Save Our Railway line from Armidale to Queensland from being ripped up by Armidale and Glen Innes Councils!  Urgent request for Support

Sign this petition to prevent part of the Main North Line from Armidale to the Queensland border being ripped up to build a bike trail for recreational purposes.

A current proposal to build a bike riding track from Armidale to Glen Innes on the existing railway line - called a rail trail - is close to being successful as the two councils passed motions recently to proceed with preliminary work and seek NSW government approval.  A bike riding track is all well and good, but they shouldn't rip out existing essential transport infrastructure to do it.  How can a bike track be superior to a train line?

Rail is, and has always been, critical infrastructure. As the Inland Rail line is constructed, it is absolutely essential that we do not cut off New England from Inland Rail for freight services.

Additionally, it is time those in power recognized the need for people in New England to go north to Brisbane as much as we need to go south to Sydney.  We have family in Queensland, doctors, schools and services we need in Queensland, and we do business with our Queensland neighbours. The plane service out of Armidale has always been prohibitively expensive. The buses between Sydney and Brisbane that used to stop in Armidale have ceased operations during the pandemic, so there are no direct bus services between Armidale and Queensland. If the two councils remove the rail line the area north of Armidale can be removed from the fast-growing SE Queensland where there is 4 million people and services over the border. We need rail to be part of the public transport mix for New England.

Growth in industry throughout the New England is also dependent on businesses being able to get goods to neighbouring towns and beyond to major centres efficiently and at lower cost. If the region is to grow while people fed up with life move from cities to regions including to New England, we need the councils and NSW government to design plans for the future -not for the short term. A bike trail can be built anywhere in the LG areas or on the side of the rail line. Yet a plan to remove the rail line for a recreational track is short sighted. We need to support new businesses to flourish by ensuring they can get goods and people in and out of the region – with good rail services both north and south.

Plus, with the Olympics coming to the Gold Coast – with a significant expansion of rail services to support that event – now is absolutely not the time to be cutting New England’s rail line to the north!

Now is the time to fight for rail, not allow the two councils to rip up the track.

This short-sighted proposal is based on the pessimistic view that our towns in the New England, which desperately need public transport now, will never again have a passenger rail service. Councils' argument is that tiny visitor numbers from the tiny community of able-bodied people that like to ride bikes for pleasure in nice places is better than essential public transport and industry made possible by being connected to the rail network to the north.

Well, if you rip up the rail line, of course we won’t ever have passenger rail again! We must come together as a community to protect our critical rail infrastructure, and not allow more services and opportunities to be denied to our communities without a voice.

The group supporting the proposal, New England Rail Trail (NERT) commissioned a Rail Trail Plan several years ago.  The two councils have simply accepted it without conducting "an independent cost benefit analysis". Both councils worked closely with NSW Public Works (part of Dept of regional NSW) to progress the project and lease the rail corridor for a 30-year period.  Motions passed by the two councils in 2024 allowed the General Managers to sign deeds for the grants and leases. Both Armidale Regional Council and Glen Innes Severn Council had been allocated partial funding for the rail trail since 2022. Under the Bushfire Local Economic Recovery Fund, $8.7m government funding had been allocated to the Glen Innes Severn Council to construct the Ben Lomond to Glen Innes section. In 2024, GISC wanted to use the grant for a shorter 22km  section from Glen Innes to Glencoe but the funding agency did not like the idea and withdrew the grant. Armidale Regional Council had been allocated  5.4 million grant since 2022 from the Black Summer Bushfire Recovery fund. In 2024, it wanted to spend the grant for a 9.3km section from Armidale to Dumaresq. The funding agency did not like the idea and withdrew the grant. Apparently, the two councils could not meet other requirements set by funding agencies also.

Even after the withdrawal of two grants, the councils are determined to continue with the failed rail trail plans instead of critically reflecting why this happened? ARC has applied for another 21m grant under the Federal government's Regional Precincts and Patnership program . No information has been provided to the public about this plan yet? GISC passed a motion in its october 2024 meeting to continue with the rail trail plan and seek funding from the government. 

I cannot understand why the two councils do not have the wisdom to call a roundtable meeting with all stakeholders that want to use the rail corridor for future transport in any form and identify common ground so that they can advance region's transport plans for funding with stronger community support?  TFNSW is also formulating a Strategic Regional Transport Plan for New England-Northwest.  Public can send their feedback until mid 2025. Use this link to send your feedback https://www.haveyoursay.nsw.gov.au/sritp/new-england-and-north-west

So, we must act now!

Please sign and share this petition! Let the two Councils, MPs and NSW government ministers of Regional NSW (Hon.Tara Moriarty) and Regional Transport (Hon.Jenny Aitchison) know you want the rail line for future train services as a priority! Not a rail Trail.  Already there are many bike paths in both LG areas.