Public exhibition of new information for ARTC Inland Rail’s Narromine to Narrabri project
Community members have an opportunity to gain further insight into the Narromine to Narrabri Inland Rail program of works with important information on the project now available for public review and submission until September 22nd.
August 31, 2022
Following the Public Exhibition of the Narromine to Narrabri project’s Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in February 2021, the NSW Department of Planning and Environment (DPE) requested ARTC Inland Rail to prepare three additional documents:
- Response to Submissions Report – An overview of all the submissions received as part of the EIS Public Exhibition process and written responses from ARTC Inland Rail.
- Preferred Infrastructure Report – Further detail on the route selection process and potential hydrology and flooding impacts of the Narromine to Narrabri project.
- Amendment Report – Assessment of further refinements to the design of the Narromine to Narrabri project. The design refinements aim to minimise the potential impacts of the project on land use and property, traffic and access and hydrology and flooding.
The three documents were today published by the DPE and the Preferred Infrastructure Report and the Amendment Report will be on public exhibition until 22 September 2022.
These documents are available for the community to view on the DPE Major Projects website.
This new Public Exhibition period will allow members of the public to read about Inland Rail’s current plans and make any additional comments on project matters of interest.
Inland Rail Delivery Director (Southern) Paul Giess said:
“Some of the key design refinements made since EIS Public Exhibition include changes to the location of crossing loops; location, number and treatment of public level crossings; public road realignment improvements and changes to the locations of the Narromine North and Baradine temporary workforce accommodation.
“We have worked closely with affected landholders and the community since 2017 so we can deliver the best possible rail line we can, based on the engineering solutions and feedback gathered from the community.
“We value community input during the approvals process, and we encourage submissions to the Department during the public exhibition.
“We have tried from the outset to minimise impacts on landholders and the environment, and to deliver a value-for-money project with the best engineering and design in mind – the project is based on extensive field studies, detailed environmental investigations and comprehensive consultation with communities and landholders.
“We engaged experts to undertake our studies, and we are confident that we have solutions that will work.
“Communication and consultation are the cornerstones of Inland Rail. For some landowners, we understand this is a difficult process and we are focused on working closely with them to give them as much certainty as we can.
“We are committed to taking the community with us every step of the way. We are encouraging those affected to continue to work with us to get the best outcomes possible.”
For more information on the Narromine to Narrabri project, visit the Narromine to Narrabri project page – or to view the documents on public exhibition, visit NSW Planning Portal website.
