OPINION: Train's a nice dream but it's time to wake up

I CAN understand people wanting the Murwillumbah to Casino rail line to be reopened, even though the cost of reinstating the line has been put at $900 million.

Fixing the line and starting a commuter service would be great - but unlikely. A rail trail would also be great and has the added benefit of being possible. Picture: Jay Cronan

WHAT is it about trains that makes people go all misty eyed?

Is it the romance of travelling on a track? Is it the link to a bygone era? Is it just a whole lot better than driving your own car?

I don't know. But here on the Northern Rivers we seem to be obsessed about trains.

I'm the same. Perhaps it's in the blood.

My grandfather on my mother's side was a railwayman in NSW.

My mum still loves to travel on trains and regales us with tales of being stationed at different railway towns, including Gunning and Kiama.

So I can understand people wanting the Murwillumbah to Casino rail line to be reopened, even though the cost of reinstating the line has been put at $900 million.

It would also be great if that line were extended across the border to link with Queensland rail, opening up the Gold Coast and Brisbane as places to commute for work.

There's even talk of an inland very fast train that would stop in our area, linking Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne.

But, in reality, none of these projects will ever see the light of day.

Which is why turning the Casino to Murwillumbah line into a rail trail is a fantastic idea.

It would add another string to local tourism's bow and revitalise the towns and hamlets along the route.

It would also cost a whole lot less than any of the previous options outlined.