Road Network Strategy 2020 New England Road Network Strategy Final Report

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Cardno (NSW/ACT) Pty Ltd Prepared for New England Joint ABN 95 001 145 035 Organisation

Project Name Final Report Level 9 - The Forum 203 Pacific File Reference 201111_NEJO_RNS_Final St Leonards NSW 2065 Report.docx Job Reference 80020022 www.cardno.com Phone +61 2 9496 7700 Date 24 November 2020 Fax +61 2 9439 5170

Document History

Version Effective Date Description of Revision Prepared by Reviewed by

1 12/11/19 Summary Report Elizabeth Muscat Andrew Malowiecki Andrew Malowiecki Larissa Miller Larissa Miller 2 19/11/19 Summary Report – Rev A Elizabeth Muscat Larissa Miller Andrew Malowiecki Chris Slenders 3 03/02/20 Summary Report Update Elizabeth Muscat Andrew Malowiecki Hayden Calvey Larissa Miller Sabal Sharma 4 31/03/20 Summary Report Update Elizabeth Muscat Andrew Malowiecki Hayden Calvey Chris Slenders Larissa Miller Andrew Malowiecki 5 8/9/20 Summary Report Update Sabal Sharma Andrew Malowiecki Austin Pepper Andrew Malowiecki 6 11/11/202024/11/20 Final Update Andrew Malowiecki 7 24/11/20 Final Update Andrew Malowiecki

© Cardno. Copyright in the whole and every part of this document belongs to Cardno and may not be used, sold, transferred, copied or reproduced in whole or in part in any manner or form or in or on any media to any person other than by agreement with Cardno. This document is produced by Cardno solely for the benefit and use by the client in accordance with the terms of the engagement. Cardno does not and shall not assume any responsibility or liability whatsoever to any third party arising out of any use or reliance by any third party on the content of this document. Our report is based on information made available by the client. The validity and comprehensiveness of supplied information has not been independently verified and, for the purposes of this report, it is assumed that the information provided to Cardno is both complete and accurate. Whilst, to the best of our knowledge, the information contained in this report is accurate at the date of issue, changes may occur to the site conditions, the site context or the applicable planning framework. This report should not be used after any such changes without consulting the provider of the report or a suitably qualified person.

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Contents

Stage 4 – Identification and Prioritisation of Improvement Initiatives i Contents iii Appendices vii Tables vii Figures ix 1 Introduction 1 1.1 Purpose 1 1.2 New England Joint Organisation 1 1.3 The study area 2 1.4 Stakeholder engagement 2 1.4.1 Stakeholders 2 1.4.2 Purpose 2 1.4.3 Engagement activities 2 1.5 This report 3 2 Strategic context 6 2.1 Federal and State strategies and plans 6 2.2 Regional strategies and plans 10 2.3 Summary of planned and committed transport investment 12 2.4 Emerging trends and technology 14 2.4.1 Policy and planning background 14 2.4.2 Future technologies 14 3 Road network vision and objectives 17 3.1 Road network vision and objectives 17 3.1.1 Vision 17 3.1.2 Objectives 17 3.1.3 Alignment with State Government plans 17 3.2 Performance measures 19 4 The New England region 20 4.1 Land use 20 4.2 Population 23 4.2.1 Current population 23 4.2.2 Forecast growth 23 4.3 Economy 24 4.3.1 Employment 24 4.3.2 Industry sectors 26 4.3.3 Forecast growth 28 4.4 Freight task 29 4.4.1 Overview 29

