We’re thrilled to share some fantastic news with members– Wagga Wagga City Council has recently voted in support of progressing the Wagga Rail Trail! This is a significant turning point for our community and a major step forward in making the trail a reality.

We want to extend our heartfelt thanks to each and every one of you. Your continued support, advocacy, and enthusiasm have been instrumental in reaching this point. Councillors were literally inundated with emails and phone calls from members and supporters from across Australia, expressing their support for this decade-long community vision.

The internal Council recommendation was to effectively end further investigation into the Wagga Rail Trail, due to neighbouring landholder objection, the projected cost to build and maintain the trail, and perhaps most significantly, Council’s current financial constraints.

However, Councillors listened to our passionate advocacy for the trail and, finally, they have stopped putting this project in the ‘too hard basket’ and acted in the best interests of the whole community. Our hero Councillors, Jenny McKinnon and Amelia Parkins were vocal leaders of the debate, arguing for Council to allocate funds, establish a working relationship with neighbouring Councils to explore the big picture of a trail from Tumbarumba to Wagga, and to establish a Steering Committee to progress the project. Their leadership is to be commended.

On another positive note, Councillors also voted to explore the possibility of extending the Tumbarumba to Rosewood Trail, from Rosewood to Humula, with an internal report to be presented back to Council. This is a great win for the small community of Humula, which deserves some of the 15,000 trail users that now visit Tumbarumba and Rosewood annually.

With the Council’s positive vote now behind us, we’re eager to begin working collaboratively with Council staff and other key stakeholders, including a landholder representative, to further investigate the costs, benefits, and delivery potential of the Rail Trail in partnership with government and our supportive community.

This next stage (Stage 1 in the model shown below), will closely follow the NSW Government Framework for Rail Trail Establishment, and is about how we turn vision into action.

Step 1: Establishment of the Council Steering Committee including key community voices

Step 2: Engagement with Transport for NSW to seek consent for access to the rail corridor as well as confirmation that it is available for use as a Rail Trail and commissioning of a Concept Masterplan

Step 3: Finalise the community consultation process, including detailed consultation with neighbouring landholders

Step 4: Commission Business Plan

Unfortunately, Council did not allocate any funding toward continuing investigations (estimated at $240,000), and it will be the responsibility of the Steering Committee to source funds for this. We are hopeful that grant funds can be accessed, however, there is also a strong expectation from Council that the community will contribute some funds toward this next stage.

An enormous amount of work has already been done, including the community funded 2017 Strategic Directions and Implementation Plan, which will form the basis for the required Concept Masterplan and Community Consultation document.

Once the Steering Committee has established the costs for the Steps 2, 3 and 4, we will advise members of a process to contribute financially.

Image: NSW Government Rail Trail Framework

At the conclusion of Step 4 (Stage 1), the Steering Committee should have finalised all the investigation and documentation required for a final decision by Wagga Wagga City Council on whether to proceed with a request for NSW Government approval. The availability of State and Federal grant funding to build the trail will obviously play a significant factor in this decision.

The Wagga Rail Trail represents so much more than a cycle path – it’s an opportunity for recreation, tourism, economic development, healthy lifestyles, and regional pride and connectivity. We are confident that, together, we can ultimately build something truly special for Wagga and the wider Riverina.

Thank you once again for standing with us. Let’s keep the momentum going!

With gratitude,
The Wagga Rail Trail Committee

Image: Some of our supporters at the Council meeting, L-R Phil Barton, Phil Davidge and Graham Gillette

Council Endorses Wagga Rail Trail – Thank You!