Glen Innes Severn Mayor Margot Davis has called for major changes to the draft New England North West Strategic Regional Integrated Transport Plan (SRITP), arguing transport investment should help generate economic opportunity and regional growth rather than simply respond to existing population patterns.
Davis said the council’s submission to Transport for NSW identified several shortcomings in the draft plan, including what it sees as an underrepresentation of Glen Innes’ role as a regional centre and insufficient recognition of northern transport corridors and cross-border connections.
“Glen Innes is far more than a stop on the highway. We are a regional service centre, a gateway to Queensland, home to the Glen Innes Highlands GeoRegion, recognised as Australia’s third pilot GeoRegion, an emerging renewable energy hub, a critical minerals opportunity area, and a key part of the future economic growth story of northern New South Wales,” Davis said.
“One of our key concerns is that the draft strategy is heavily weighted towards the southern transport corridors of the region and does not adequately recognise the importance of northern transport corridors and cross-border connections.”
Davis said the region’s future prosperity should not be viewed solely through a southern lens and called for greater emphasis on strategic corridors linking Glen Innes, Inverell, Tenterfield and surrounding communities with Queensland, the coast and emerging industries.
The council’s submission seeks improved transport links to Toowoomba and Brisbane, greater recognition of cross-border travel patterns and stronger support for community transport services.
“Transport planning needs to reflect how people actually live their lives. For many residents in northern communities, Queensland is closer and more accessible than Sydney or Newcastle. Whether it is health care, education, employment or other essential services, the transport network should support those real-world travel patterns,” Davis said.
The council has also called for increased investment in community transport, arguing transport disadvantage extends beyond people currently eligible for support programs and aged-care packages.
“Community transport should not be viewed solely as a service for people on support packages. There are many residents, families, students and older community members who fall outside those programs but still face real barriers to accessing essential services. We need better support for community transport providers, improved coach services and more innovative transport solutions that connect people with the services they rely on,” she said.
The submission also advocates activating suitable sections of the Great Northern Line corridor as rail trails while preserving the corridor for possible future transport use.
“We have consistently argued that rail trails and future transport opportunities are not competing ideas. Rail trails can deliver economic benefits now through tourism, visitation and local business growth, while preserving the corridor for any future opportunities that may emerge over the longer term,” she said.
The council has urged Transport for NSW to streamline rail-trail approval processes and accelerate activation of suitable sections of the corridor.
It has also called on state and federal governments to support completion of the remaining 23-kilometre Moree section of Inland Rail, citing its importance to freight movements from North Star to Narrabri and the Port of Newcastle.
“This relatively short section remains one of the most important missing links in the freight network. Completing it would strengthen freight efficiency across northern New South Wales and support agricultural, industrial and export opportunities across the broader region,” Davis said.
“Over the longer term, the NSW Government should work collaboratively with business and industry to identify opportunities to build a sustainable freight task aligned to the region’s natural endowments, including agriculture, renewable energy, critical minerals and future industrial development.
“Any future consideration of reactivating the preserved Great Northern Line corridor would require a coordinated long-term commitment from government, supported by industry demand, economic development and a viable freight business case. This is a multi-decade proposition, not a short-term transport project, but preserving the corridor today ensures future generations retain that option,” she said.
The submission also identifies opportunities for Glen Innes to play a larger role in the future transport network, including as a freight and logistics hub, a site for heavy vehicle and bus electric-vehicle charging infrastructure, a vehicle maintenance centre, and a support base for renewable energy and critical minerals projects.
“The strategy should recognise not only where growth exists today, but where growth can occur tomorrow,” Davis said.
“Glen Innes has the land, infrastructure, strategic location and natural advantages to support future investment, jobs and industry development, but transport planning needs to actively enable those opportunities.”
Key recommendations
The council’s submission includes:
- Improved transport connections to Toowoomba and Brisbane.
- Increased support and funding for community transport services.
- Recognition of education access as a transport-planning outcome.
- Upgrades to key freight routes, including the Gwydir Highway.
- Recognition of the Glen Innes–Grafton–Coffs Harbour corridor as a strategic east-west link.
- Completion of the Moree Inland Rail section.
- Accelerated activation of suitable sections of the Great Northern Line corridor for rail trails.
- Better planning for renewable energy, critical minerals and oversized freight movements.
- Future-focused investment in EV charging, freight and logistics infrastructure.
- A place-based planning framework integrating transport, economic development and land-use planning.
“This submission is ultimately about ensuring that northern communities are not overlooked and that transport investment is used to unlock future opportunities, support population growth and strengthen regional economies,” Davis said.
“Transport investment should not simply follow growth, it should help create it.”
The council’s submission has been provided to Transport for NSW as part of the process to finalise the Strategic Regional Integrated Transport Plan.
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