 12C of the Parliamentary Committees Act 1991, the Public Works Committee reports to parliament that it recommends the proposed public works.

Mr PENGILLY (Finniss) (11:05): Whilst the opposition members of the committee, and indeed the opposition, support this project, there were some matters raised during the course of the deliberations which I think need further examination. Opposition members remain far from convinced that money was not spent on this project before it had been approved by the committee. Government officers did not convince the member for Waite, nor myself, that this had not happened; how we get to the bottom of it, I am not quite sure. There are obviously channels that can be gone down to ascertain that, and that is something we will have to think through.

The project itself is a good one, and it will be a good facility when it is finished, but I am concerned that, despite the fact that officers indicated that there had not been money spent, and given the fact that there was other funding in it, work had indeed not taken place prior to the committee meeting a couple of weeks ago. So, with those few words, I support the project but just raise those issues.

The SPEAKER: The member for Schubert appears to be hailing a bus, and I shall reward him with the call.

Mr VENNING (Schubert) (11:06): Thank you, sir. It might be a sign of the times. I just want to briefly support this report and commend the—

The Hon. R.B. Such interjecting:

Mr VENNING: Well, I might be open to offers later on. You never know—I only have 10 months left in this place. Irrespective of what the member for Finniss just said, and that is a bit of concern, I still think the concept is good because there always used to be train services there, but now to have a dedicated station I think is a wonderful thing and an extra asset that the show society certainly would appreciate. As a member of the show society, I think it can only—

Mr Williams: You've got a conflict.

Mr VENNING: I could have a conflict, yes, I suppose; I have to declare that. I am a life member of the Royal Show society, and it will be one of those things I will be certainly pursuing when I leave this place. It is something to do. People have asked me, 'What are you going to do when you retire?' That will be one of them, for sure, because it is a fantastic place where the city meets the country, or the country greets the city, and it is great for the education process and keeping the two sides of our community and the communication channels open.

There is nothing better than the week of the Royal Show and all the other events that go on there during the year. It is used more and more all the time, and to have it link by the railway and— dare I say, although I have not read the report fully—there also may be an opportunity here for park-and-ride to work, as there is a lot of space in the showground that is not used all the time. As long as people realised that they could not have regular parking, because when they had functions they would have to again claim the space, there might be an opportunity for people to park their car or even heavy vehicle and catch the train into the city. So, certainly I will read this report with interest and commend the committee.

The Hon. R.B. SUCH (Fisher) (11:08): I support this project. I think it is another improvement to the current rail network and system and, despite what some people say from time to time, given our population size and the spread of housing and so on I think we have a pretty good rail system, and it is only going to get even better with the electrification of certain lines. I understand that, with the creation of this Wayville railway station, the existing Keswick suburban passenger station will no longer exist. That has always been a bit of an issue, and this new proposal will not address it.

It is not easy for people to access the Parklands rail terminal, as it is called now (the country terminal and now interstate rail terminal), and it will not be any easier under this new proposal. In fact, the Wayville railway station will be even further away from the Parklands railway terminal. The old Keswick railway station had an incredible number of steps and I do not know how anyone, certainly anyone who was getting on in years, could get up those steps with their case and then go around onto the road to access the Overland or any other interstate trains.

As the member for Schubert pointed out, I think this is a great initiative. I am also a member of the Royal Agricultural & Horticultural Society and any improved facility based on public transport is to be commended. I urge people in Adelaide to make greater use of public transport for functions such as those at the show. I think this new project will certainly help with that, and I look forward to its completion.

The SPEAKER: The member for Ashford, whose electorate this development is in, I believe.

The Hon. S.W. KEY (Ashford) (11:10): Yes, sir. As the member for Ashford I certainly wish to speak on this particular proposal which I think is a really important proposal. Since I have been the member for the area there have been discussions amongst the Adelaide City Council, the Unley council and the West Torrens council in particular about how we can maximise the access or the gateway into the city and also away from the city.

There has been a number of issues, particularly regarding the corner of Anzac Highway and Greenhill Road. We have had a number of meetings about people being able to not only drive cars and vehicles along those roads but also access for people in gophers—this has been a big issue—and access for people who ride bikes, pedestrians, people with different mobility problems, and also people who are pushing pushers or prams. There are a lot of difficulties with the footpaths let alone the roads on that particular corner.

As the member for Fisher has just said, there were also a number of issues raised about the Keswick access. I am really pleased to see that in the proposal for the Wayville railway station there is a lot of consideration being given to the access issue—the overpass and the lifts—and also safety. That area can be very difficult when riding a bike there because of the lack of lighting. It has improved over the years but certainly this is an area that needs to be addressed.

I am also a member of the Royal Agricultural & Horticultural Society—a very proud member—and one day, when I have enough money, I hope to be a life member. It is a very important part of the electorate. Even if I was not the member for Ashford, I would think that the Royal Agricultural & Horticultural Society plays a very important role in our community. I can only echo the comments that have been made by the member for Schubert because I also believe that it is a really important forum where the city and the country can meet.

We are very blessed now to have the farmers' market on a Sunday, which is extremely successful and very well attended. There are a number of events that now take place at the Showgrounds because of that improved venue. I think people probably know that that particular spot also has what I think is now the largest photovoltaic provision in the Southern Hemisphere. It is looking at recycled water and is as green as it can be, and there are many plans to make sure that that space is used to its full extent.

Personally, I am a big fan of the roller derby girls. There are a number of young people, in particular, who are very keen to support what would seem to be an unusual sport but the roller derby people also make sure that they sponsor live music, so there is a live music aspect connected to that particular function. Perhaps when I retire from this place, like the member for Schubert, I can spend more time with the Royal Agricultural & Horticultural Society and perhaps there is a roller derby future there for me as well.

The other point that I just wanted to make is that the functions that are being held at the Showground, like Glendi, for example, have been very successful. I know that there are a number of functions. Event management at Wayville is quite extensive. There are also some plans coming up, because as the member for Schubert said, not all the spaces are used all year, so there is a lot of consideration being given to the Royal Show committee to make sure that the spaces are maximised but, again, protecting the very wonderful time that I think Adelaide and certainly people in South Australia love, which is the actual show time as well.

It is important that this project goes ahead. I understand the comments that were made by the member for Finniss with regard to process. I am not sure if I agree with those points, but certainly at the moment Ashford is a building site. We have the rail vitalisation project going on, we have the greenways project going on, and we have got the stormwater project happening all at the same time. So, I would be very pleased, as I am sure the residents would be, if this project is finished in November this year. Although we will miss the show this year, certainly next year we should have things moving to maximise the use of the Wayville rail station project. I hope that this house sees fit to support the project and get it moving as soon as possible.

Motion carried.

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