Parkes Mayor, Cr Ken Keith has welcomed the Federal Government’s commitment to the Inland Rail Project in the budget with the announcement of $594 million in equity for land acquisition for the corridor, due diligence and further pre-construction works. “I want to congratulate the Federal Government for their strong commitment to the Inland Rail, with the Treasurer last night committing the government to the next step of realising an integrated Inland Rail connecting Melbourne to Brisbane” Cr Keith said.
“I would like to echo the Treasurer’s comments regarding the importance of the Inland Rail for agriculture. Aside from improving the nation’s competitiveness, a highly efficient inland railway is a game changer for regional Australia and particularly agriculture.
Efficient rail access opens a range of opportunities for the regions, and would increase competitiveness of agriculture and opening up our export markets to the world.” Cr Keith went on to say; “Over the last 10 years we have been lobbying the Government for a commitment to the Inland Rail to provide assurance for investment, especially for the Parkes National Logistics Hub. On Tuesday the Australian Government committed to build the Inland Rail project through the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) to provide a direct, high-performance freight rail corridor between Melbourne and Brisbane as well as creating a new freight corridor between Brisbane and Perth via Parkes – this is fabulous news, especially for our community!”
“With interest rates at record lows, and the prediction that freight volumes will double over the next twenty years, the opening up of international markets and production in regionals areas set to grow significantly by 2031, now is the perfect time for Investment in this nation building project”, concluded Cr Keith.