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4.4.2 RDANI current freight task estimates 30 4.4.3 Transport for NSW future freight estimates 33 4.4.4 Freight movement by mass 39 5 The New England road network 42 5.1 Road network classification 42 5.1.1 State roads 42 5.1.2 Regional roads 43 5.1.3 Local roads 44 5.2 Key road network 55 5.2.2 Road characteristics 57 5.2.3 Key road infrastructure 57 5.2.4 Connectivity 69 5.3 Freight network 69 5.3.1 Overview 69 5.3.2 Restricted vehicle access 69 5.3.3 Description of key freight corridors 74 5.3.4 Rail 81 5.3.5 Intermodal freight hubs 81 5.3.6 Truck rest areas 82 5.3.7 Heavy vehicle safety stations 82 5.4 Airports 83 6 Traffic volumes 85 6.1 State roads 85 6.2 Local roads 89 6.2.1 Armidale Regional LGA 89 6.2.2 LGA 90 6.2.3 LGA 91 6.2.4 Shire LGA 93 6.2.5 LGA 96 6.2.6 Shire LGA 96 6.2.7 LGA 96 7 Crash history 98 7.1.1 Recorded crash data 98 7.1.2 Crash severity 99 7.1.3 Crash types 99 7.1.4 Time of day 100 7.1.5 Crash locations 101 7.1.6 Crash clusters 103 8 Safety and capacity 109 8.1 Safety 109

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8.1.1 Lack of heavy vehicle rest areas 109 8.1.2 Road and rail spacing constraints 112 8.1.3 Insufficient sight distances 112 8.1.4 Unsafe road user interactions 113 8.1.5 Narrow travel lanes and shoulders 114 8.1.6 Lack of overtaking opportunities 115 8.2 Connectivity 115 8.2.1 Lack of alternative routes 116 8.2.2 Lack of freight access routes 116 8.3 Capacity 120 8.3.1 Bridge constraints 120 8.4 Condition 121 8.4.1 Drainage and flooding issues 121 8.4.2 Unsealed roads 122 8.4.3 Need for road rehabilitation 123 8.4.4 Expensive maintenance 124 8.4.5 Poor road geometry 124 9 Road network vision and objectives 126 9.1 Vision 126 9.2 Objectives 126 10 Road network strategy and improvements 127 10.1 Reduce the number of serious injury and fatality crashes 127 10.1.1 Strategy focus areas 127 10.1.2 Recommended improvements 127 10.2 Reduce interaction between heavy vehicles and other road users 128 10.2.1 Strategy focus areas 128 10.2.2 Recommended improvements 128 10.3 Improve travel times to key freight destinations 128 10.3.1 Strategy focus areas 128 10.3.2 Recommended improvements 129 10.4 Improve local industry access to intermodal terminals, existing airports and the national highway system 129 10.4.1 Strategy focus areas 129 10.4.2 Recommended improvements 131 10.5 Accommodate changing vehicle sizes, standards and technologies 132 10.5.1 Strategy focus areas 132 10.5.2 Recommended improvements 132 10.6 Embrace technologies to reduce operating costs and emissions, and improve safety and efficiency 132 10.6.1 Strategy focus areas 132 10.6.2 Recommended improvements 133

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10.7 Reduce the disruptions and delays to road users from planned and unplanned road closures 133 10.7.1 Strategy focus areas 133 10.7.2 Recommended improvements 134 10.8 Prioritisation of improvements 135 10.8.1 Identification of projects and programs 135 10.8.2 Local roads prioritisation 146 10.8.3 State roads prioritisation 147 10.9 Monitoring and review 148 11 Conclusion 151

