The State Government is going full steam ahead with its plans to turn the derelict Casino to Murwillumbah rail line into a tourist trail.
Today Minister for the North Coast, Don Page released the guidelines of a rail trail feasibility study which he hopes will be finalised in six months time.
“The study initially will look at the benefits, the tourism benefits, job, employment benefits, all the economic benefits also look at the costs associated with the construction.”
If the rail trail gets off the ground, tourists will be able to explore the 130 kilometres corridor by bike or foot.
The State Government has promised to preserve the rail corridor just in case it decides to return trains to the track some time in the future.
This rail trail could be one of the best in Australia,imagine the throng of backpackers being able to do a healthy bike ride or walk around our region.Watch the movie “The Way” with Martin Sheen walking the Camino de Santiago de Compastela in Spain and this will give you an idea of what could be achieved with this rail trail.Our children will be able to get away from their virtual biking riding via IPAds and ride with safety.The rail trails in Victoria and New Zealand are a huge success ,turning sleepy and dying towns into thriving hubs being able to support jobs for young people instead of losing them to the cities.The money saved could be diverted to a first class bus service to cater for the major population centres of Goonellabah ,Alstonville,Ballina,Lennox Head,Brunswick Heads etc that are not on the old train route and would have still have required a bus service anyway.Think of the dying towns of Stokers Siding,Burringbar,Mooball,Crabbes Creek,Billinudgel,Eltham,Bexhill etc that will have the injection of tourist dollars.I have ridden on rail trails and spoken to the residents that live in these towns and they felt sceptical at first that the rail trail would be not work but soon changed their minds.Dont wait 10 years to get this started it must start now .Get tourists here and private bus companies will invest in extended routes without having to compete with trains.The Sydney rail system costs $3.5 billion a year in running costs but only gets $700 million in ticket sales (80% of running costs is subsidised by NSW taxpayers)and that is in a very high population area.
Let me just tell you my story about rail trails. I like to ride. I ride MTB single track, roads, urban cycle paths or whatever, but I do like to ride rail trails. I live in the ACT and we are surrounded by NSW that has effectively no rail trails. That hasn’t stopped me, so let me tell you the financial contribution that I personally have made to communities where I have gone to with the specific intention of riding rail trails, including groups that I have organised and led.
One trip to NZ, a group of twelve. That’s car and van hire, 60 person-nights accommodation to local businesses, 90 meals, coffees, wine, etc. One trip to Spain, eight riders, 10 days, you can do the maths on the meals etc. Don’t forget local van hire, souvenirs etc. Even just tickets to the local football game came to around $500.
Six trips to Victoria, groups ranging up to ten in size, once again money spent in local communities for food, transport, accommodation, wine, coffee etc. etc. etc. I have at least two more trips to ride other rail trails in Victoria in the early planning stage.
In summary, I and groups that I have personally organised have spent a six figure sum in local communities ONLY because there was a rail trail there. We touring cyclists are comparatively well off, comparatively hungry, comparatively thirsty. There is plenty of hard evidence to show that cycle tourists stay longer, spend stronger and do less damage to the local environment than our car touring cousins.
I grew up on the North Coast… Bentley, Bonalbo, Stony Chute, Whian Whian and Wyrallah. I know the potential of the Casino-M’bah route as a cycle trail. I and people like me would be there in a flash to enjoy godzone country if the rail trail existed. My story has been personal, about what I and my family and friends have actually done. So why should the far north coast miss out on the revenue injection that people like me could bring to the local economy?
The real hard economic data is readily available: rail trails do bring sustainable tourist $$$s to communities throughout the world. On rail trails I have visited businesses and whole communities that are sustained by the rail trails that they service. That’s the facts.
I am against this Rail Trail proposal. The railway line was built for a purpose and that is to serve the local community in the conveying of freight (goods) and passengers. Once you build a Rail Trail it is highly unlikely that a railway line will ever be rebuilt on the easement. At one point in the future, will the Rail Trail be economically unviable??? Its purpose is to serve a minority within a community rather than a majority.