Moree Plains Shire Council is urging the Federal Government to provide the required funding to complete works that will link Northwest NSW to the Inland Rail project and the Port of Newcastle.
Last week, the NSW Government gave their tick of approval for the final leg of Inland Rail in NSW, upgrading 15 kilometres of track from Narrabri to North Star, known as Phase 2. This followed on from design and consultancy organisation Arcadis being awarded the Inland Rail Design Services package for both the Phase 2 and Section 2C works earlier this year.
Cr Susannah Pearse, Mayor of Moree Plains Shire Council, said while the NSW Government’s approval is a welcome development, funding from the Australian Government is required to get the project rolling.
“After the first sections of Inland Rail around Moree Plains were completed in late 2022, the Australian Government put the project’s construction on hold north of Parkes as it reined in cost blowouts and undertook a necessary review,” said Cr Pearse.
“Since then, the only work that has proceeded on the Moree Plains has been in the way of planning and approvals, leaving railway sleepers sitting by the tracks ready to go, without an announcement as to an expected start date – let alone when this project will be ready for use.
“It’s great that the NSW Government have now given Phase 2 the necessary tick of approval, but we need the project to be recognised in the Federal budget to turn those ticks into tracks.”
Inland Rail is a 1,600km freight line that will connect Melbourne and Brisbane via regional Victoria, NSW and Brisbane, which accommodates trains that are longer, heavier and more efficient.
However, these new trains are not compatible with old tracks, meaning 22 kilometres of track between Tapscott Road and Camurra is holding up the Moree Plains from being able to properly utilise the benefits of the Inland Rail project.
“The Moree Plains Shire is an agricultural powerhouse, contributing over $1 billion of produce to the Australian economy each year, and the completion of the missing link of track will provide immediate, national economic benefit,” said Cr Pearse.
“Unlike other parts of the Inland Rail project, we do not need connection to Queensland or Brisbane to be able to deliver value. As soon as the remaining section is completed in our shire, our growers and bulk handlers will be able to send produce via larger trains to be exported from the Port of Newcastle, delivering an immediate return on government investment.
“Longer term, the Moree Special Activation Precinct – valued at over $200 million and expected to create some 4,000 jobs will ensure that these benefits extend beyond just our agriculture industry.
“Rural regions such as Moree Plains Shire cannot be left behind. Council is calling on the Australian Government to back Australia’s most productive agricultural shire by providing the necessary funding to bring this long-delayed train into the station.”
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