William Scott
Early works are set to begin for the removal of two railway level crossings and key safety improvements along the Inland Rail corridor near Parkes and Illabo, New South Wales.
The Federal Government is investing $280 million and the New South Wales Government is contributing $70 million in the project, which will improve road and rail safety while allowing freight to be delivered faster and more reliably.
The Federal Government contribution is part of a broader $450 million commitment to grade-separating Inland Rail interfaces with roads across New South Wales.
Level crossings on the Newell Highway at Tichborne and on the Olympic Highway at Harris Gates will be removed and replaced using grade separation as either overpasses or underpasses.
Geotechnical investigations, biodiversity studies and Aboriginal cultural heritage surveys of the Tichborne site and surrounds will begin on Wednesday 12 February.
Work is due to be carried out on weekdays from 7am to 6pm until the end of March, weather permitting, with intermittent changed traffic conditions in place on the Newell Highway including stop/slow traffic movements.
The geotechnical investigations at the Tichborne site will be followed by similar work at the Harris Gates intersection in coming months.
Federal Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Catherine King, said that the Federal Government is working in partnership with the State Government to remove rail level crossings by building bridges to separate road and rail along the Inland Rail route in the state.
“Australia’s investment in Inland Rail is critical to help us move more freight as our population grows,” Ms King said.
“Inland Rail can reduce our transport emissions and make our roads safer, and we are prioritising delivery of the sections between Beveridge and Parkes in line with our independent review of the project, which was handed down in mid-2023.”
New South Wales Minister for Regional Transport and Roads, Jenny Aitchison, said that this investment will improve safety at two key intersections on the Inland Rail route while realising the projects potential to expedite the movement of freight.
“Crashes at level crossings have the potential to cause major trauma and even fatalities, which have devastating impacts on families and local communities,” Ms Aitchison said.
“By grade separating road and rail we will eliminate the potential of incident at these two locations while paving the way for faster freight movements and business benefits for regional New South Wales.”
