#perth #wa #bayswatertrainstation #upgrade
Half of the new Bayswater Railway Station opened to the public yesterday, with Western Australia's transport minister apologizing to local businesses and residents for months of disruption. Key points Station now connected to Midland and Airport lines The station is now connected to the Midland and Airport lines. The station is expected to be fully operational by the end of 2024. With opening of the southern platforms, passengers traveled on Midland and Airport lines for first time in months. However, within scope of Metronet project, which has experienced delays, work is still continuing on northern half of station, which will serve Morley-Ellenbrook line. Transport Minister Rita Saffioti said the opening was a "major milestone" and represented a "complete transformation" of the station. Transport Minister Rita Saffioti, pictured with Maylands MLA Lisa Baker, says the train station has been transformed. “Bayswater station is back and bigger and better,” he said. Ms Saffioti acknowledged the hardship experienced by residents and traders during the construction work and thanked them for their patience. “It is very difficult to minimize the impact when transforming a station like this in such a closed area, but this is part of the transformation of train stations,” he said. "We acknowledge this is inconvenient and we apologize for this disruption." Work continues to complete the second half of Bayswater station. Ms. Saffioti said the government had helped some residents relocate, offered alternative parking and paid some compensation to businesses. Businesses need more support Bayswater Traders Association board member Anthony Princi said the help was appreciated but more support was needed. Mr Princi, owner of King Somm Bar, said the construction process had had a "pretty significant impact" on the community and was taking longer than they expected. Anthony Princi, owner of King Somm Bar, said local businesses were disrupted by the remediation work. “We also had a lot of customers telling us how they were staying up through the night, dust everywhere, dirt, congestion, traffic… it was a long list of things we all experienced together,” he said. But these challenges have helped the community come together, he said. “There has been help from Bayswater Council, mayor all community groups who have come together and really tried to keep businesses area alive throughout this time,” he said. 'The real work starts now' While Mr. Princi hoped local businesses would receive more compensation from the state government, he thought more funding should be directed to the suburbs. “We believe there is still a very long journey here,” he said. “We got a very small amount of financial aid, but nothing that really made a significant impact. "But I think the real work starts now; that's where we need to see continued effort energy and planning to take that from ground zero make this a really well-f