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Appendices

No table of contents entries found. Tables

Table 2-1 Planned and under investigation or construction projects and initiatives 12 Table 3-1 Alignment with NSW Government plans 18 Table 3-2 Performance measures 19 Table 4-1 Land use breakdown 20 Table 4-2 Recent population trends 23 Table 4-3 Population projection (2011 – 2036) 24 Table 4-4 NEJO sectoral employment 2016 25 Table 4-5 Primary industry based activity in NEJO LGAs 26 Table 4-6 Estimates of local population‐based freight demands 30 Table 4-7 Cereal grain, sorghum, oilseed, and legume: freight generation from NEJO 31 Table 4-8 Cotton seed and lint: freight demands based on 2005/06 results 31 Table 4-9 Broad‐acre crop inputs: freight demands 32 Table 4-10 Sheep production ‐ freight demands of NEJO 32 Table 4-11 Beef cattle production ‐ freight demands of NEJO 33 Table 4-12 Commodity Concordance by Market Segment 33 Table 4-13 Estimated daily HV trips wholly within NEJO 35 Table 4-14 Estimated daily HV trips from NEJO to other areas 36 Table 4-15 Table 4-1 Estimated daily HV trips to NEJO from other areas 37 Table 4-16 Estimated daily HV trips to via the – non NEJO 38 Table 4-17 Estimated daily HV trips to Queensland via the – non NEJO 38 Table 4-18 Estimated daily HV trips from Queensland via the Newell Highway – non NEJO 39 Table 4-19 Estimated daily HV trips from Queensland via the New England Highway – non NEJO 39 Table 5-1 State roads 42 Table 5-2 Regional roads 43 Table 5-3 Local roads 44 Table 5-4 Armidale Regional LGA nominated roads summary – main characteristics 46 Table 5-5 Armidale Regional LGA nominated roads – other characteristics 47 Table 5-6 Glen Innes Severn LGA nominated roads – main characteristics 48 Table 5-7 Glen Innes Severn LGA nominated road – other characteristics 48 Table 5-8 Inverell LGA nominated roads summary – main characteristics 49 Table 5-9 Inverell LGA nominated roads summary – other characteristics 50 Table 5-10 Moree Plains LGA nominated roads summary – main characteristics 51 Table 5-11 Moree Plains LGA nominated roads – matched traffic counts 51 Table 5-12 Narrabri LGA nominated roads – main characteristics 52 Table 5-13 Narrabri LGA nominated roads – other characteristics 53

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Table 5-14 Tenterfield LGA nominated roads – main characteristics 53 Table 5-15 Tenterfield LGA nominated roads – other characteristics 54 Table 5-16 Uralla LGA nominated roads – main characteristics 54 Table 5-17 Uralla LGA nominated roads – other characteristics 54 Table 5-18 Key roads summary 55 Table 5-19 Uralla LGA bridge condition assessment (2018) 58 Table 5-20 Glen Innes Severn LGA bridge characteristics summary by road 60 Table 5-21 Glen Innes Severn LGA bridges - summary by locale 61 Table 5-22 Tenterfield LGA key bridge issues summary 62 Table 5-23 Armidale Regional Council – Bridge Summary 63 Table 5-24 Newell Highway freight activities 74 Table 5-25 New England Highway freight activities 75 Table 5-26 freight activities 76 Table 5-27 freight activity 77 Table 5-28 freight activity 78 Table 5-29 freight activities 79 Table 5-30 freight activities 80 Table 5-31 freight activities 80 Table 5-32 freight activities 81 Table 5-33 Intermodal terminals 82 Table 5-34 Summary of airports, airstrips and runways 83 Table 6-1 Annual average daily traffic volume 86 Table 6-2 Heavy vehicles proportion – weekday vs weekend 87 Table 6-3 Armidale Regional LGA traffic volumes – selected roads 89 Table 6-4 Glen Innes Severn LGA traffic volumes – selected roads 90 Table 6-5 Glen Innes Severn LGA traffic count data set 90 Table 6-6 Glen Innes Severn LGA road classification by location summary 91 Table 6-7 Glen Innes Severn LGA road ADT summary 91 Table 6-8 Moree Plains LGA road AADT summary 91 Table 6-9 Narrabri LGA traffic count summary 95 Table 6-10 Tenterfield LGA traffic count summary (updated) 96 Table 6-11 LGA traffic count 96 Table 6-12 Uralla Shire LGA traffic count 96 Table 7-1 Heavy vehicle crashes per local government area 98 Table 7-2 Total number of crashes based on the severity 99 Table 7-3 Top ten roads with heavy vehicle crashes 101 Table 7-4 Crash clusters on the New England road network 105 Table 8-1 Long distances between heavy vehicle rest areas 110 Table 8-2 Road and rail constraint issues 112 Table 8-3 Insufficient sight distance issues 112 Table 8-4 Unsafe road user interaction issues 113

