Latest Election News

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Support Local Candidates for the Return of Rail


For those who would like rail services back on the Casino to Murwillumbah line, please vote for council candidates who say they will support rail services, with a bike/walking path beside the line.


As funding has been given for a bike trail, many people believe rail returning to the region is not possible. However, a bike trail can be built beside the railway line to allow for future rail services.


Two railway companies have been registered to bring rail services back to our region. One company, Northern Rivers Rail Limited, is a not-for-profit charity and we are committed to bringing services back to the Northern Rivers, with the help of local communities.


The winning contractors for the bike trail in the Tweed Shire, Hazell Bros, said the cost of building it off the rail formation would be no more than on top of the railway lines. Tweed Shire Council had stated it would be much more expensive and that it must be on the rail formation to allow people with disabilities to access the whole ‘rail trail’. Disability representatives say they’d rather have a rail service and were not ever asked what they wanted!


With no extensive community consultation (supposed to be the prerequisite for our tracks to be destroyed), beyond a hand-picked few (40 people out of 95,000 residents), this is your chance to speak up and vote for candidates who support the return of rail, with a bike path.


Did you know that in the 1970’s and 1980’s, we had one of the most profitable rail services in NSW, if not Australia! There were 1600 bookings a day and the Motorail service which took passenger’s vehicles from Murwillumbah to Sydney or vice versa took 14,600 cars off the road annually. The service cost $11 million a year to maintain but brought in a whopping $22.5 million per annum. The man who managed this wonderful service, Mr Neil Morris, was quietly sacked on Christmas Eve, 1980 and a local councillor stated that Neil had “embarrassed the Commission by bringing in too much business.” Perhaps other places were shown up in comparison, to not have such an excellent and very popular service.


After the sacking of Mr Morris, the service began to be run down and eventually the 1600 seat service (with up to 8 carriages) was pulled back to 434 seats on the XPT from Sydney, which only ran at night and as a consequence less and less people utilised the service. After all, who can use it, if it comes in at 9pm and leaves at 11pm?


Both the federal and state governments have seen fit to financially support the so called “rail trail”, (a trail without the rail), is a detriment of the majority of the 300,000 Northern Rivers residents and the 2.4 million visitors to Byron Bay alone in a usual year. The majority of these individuals would certainly utilise a comfortable rail service running at regular times throughout the day and night. We wonder what the motives of those who were elected to support the people of our region are, when the lack of accessible rail transport is so obvious.


We, as volunteer representatives for those in our region who are elderly, individuals who are disabled, the youth, commuters, travellers and tourists and those of us who do not want to have to drive everywhere if we have a choice. We ask that local councils, who will be liable for ongoing trail maintenance, think about whether they are really considering the needs of the majority.


Imagine rail cars that have been painted in rich colours and designs by local artists, with local musicians playing to travellers and local cuisine served in beautifully appointed rail cars for commuters and other patrons! New housing is often clustered around railway stations also!


We have the potential to create one of the great rail journeys in the world, extending the climate friendly services, begun by the first ever solar train in Byron Bay!


If you would like to be part of the solution, please join and donate to our not-for-profit, community owned company!


Lydia Kindred

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