Tweed Valley Rail Trail on track

16 February 2018

Council seeks protections from NSW Government to ensure corridor remains

Tweed Shire Council has resolved to accept the offer of $6.5 million in Federal grant funding to construct the 24-kilometre long Murwillumbah to Crabbes Creek section of the rail trail project, with a number of safeguards put in place to ensure the rail corridor remains.

With the Federal grant funds adding to the $6.5 million already committed by the NSW Government last August, the Tweed Valley Rail Trail project is fully funded.

Last night’s decision requires Council to call tenders for the design and construction of the rail trail on the current track formation but will also allow the opportunity for contractors pricing the project to put forward proposals to construct the rail trail beside the train tracks, preserving the tracks in place. With conjecture in the community over the feasibility and cost of this alternative, last night’s decision will provide the opportunity to ascertain if this would be feasible and how much it might cost.

Mayor of Tweed, Councillor Katie Milne said she “was very pleased that we will be getting an opportunity to go to the market to also see if the trail could be built next to the track”.

“There would obviously be a greater range of opportunities for transport and tourism if we could utilise both the track and an adjacent trial,” she said.

In addition to this the Council resolved to seek an annual contribution from the State Government to fund operations and maintenance of the regional tourism facility and Council will advocate that a Trust be established to oversee governance and management if the trail eventually extends beyond the Tweed.

The resolution also included the following wording about safeguards:

“To ensure that appropriate legislation is in place that would:

i. Maintain the corridor in public ownership in perpetuity for exclusive use as a Rail Trail, for the Return of Rail or public transport

ii. Allow under lease or license to the Trust uses complementary to the success of the Rail Trail (for example rail carriages used on parts of the disused line that would add character and services to the rail trail such as a coffee cart, art and craft, bike hire, accommodation, etc) and that income derived from these be quarantined for maintenance of the Rail Trail, Corridor and associated infrastructure (former stations).

iii. Require an Act of Parliament as opposed to Ministerial approval for the sale of any part of the corridor.”

Driverless electric carts will be investigated in the corridor as another opportunity.