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Table 8-5 Narrow travel lanes 114 Table 8-6 Lack of overtaking opportunities 115 Table 8-7 Lack of alternative routes 116 Table 8-8 Lack of freight access 117 Table 8-9 Bridge constraints 120 Table 8-10 Drainage and flooding issues 121 Table 8-11 Roads with unsealed sections 122 Table 8-12 Road rehabilitation required 123 Table 8-13 Road sections of expensive maintenance costs 124 Table 8-14 Poor road geometry 125 Table 10-1 Categorisation of issues 136 Table 10-2 Summary of state road issues and their impact on LGAs 136 Table 10-3 Master list of roads by LGA and issue to be addressed as part of the improvements program 138 Table 10-4 Bridge improvement program candidates 143 Table 10-5 Programs to improve the distance between main road and rail below minimum threshold for trucks 143 Table 10-6 Program to improve drainage and mitigate flooding 144 Table 10-7 Expensive maintenance roads 144 Table 10-8 Programs to address lack of sight distance 144 Table 10-9 Program to address lack of alternative routes 144 Table 10-10 Program to address lack of HV rest areas 144 Table 10-11 Program to address lack of HV access 145 Table 10-12 Program to address narrow roads – road widening 145 Table 10-13 Program to rehabilitate roads 146 Table 10-14 Program to address unsafe roads 146 Table 10-15 Program to address unsealed roads 146 Table 10-16 Local road project prioritisation by objective 147 Table 10-17 MCA Results for individual road addressing constraints 147 Table 10-18 State Road upgrades prioritisation 148 Table 10-19 Performance measures 150

Figures

Figure 1-1 Study area 4 Figure 1-2 Regional context 5 Figure 2-1 CAV platooning concept 15 Figure 4-1 LEP zoning (NEJO west) 21 Figure 4-2 LEP Zoning – (NEJO East) 22 Figure 4-3 Agricultural land uses in New England and the North West region 27 Figure 4-4 New England and North West gross value of agricultural production (2017 – 18) 28 Figure 4-5 Current freight task (2016) 40

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Figure 4-6 2036 freight task 41 Figure 5-1 Road hierarchy 45 Figure 5-2 New England road network 56 Figure 5-3 Road network speed limit 66 Figure 5-4 Number of lanes 67 Figure 5-5 Key road infrastructure 68 Figure 5-6 Freight network 70 Figure 5-7 Restricted vehicle routes 71 Figure 5-8 Freight routes, intermodal terminals, and airport locations 72 Figure 5-9 Restricted vehicle areas 73 Figure 6-1 Historical annual average daily traffic volumes 85 Figure 6-2 NEJO average traffic volumes 86 Figure 6-3 Traffic count locations 88 Figure 6-4 Narrabri LGA traffic volumes 94 Figure 7-1 Total number of heavy vehicle crashes per local government area 98 Figure 7-2 Top ten RUM code crashes 99 Figure 7-3 Top ten crash types based on RUM code 100 Figure 7-4 Total number of crashes based on time of day 100 Figure 7-5 Locations of heavy vehicle crashes based on crash severity 102 Figure 7-6 Crash cluster locations 104 Figure 8-1 Distances between heavy vehicle rest areas 111 Figure 8-2 B-Double access to key industry locations 118 Figure 8-3 Type 1 A-Double (road train) access 119 Figure 10-1 Road safety improvement program candidates(based on crash cluster information) 143 Figure 10-2 Four phase project management process 149

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1 Introduction

The New England Road Network Strategy is being developed, on behalf of New England Joint Organisation (NEJO), to determine the transport objectives, strategies and actions to support safe and efficient road transport movements. The strategy will help to support the continued growth and prosperity of the region, with a strong focus on freight transport. The following councils form NEJO:

> Armidale Regional Council; > Moree Plains Shire Council; > Tenterfield Shire Council; and > Glen Innes Severn Council; > Narrabri Shire Council; > Uralla Shire Council. > Inverell Shire Council;

1.1 Purpose The objectives of the New England Road Network Strategy (Road Network Strategy) are: 1. To prepare a network study (plan and base study) to gain an informed understanding of how vehicles, including freight use the network (input to be provided by Transport for NSW). 2. To identify pinch points within the region and adjoining regions of the identified networks to provide productivity gains for industry, business and the region. This could be a value proposition for the NSW economy and for all levels in the form of business growth and job creation. 3. Informing Council planning schemes and other economic development strategies for the North West Region. Identifying pinch points within the network will provide an understanding of where and how the economy is being impacted, and will inform recommendations for specific projects to provide productivity gains in the region. From this analysis, a number of potential projects will be identified for their potential to facilitate high productivity freight movements and economic growth. The Road Network Strategy will reflect the critical role that the New England road network plays in both supporting current industries and driving future growth and investment in the region. Ensuring accessibility and connectivity to multi-modal freight networks and improve linkages to markets, will provide greater economic prospects and certainty for the region, enabling greater productivity and success.

