This Sunday, 3 December, is the International Day of People with Disability.

It will also be the sixth International Day of People with Disability since the then Transport Minister – now the Premier - Gladys Berejiklian scrapped plans to build lifts at Unanderra Station.

It is the sixth International Day of People with Disability when the disabled, the elderly, people with shopping, tourists and parents with prams will have to struggle with the 72 stairs to access a train at Unanderra Station.

The theme of this year’s International Day of People with Disability is “Transformation towards sustainable and resilient society for all” and “the removal of physical…barriers”.

There is no more transformative an action that could be taken for people with a disability in Unanderra and surrounding suburbs than providing access to public transport at Unanderra station.

Despite thousands of signatures on petitions, numerous rallies to raise awareness and efforts to secure meetings with current and former Ministers for Transport, the Berejiklian Government stubbornly appears no closer to allocating the funds necessary to construct the lifts at Unanderra station.

In fact, recent attempts by the Member for Wollongong, Paul Scully MP, to secure copies of the plans for the lifts and rankings of stations across the network under the Transport Access Program have been stymied.

Numerous requests by Mr Scully to meet with the Minister for Transport and Infrastructure, Andrew Constance, have either been ignored or gone unanswered.

Only a future Foley Labor Government has committed to the construction of lifts at Unanderra station with funds to be allocated in its first Budget.

Comments attributable to Paul Scully MP:

“The Premier claims to have compassion at the heart of her Government’s decision-making, yet compassion seems to have left the station when it comes to access upgrades at Unanderra station.

“It has been six long years of neglect and indifference by three Premiers and two Transport Ministers to the plight of people in Unanderra and surrounding suburbs who want to catch a train at the local station.

“The Premier says that “the Illawarra has never had it so good” yet the disabled, the elderly and parents who want to use Unanderra Station to catch a train have never had it so bad.

“On International Day of People with Disability it is time the Premier admitted she was wrong to scrap the lifts at Unanderra station and to finally match Labor’s commitment to get them built.”