CITY of Newcastle wants answers on the uncertain status of the Lower Hunter Freight Corridor and is set to ask the NSW government to expedite its delivery.
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A lord mayoral minute moved on Tuesday night noted the project had attracted close to $40 million in funding across three NSW budgets. But, the minute said, budget papers showed only $1.59 million had been spent on planning for a freight rail line alignment between Fassifern and Hexham.
The government earmarked $14 million in the 2016-17 budget, $11.8 million in 2017-18 and then $14 million in 2018-19.
The potential line, a bypass to remove freight trains from travelling through suburban areas, has been talked about for decades as an answer to congestion at the Adamstown railway crossing.
The project came under a cloud of uncertainty earlier this month when a Wakefield motorsport park was given the green light by planning authorities despite its likely impact with the corridor.
Transport for NSW had raised concerns with Lake Macquarie council during the planning process about how BlackRock Motor Park would impose on the corridor under consideration.
The Newcastle Herald revealed how exchanges between the two organisations, shown in documents submitted to the regional planning panel, appeared to indicate that planning for the project had not progressed past a line drawn on a map.
City of Newcastle, concerned the corridor is no longer a priority and that planning for a potential alignment has not progressed, now wants answers from the state government.
"We need to make sure we raise the level of discourse around the privatisation of this corridor at both state and national level," Newcastle lord mayor Nuatali Nelmes said at Tuesday's meeting.
"This has sat on a priority list, and in budgets, for several years but there has been very little action."
The council is set to write to the premier, and planning and transport ministers, and ask for the government to expedite the preservation of the corridor, complete the technical investigations and deliver the project.
It will also request a meeting with the transport department for an immediate update on the planning completed on the corridor.
"We need to seek clarification regarding their commitment for the delivery of the Lower Hunter Freight Corridor," Cr Nelmes said.
"And ask for their advice around providing essential rail capacity for both passenger and freight train growth across the broad network, and increasing the efficiency and reliability of the rail network by separating the majority of freight and passenger rail services which is on a very congested line between Fassifern and Newcastle."
Cr Nelmes said the bypass, which has featured on Infrastructure Australia's priority list and been identified as one of seven key transport corridors that, if protected, could save $11 billion, was an essential project.
"It's very important that both Lake Macquarie and Newcastle significantly enhance the urban amenity and livability in the Newcastle region by removing most of the freight trains from within the urban area," she said. "Which also takes the pressure off both the Adamstown and Islington Junction level crossings, [and] is something that our community has asked for, for many, many decades."
Transport for NSW told the Newcastle Herald earlier this month it was "undertaking preliminary investigations to assess options for the Lower Hunter Freight Corridor".
It was a similar comment to the one it offered in 2016, when a spokesperson said it was "investigating options for a dedicated freight link" and was "in the process of assessing possible routes"
City of Newcastle also wants an update on other transport projects, including the M1 Pacific Motorway extension to Raymond Terrace and the Rankin Park to Jesmond stage of the Newcastle Inner City Bypass Project.
"These are very serious road and traffic projects, and rail projects, that have been on the books for many decades," Cr Nelmes said. "They're announced in budget cycles, and then they're announced and announced but we're yet to see any decent rubber hit the road on a number of them, particularly the freight rail bypass."
Greens councillor John Mackenzie said "with respect to the process that's been initiated by the state government, I think it's time for them now to answer".
"You can't just keep putting it into every budget, year after year, and delivering nothing," he said.
"It's time to get moving on this piece of critical infrastructure."