The way forward for a better transport system seems clear for residents and voters in the New England region:-
1) Re-activate the Great Northern Railway (GNR) asThe GNR Artery, north from Armidale to Wallangarra in QLD, for both freight and passenger rail services.
2) Use The GNR Artery for moving local agricultural produce, bulky fuel, fluids, minierals, household goods and building materials to and from major markets Australia wide.
3) Set up major or minor Intermodal locations in Tenterfield, Glen Innes, Guyra, Armidale and Werris Creek. This could include integration with Intermodal Nodes on the completed Inland Rail at Moree, Tamworth and Toowoomba.
4) Tightly integrate all current and future air, road, bus and coach services with The GNR Artery, to give people much quicker, easy to use access to better health, education, entertainment and social services.
5) The GNR Artery will dramatically reduce the damage caused by the heavy vehicles, including B-Double and semi-trailer traffic on the main highways of New England, and greatly improve road safety on highways.
6) The GNR Artery addresses climate and environment issues; by reducing pollution from hundreds of diesel-powered truck movements every day, making the villages, towns and cities more livable, not to mention greater safety for pedestrians, cyclists and all residents of the New England.
7) The GNR Artery has great viability, which is covered elsewhere in a dedicated section of the New England Transport Plan
8) Build the proposed Moree – Inverell – Glen Innes – Grafton rail line, at a later stage when capital becomes available. It will create great east-west connectivity.
9) Serious planning needs to start NOW,by all levels of government, on The GNR Artery recommendations, because the 2032 Brisbane Olympic Games will be a major generator of economic activity for both South East QLD and the New England.
John Young. B.Sc(Arch), BArch(Hons)
Diretor Strategy
New England Network
13-jun-2025
