Early train ride excites families

The families joined politicians, Public Transport Authority staff and media on a leisurely ride from Clarkson to Butler, where they toured the station before returning to Clarkson.

David and Audrey Malan with sons Connor (8) and Matthew (5) pointed out their rooftop as the train passed through Butler.

‘It’s been a long time coming,’ Mr Malan said.

‘It will be convenient being right next to it and easier for Audrey to get to work in the mornings.’

Matthew said he loved trains because they were fast and there were so many of them.

Brother Connor was equally enthusiastic. ‘It was exciting when I saw that they were building a new station because I love trains so much,’ he said. ‘I like the chairs as well because they are nice and comfy.’Michelle Grealish from Alkimos rode with her husband Mark and sons Ronan (5) and Thomas (3). ‘It’s just really exciting for the whole community,’ she said.‘Hopefully it’s going to relieve some of the traffic pressure that we have and make people’s lives easier.’ Butler’s Sacha de Wit said they got the call that they were going to join the ride on daughter Suzanne’s 11th birthday, accompanied by husband Dirk and daughter Danielle (8). ‘My husband will actually be taking the train (to work in the city) so we are very happy about it,’ she said.‘We are just happy that it’s here and we are not too close so we can’t hear it and we can’t feel it but we do get all the pleasure out if it.’Boasting that the station would open three months ahead of previous expectations and under the $240 million budget, Transport Minister Dean Nalder said the $20 million saved on the project had been redirected into other transport projects. Mr Nalder said there would be four extra three-car sets of trains on the northern line, and they expected most of the 2000 people boarding each weekday to be new passengers. ‘We want to encourage people to walk and ride bikes,’ the minister said. ‘We are also including cycle paths and end of trip facilities for bicycles.’ Mr Nalder said in terms of parking, the government would not necessarily look to buy the land currently leased from Satterley Property Group until 2023 for $1 per parking bay per year. ‘At this time we are quite happy with the arrangement we have in place,’ he said. More: Rail issue a bitter pill for Yanchep