Inland Rail is a 1,600 km rail freight line that will transform how we move goods around Australia. Connecting Melbourne and Brisbane via regional Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland, this viusionary rail project will complete our national freight network – better connecting producers to markets and creating new opportunities for businesses, industries and regional communities.
Passing through Moree in the section between Narrabri to North Star, Inland Rail offers a one-in-a-generation opportunity for the Moree Plains Shire community, bringing major economic investment and ongoing benefits to the people, businesses and farmers of Moree Plains and adjoining shires.
As an open-access rail service, Inland Rail will allow any accredited operator to move freight along the line, meaning more freight can be delivered faster and more reliably to our growing population, and beyond to global markets. As a more efficient option, Inland Rail will offer supply chain benefits and substantial cost savings for producers, while making our roads safer and less congested.
Spin-offs from Inland Rail via New England
Inland Rail will improve links between businesses, farmers and producers to national and global markets, by reducing transit times, costs and providing greater service reliability.
The project will reduce environmental and asset maintenance costs as a result of removing a large number of heavy vehicles off the road network and reducing real road distances travelled.
Each Inland Rail 1800 metre, double stacked train replaces 110 B double trucks.
As sections of the rail line are completed, trains will run and connect to the broader rail network. While the full length of the project is due to be complete in 2027 or soon after, trains will be running on newly upgraded track at Moree since 2024, connecting local producers with major ports at Sydney (Botany Bay) and Newcastle.
The rail line east of Narrabri has recently undergone a major upgrade to allow higher axle loading.
The original planned benefits of Inland Rail are well documented
on the project web site
Getting the Inland Rail service into Qld could be done more economically by re-activating the GNR line. Given the geo-technical problems of taking Inland Rail north from Moree over risky floody plains. the alternative is a flood free route going north from Armidale to Toowoomba, by an existing surveyed route through the New England, to get to Toowoomba, Brisbane and further north to Gladstone.
Financial Benefits
There are ten streams of financial benefit that would be a direct positive result of using the re-activated GNR rail line between Armidale and QLD:-
- Passenger revenue from scheduled passenger services.
- Passenger revenue from tourist trains, picnic trains, historic trains and special charter services.
- Movement of freight originating from New England.
- Through freight trains, e.g. to Brisbane, Newcastle, Perth via Parkes.
- Financial benefits to New England as a result of improved community safety, lower road trauma etc.
- Financial benefits as a result of lower freight cost and travel efficiency.
- Economic boost to the towns and villages of the region due to increases in employment opportunity, new enterprises and greatly increased visitor numbers.
- Lower costs of building and maintaining local roads and highways.
- The financial spin off from boosted tourism activity, in particular from the 2032 Brisbane Olympic games.
- Lower CO2 emissions and diesel fumes from heavy road transport.
Conclusions
The estimated benefit of passenger and freight revenues, anticipated operating costs for delivering these services (excluding maintenance) have been netted from the revenue estimates, to provide a net operational revenue/ benefit.
The return of rail services per day are feasible moving 1500 passengers and about 65 containers per day is not to be scoffed at, in terms of the NSW economy, not to mention the federal economy
Rick Banyard
Project Director
New England Transport Plan
12-jun-2025
< needs a well designed map to show the alternate route via New England >
