Inland Rail: Toowoomba businesses call for progress on $15 billion project

A Department of Infrastructure spokeswoman has confirmed the Inland Rail alignment is ‘settled’ as Toowoomba’s business leaders call for the project to be built.

Toowoomba business leaders have united in calling for the federal government’s multibillion-dollar Inland Rail project to continue as planned, warning that any route changes could set the project back by up to a decade.

The fury from Garden City powerbrokers was ignited after Maranoa Nationals MP David Littleproud attempted to derail the current proposal in the form of a four-page document outlining an alternative route through Warwick to appease angry farmers in his electorate.

On August 11 a Senate inquiry released a report on the Australian Rail Track Corporation’s 1700km, $15 billion freight rail link which found the group had fallen short on its assessment of the flood heights and on its obligation to consult with the Millmerran community.

07/03/2021: A frustrated John Wagner has called for construction to begin on the Queensland stages of the Inland Rail. Lyndon Mechielsen/ The Australian

Wagners co-founder John Wagner said any last-minute changes could kill the Inland Rail project.

“The situation is that we’ve been in the same spot for years and years and we don’t want the route changed,” he said.

“There’s been a massive amount of planning already, and the reality is if there’s an issue with the flood levels lets re-engineer the design, we don’t need to go back and shift the route and put the project back another five or 10 years.”

The Parkes to Narromine section of the Inland Rail has already been completed.

FKG Group CEO Grant Statton said Inland Rail had been a generation in the making, and it was critical that Toowoomba remained a part of the project’s route.

“There’s infrastructure in Victoria and NSW that’s already creating industry, and for Queensland to miss out would be detrimental on the future of industry and the economy,” he said.

“It’s a shame to see this project become political when this is a common sense process that benefits Australia. The community has clearly been engaged for a long period of time and want to see it happen.

“This type of enabling infrastructure changes states, and it’s critical that Queensland and Toowoomba can participate in a national program.

“There’s been plenty of money spent on studies and alignments and ecological reports, it’s time to get on with it.”

Ali Davenport, TSBE CEO, has backed the benefits of Inland Rail for Toowoomba.

Toowoomba and Surat Basin Enterprise CEO Ali Davenport said Toowoomba had a big part to play in the nation’s transport and logistics.

“Inland Rail has been studied a number of different times, and the route was agreed on nearly five years ago, it’s been studied to death so it’s time to build it,” she said.

“The region supports this project, there are already businesses looking to establish here on the back of Inland Rail. This is a transformative project for Australia to take trucks off the road and open up our agriculture and industry to the rest of the country.”

While the inquiry found the ARTC hadn’t taken into account an independent study on flooding on the Condamine flood plains, in a statement a spokeswoman for the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications said that after multiple studies, the route was set.

“The Inland Rail alignment is settled and delivery is well under way, including on the Border to Gowrie alignment, where the draft Environmental Impact Statement is currently under consideration by the Queensland Government,” she said.

“The Border to Gowrie route has been informed by multiple studies and reviews, including in 2006, 2010, 2015, 2016, 2016-17, 2017 and again in 2020.

“The 2020 independent assessment confirmed that, on a like-for-like basis, the Border to Gowrie Reference Design route selected in 2017 is superior to other routes proposed by stakeholders. The selected route provides the best outcome for the Inland Rail project in terms of 24-hour transit, service reliability, availability and cost competitiveness.”

Originally published as Inland Rail: Toowoomba businesses call for progress on $15 billion project