On Thursday 24 January 2019, the date of the State Commission Assessment Panel meeting, Tonsley Railway Station was an item in at least three bulletins on ABC Adelaide Local Radio News.
Broadcast at 6:30 a.m. & 7:45 a.m:
Newsreader Paul McCarthy: State Liberal MP Carolyn Power says her election promise to maintain train access for people living near the Tonsley Railway Station is intact.
The Transport Department wants to remove the station as part of its plans to extend the rail line to the Flinders Medical Centre.
The proposal is recommended for approval at a State Commission Assessment Panel Meeting today but Mrs Power says a transport department study is underway to make sure that access is maintained.
Carolyn Power MP: We need to still make sure that those residents that are potentially losing a train station don't still have the same access to public transport so for me that's about safety, it's about disability access, it's about reliability and they're all the things that the local residents chatted to me about prior to the election.
Broadcast at 7:00 a.m.:
Newsreader Paul McCarthy: A study is underway looking at how public transport access can be maintained around Tonsley and Clovelly Park when the Tonsley Railway Station is removed.
The Transport Department wants to demolish the station as part of its project to extend the train line to the Flinders Medical Centre.
Local MP Carolyn Power promised ahead of the last election to preserve the level of service but says there's no way to keep the existing station where it is because of the steepness of the hill leading to Flinders.
Carolyn Power MP: That train is in motion so to speak, pun intended, but that's not to say that there aren't options and avenues that we can explore to ensure that residents are able to access the train line and have access to quality public transport.
The audio will be available as part of the Ali Clarke Breakfast program [cues: 36:31, 1:11:56 & 1:59:47] until 29 or 30 January 2019 from the ABC Adelaide (Local Radio/Adelaide/Programs) web page:
https://www.abc.net.au/radio/adelaide/programs/breakfast/breakfast/10724976
On Friday 25 January 2019, Tonsley Railway Station featured in at least two bulletins on ABC Radio National's Adelaide news bulletins. The 3:00 p.m. bulletin can be heard in the Sonya Feldhoff Afternoons program [cue: 57:45] available online until 30 January 2019 from the ABC Adelaide (Local Radio/Adelaide/Programs) web page: https://www.abc.net.au/radio/adelaide/programs/afternoons/afternoons/10728442
Broadcast at 3:00 p.m.:
Newsreader Claire Campbell: The State Commission Assessment Panel has knocked back a State Government plan to close the Tonsley train station as part of the Flinders Link Project. The Government hoped to demolish Tonsley station and instead upgrade nearby Clovelly Park station but the Assessment Panel now requires the Transport Department to prove it can provide the same level of public transport access without the Tonsley station. Local resident Jodie Pearce who has led a campaign to keep the Tonsley station says she's happy with the decision.
Jodie Pearce: I'm really pleased that they have made that decision. I think it's a positive step that people with disabilities are finally being considered especially since 1 in 5 Australians have a disability and there are a lot of us around the Tonsley railway station at the moment.
Broadcast at 6:00 p.m.:
Newsreader Claire Campbell: A woman who led a campaign to save the Tonsley Railway Station in Adelaide's south from closure has welcomed a decision to knock back the proposal. The State Government hoped to close Tonsley station and instead upgrade nearby Clovelly Park station but the State Commission Assessment Panel has deferred approval of the 85 million dollar project to extend the train line to Flinders Medical Centre until the State Government can prove public transport users won't be adversely affected.
Jodie Pearce says removing the Tonsley station will make it harder to access public transport. She's also criticised the new surface proposed for the path to the Clovelly Park station which she says will make it uncomfortable for people using a wheelchair.
Jodie Pearce: ... because it causes excessive vibration with a fancy textured surface. What we need is something smooth that's easy to roll on and requires little effort and that will give us the energy to actually get to wherever the station is when it finally gets built.