David who wants to relocate his Organic Food Manufacturing Industry to Llangothlin, New England(alternative being Tenterfield) was in Armidale last sunday and met with a small group to update his plans. He has now set up a special company vehicle to advance the project and applied for a limited license from UGL to do costings for the upgrade of rail line to transport containers to Tamworth intermodal facility. Martinus is his prefered railway infrastructure construction company. It is showing interest in providing a quote for the upgrade (at this stage the estimate is 40m to upgrade the line from Armidale to Glen Innes) as well as upgrading the line to run freight trains.
There is interest to set up an intermodal facility in Glen Innes also. Several more producers from the region have approached David to utilise an upgraded rail line to transport their produce. If you know others who may wish to use rail line for freight in the future, David likes to hear from them.

If his project becomes a reality, it can be a game changer for New England.  Not only it will encourage Organic food growing in the region but there is potential for more employment and income generation.  Furthermore, a revitalised train line between Armidale and Glen Innes  can provide better connectivity between Towns. It can reduce road congestion with heavy trucks while contributing the government's plans for decarbonisation.

While Tenterfield Council is behind his project, Armidale and Glen Innes councils are yet to express their interest in welcoming this important project for our region.