1.2 New England Joint Organisation NEJO is a united group of councils in northern , in association with the NSW Government focused on delivering positive economic and social benefits to its communities through collaborative advocacy and planning. The organisation has three main focus areas:

Educated, healthy Investment in Sustainable and connected critical economic growth communities infrastructure

The New England Road Network Strategy is a key project for NEJO given that freight access to roads, rail and air transport is critical to supporting and growing the region’s economy and agricultural production. Through the development of the Road Network Strategy, the NEJO will be able to: 1. Plan and prioritise services/ projects which deliver regional benefits and supports economic growth; 2. Advocate to partners on the need for these projects/services; and 3. Collaborate with partners for services and project delivery.

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1.3 The study area The Network Strategy’s study area encompasses the seven member councils of the NEJO. Councils of Moree Plains, Inverell, and Tenterfield are located at the northern edge of New South Wales, bordering Queensland. The other members are located more centrally in NSW. Notable towns within the NEJO include Tenterfield, Glen Innes, Armidale, Guyra, Inverell, Uralla, Narrabri; and Moree. The NEJO member councils share boundaries with other NSW Local Government Areas (LGA) including, Kyogle, Clarence Valley, Bellingen, Kempsey, Walcha, Tamworth Regional, Gwydir, , Warrumbungle, Coonamble; and Walgett. Gwydir LGA bisects the eastern and western areas of NEJO, requiring a collaborative approach to cross-border planning for the regional road network. The study area is shown in Figure 1-1, and in the broader regional context in Figure 1-2. NEJO is a subset within the New England and North West planning region. Some NEJO members are part of Border Regional Organisation of Councils (BROC). BROC is a regional organisation consisting of eight member councils which crosses the Queensland/ NSW border and includes: Balonne Shire, Regional, , Inverell Shire, Moree Plains Shire, Southern Downs Regional, Tenterfield Shire and Walgett Shire councils.

1.4 Stakeholder engagement Drawing on stakeholder knowledge, growth plans, and ideas is essential for ensuring the Road Network Strategy addresses the road network’s challenges, reflects the anticipated growth in freight demand, prioritises the important improvements first, and is supported, endorsed, and funded, by external organisations. The Road Network Strategy needs to reflect the strategic intent and priorities of key stakeholders, meet their business case requirements, and provide the evidence needed for funding applications.

1.4.1 Stakeholders The Road Network Strategy stakeholders include: > NEJO member councils. > Freight stakeholders: generators, consumers and operators. > Neighbouring councils. > NSW State Government including Transport for NSW (Regions, Freight Branch, Customer Strategy & Engagement, Centre of Road Safety), Department of Planning Industry & Environment, Department of Premier & Cabinet. > Commonwealth Government. > ARTC (Inland Rail).

1.4.2 Purpose Stakeholder engagement was conducted in Stage 1 to brief stakeholders on the purpose and timing of the Road Network Strategy, and share and seek knowledge on the following topics: > Key road network freight customers and their needs. > Road network issues, challenges and opportunities. > Current and planned changes to industry, land uses and development across the study area. > Information on transport infrastructure initiatives, including ideas and concepts. > Identify and prioritise linkages with other transportation networks such as rail and air.

1.4.3 Engagement activities The stakeholder engagement involved: > Letter to Council and State Government stakeholders. > Market sounding interviews with freight and industry stakeholders. > Meetings with NEJO member councils. > Council inputs into key road characteristics and issues using proforma.

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The outcomes from the market sound interviews informed the commentary on the freight corridors, and the outcomes from the meetings with NEJO member councils inform the Stage 2 road network assessments.

