A multimillion-dollar investment to put the inland rail on track has started to produce action on the ground at Narromine.
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Early field studies for the Australian government’s “truly transformational project’’ have been undertaken in the district in April and May, the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) reports.
The construction of an entirely new rail line from Narromine to Narrabri is a feature of the planned 1700km freight rail link between Melbourne and Brisbane.
At 307km, it will be the single longest section of greenfield track for the big-ticket infrastructure item that has been costed at $10.7 billion.
Last week representatives from the ARTC came to Narromine to start consultation with the community.
It’s part of the “detailed process’’ that’s being carried out to refine the rail alignment, and the ARTC’s inland rail community team manager Kirsty O’Connell says land acquisition cannot start until it is completed.
“ARTC is doing community consultation and a series of environmental studies around the area including ecology surveys, flora and fauna studies, hydrology and geotechnical studies (to learn about soil conditions),’’ she said.
“The community consultation for Narromine to Narrabri is starting now so we can understand more, gather local input and knowledge and use that to help us refine the rail alignment.
“We’re starting with the 2010 Inland Rail Alignment - that’s our base case and we have to go through a detailed process to refine that broad 2km corridor down to a 40m alignment.’’
The work would help the ARTC to identify “the best possible alignment from an engineering perspective, an environmental perspective and a community perspective’’.
“We need to work through the environmental studies, community consultation and planning approvals before we finalise the alignment,’’ Ms O'Connell said.
“It will take about 18 months to complete - it’s quite a detailed piece of work and we want to do it right.
“Land acquisition can’t commence until that work is complete.’’
Thursday’s “community information drop-in session’’ at the Narromine United Services Memorial Club was the first chance for community members to come in and meet the team.
“It won’t be the last opportunity - there will be more sessions and workshops as we look to gather as much information as we can,’’ Ms O’Connell said.
The second inland rail project in the district is the upgrade of the existing Parkes to Narromine rail line to meet the “inland rail service offering’’.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Agriculture Barnaby Joyce on Tuesday visited cotton processor Auscott Limited at Narrabri with Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Darren Chester and Parkes MP Mark Coulton.
"Inland Rail is a truly transformational project that will open up the freight corridor and boost productivity for decades," Mr Chester said.
"While the final alignment is subject to planning and environmental assessments, the $594 million provided in our most recent Budget on top of our previous $300 million commitment, will make sure that the project is soon shovel-ready and more importantly, delivered over the next decade.
"The additional funding is being directed towards refining the corridor and land acquisition.
"As the alignment is decided we will be providing certainty to affected landholders and communities."
