Community Comment Invited on Snowy Valley Trail Plan
Tumbarumba, NSW
Public comment is being sought on a tracks and trails network masterplan to link towns and villages throughout the Snowy Valleys Region, in southern NSW.
The Regional Tracks and Trails Master Plan, developed by Snowy Valleys Council in collaboration with consultants Tredwell, is open for public comment until 10 January.
Five priority new development projects have been identified by the plan:
- Gudja Gudja Mura Trail
- Tumbarumba to Hume and Hovell Track (Tooma Road Walking/Cycling Path)
- Tumut River Walk (Elm Drive off-road alignment and signage)
- Batlow to Tumut Rail Trail (Stage 1: Batlow to Wybalena)
- Waterfall Drive Trail (establish and promote new Tourist Drive Route)
The council received $270,000 in funding through the Bushfire Community Recovery and Resilience Fund Stream 2 for the master planning process. However, there is no money allocated in this funding for tracks and trails building or maintenance.
“The Snowy Valleys Tracks and Trails Masterplan is an aspirational plan – a vision of what our region’s tracks and trails network could look like in the long term, boosting tourism and local recreation opportunities,” according to the community feedback website.
“The project includes a trail concept plan and a business case and, where appropriate, high-level costings and a review of environmental factors to assist in obtaining funding to complete the work.”
Harald Tietze
P.O. Box 18
Batlow NSW 2730
To the General Manager,
Snowy Valleys Council.
09 January 2023
Feedback 0n the Regional Tracks and Trails Masterplan
For 20 years council and other groups and supporters worked hard to get the Batlow – Tumut Rail
Trail built. There is even a book with the title “The Tumut Batlow Rail Trail Story (by Phil
Barton) written about it and a song ‘Imagine the Batlow Tumut Rail Trail” is recorded for the
batlowtumutrailtrail.org. website.
It is an important step forward that the Batlow – Tumut Rail Trail is now in the Snowy Valleys
Council’s Tracks and Trails Masterplan.
Level Walking/Bike track through Batlow
It’s about time that Batlow gets a level walking track for the elderly, sick, and disabled citizens,
It was promised by executive council staff after the clean-up of the burned cannery, that the rail
corridor will be fenced off to the neighbours for unhindered access to the public grounds
However, the fence in the middle of town at the rail corridor is 2.5 metre high (2-metre corrugated
iron and on top of it 3 barb-wires) to keep the public out of the public ground. It is a disgrace.
Hopefully, Batlow will have soon a level waking track when the Rail Trail is built.
Comparing dedicated tracks of Talbingo, Tumut, Adelong, Khancoban, and Batlow; Batlow comes
long after nothing – there is simply none at all.
The rail corridor is public land.
There are still some people who are claiming that the rail corridor belongs to the farmers.
Everyone can check it out for free. Search at maps.six.nsw.gov.au – DP1178759 is the lot behind
where the cannery was.
Everyone can follow the rail corridor North (the DP number changes as it goes through each
property) to Tumut.
I think the point needs no further explanation. The rail corridor is public land!
Extreme high cost for stage 1.
The question arises why the building costs are so high. I suggest that several quotes are requested
and/or Rail Trail Gladstone is consulted, they seem to have a good system.
The Tumbarumba – Rosewood group did very well planning and assisting Council in the building
of the first Rail Trail in NSW and should be consulted in the development of the Batlow to Tumut
Rail Trail.
If we say we cannot afford it
we should think about it so that we can
NOT afford
to give it not
PRIORITY NUMBER ONE
Thanks for your comments, Harald. It will be interesting to follow the progress of the proposal