1.5 This report This report provides combined material from the first three stages and combines new material providing an overall full summary of the study. Stage 1 provides a strategy review assessing NEJO characteristics and economy; reviewed freight tasks and trends and examined network vision, objectives and performance measures. Stage 2 report provides a summary of the road network condition and capacity. It focuses on: network characteristics, review of traffic volumes; and analysis of crash data. Stage 3 provides a summary of the road infrastructure constraints and pinch points focusing on: identifying and documenting locations of constraints and pinch points; and reviewing these issues against the seven New England road network objectives. This report (Stage 4) provides the complete New England Road Network Strategy, drawing together the outcomes from each project stage. It includes a number of prospective projects which were identified for their potential to facilitate high productivity freight movements, economic growth and safety. Some of these may proceed to concept design and business case development, with the aim to secure support and funding.

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Figure 1-1 Study area

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Figure 1-2 Regional context

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2 Strategic context

This section presents federal, state and regional priorities for transport to deliver safe and more efficient transport networks. The following summaries set the wider strategic context for the New England Road Network Strategy. They provide overviews of the planned and committed transport infrastructure projects for the New England region. The review also informed the development of its network objectives and performance measures, which will guide transport investment decision-making for New England’s growth.

2.1 Federal and State strategies and plans

National Remote and Regional Transport Strategy, Transport and Infrastructure Council The 2015 strategy aims to present a nationally coordinated approach to addressing the specific challenges associated with transport infrastructure, service delivery and regulation in remote and regional Australia. The long-term goals of the strategy are to: > Enhance the economic and social potential of remote and regional areas through the development of appropriate transport infrastructure, services and regulation; > Improve access to employment, education and health services across remote and regional Australia by improving transport infrastructure and services; > Ensure that transport infrastructure and services in remote and regional areas are sustainable and reflect the needs of local communities, transport operators service providers and businesses; and > Ensure policy and regulation are aligned across similar environments (i.e. cross border remote areas). With a vision to ‘unlock the economic and social potential of remote and regional Australia through appropriate transport infrastructure, services and regulation’, it sets out three strategic areas of focus: transport infrastructure, transport services; and transport regulation. Under the transport infrastructure area of focus, there is an emphasis on: > Facilitating and supporting investment in transport infrastructure; > Capturing the wider benefits of projects in remote and regional areas; > Addressing sustainability in infrastructure maintenance and planning; and > Better connecting remote and regional areas.

National Freight and Supply Chain Strategy, Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Cities and Regional Development The strategy aims to deliver ‘nationally coordinated and well-planned freight systems supporting a strong and prosperous Australia’. It commits to four actions areas: > Smarter and targeted investment; > Better planning, coordination and regulation; > Better freight location and performance data; and > Improved supply chain efficiency. The four actions under the area of smarter and targeted investment address: > Ensure that domestic and international supply chains are serviced by resilient and efficient key freight corridors, precincts and assets. > Provide regional and remote Australia with infrastructure capable of connecting regions and communities to major gateways, through land links, regional airports or coastal shipping. > Identify and support digital infrastructure and communication services necessary for improved and innovative supply chains. > Advance heavy vehicle road reform to facilitate efficient investment in infrastructure.

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Future Transport Strategy 2056, TfNSW Future Transport Strategy 2056 (FT56) outlines a comprehensive strategy detailing how people and goods will be transported around the state, including high-level strategies for proposed future infrastructure and initiatives. FT56 forecasts that state freight volumes will be increased by 25 per cent by 2056 as NSW grows in population, productivity and future technologies. FT56 outlines that integrated road and rail logistics chains, supported by intermodal terminals and dedicated, high performing freight pathways will connect Greater with the regions. These dedicated and shared freight corridors and connections to regional NSW are fundamental parts of the future transport system. Greater separation of major traffic flows will support higher performance and safety with freight bypasses of major regional cities and centres. This separation will remove interactions that raise both unnecessary safety risks and negative impacts upon efficiency, for example, level rail crossings. The Inland Rail project, delivered by the Australian Rail Track Corporation, is a key project for the Australian Government, aiming to optimise the movement of freight in NSW through efficient links to ports and economically sustainable freight hubs. It will link Melbourne and ; in NSW it will include 307 kilometres of new track between Narromine and Narrabri, and 183 kilometres of upgraded track and three kilometres of new track between Narrabri and North Star. Committed initiatives in FT56 for regional NSW (0 – 10 years), with direct or indirect relevance for New England’s road network include: > Inland Rail (federally funded); > Newell Highway, Mungle Back Creek to heavy duty pavement (state and federal funded); and > Newell Highway heavy vehicle pavement upgrades – Narrabri-Moree, North of Moree (Planning). Future directions to investigate for the state’s freight network include: > Deliver a comprehensive Freight and Ports Plan to provide investment planning guidance and give industry direction on initiatives and reforms that encourage collaboration in decision making; > Create ‘smart’ networks that support integrated ‘freight as a service’ offerings with a unified access and pricing framework, that reflects the quality of service; > Continue to work with the Commonwealth, the National Transport Commission (NTC) and other jurisdictions on road pricing as part of the Heavy Vehicle Road Reform program; > Integrate transport and land use planning to separate freight and passenger traffic on major freight corridors and efficiently plan collection points in centres and at network interchanges; > Maximise the long term capacity and performance of the state’s three ports; and > Improve east-west connections to support the regional export task.

Regional NSW Services and Infrastructure Plan, Transport for NSW The plan identifies four goals for the New England North West Region: > A strong and dynamic regional economy; > A healthy environment with pristine waterways; > Strong infrastructure and transport networks for a connected future; and > Attractive and thriving communities. The plan references a hub-and-spoke approach to planning centres, with key regional centre transport hubs in the NE and north west NSW area nominated as Boggabilla, Moree, Narrabri, Wee Waa, Boggabri, Gunnedah, Guyra, Glen Innes, Inverell, Tenterfield, and Armidale nominated as a regional city transport hub. The hub and spoke arrangement support point to point load consolidation thus, support for rail operations with short-haul local pick-up and delivery (PUD) legs being performed by trucks. This is considered best practice for multimodal freight operations. The plan includes a number of transport projects and initiatives in planning, or for investigation for the region over the next 20 years. These are listed in Table 2-1 and cover committed road upgrades, the Inland Rail commitment, and initiatives for investigation in the short and long term. The 10-year vision is to provide PBS Level 3 A access:

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> “by notice to whole length of the Newell Highway and supporting road networks”; > “by permit and notice …. on freight routes East of the Newell”; > Provide 30m PBS Level 2B combination access; > “by notice to regional NSW road freight network, with supporting road networks”; and > New England Highway as a Regional and Key Road Freight Route. This translates directly into Section 5 – Road network vision and objectives – to specifically state type of vehicle each corridor is to cater for into the future, to then be able to identify what the current constraints are for that access.

NSW Freight and Ports Plan 2018 – 2023, NSW Government The NSW Freights and Ports Plan includes over 70 initiatives to be delivered by 2023, under the following five objectives, which aim to guide growth and investment in the freight and delivery industry: 1. Economic growth (productivity, sharing data, making NSW a better place to do business); 2. Efficiency, connectivity and access (travel times and reliability, trade gateway efficiency, increasing rail’s share of freight to/ from Port Botany, safe and more productive vehicles, managing the growth and efficiency of urban areas); 3. Capacity (expand rail capacity, improve road network, protect land for freight, and travel time reductions); 4. Safety (reduce fatalities and serious injuries); and 5. Sustainability (manage noise impacts, reduce emissions and health impacts). The plan notes that New England & North West produces 17 per cent of the state’s outbound freight task, and contributes to the three largest export commodities, coal, grain and livestock. Of these, livestock exports from New England and North West are forecast to grow the most by 2036, by 71 per cent. Coal and grain will have more modest growth of 11 per cent and 30 per cent respectively but on much higher volumes. The majority of commodities in NSW travel by road, with the Newell and New England Highways noted as important freight routes that will continue to experience growth over the next 20 years. The emphasis is on an increased focus on safety. There has been an increase in fatalities from crashes involving heavy vehicles since 2017. Key actions noted in the plan and relevant for the New England road network include: > Enhance productivity by investing in freight infrastructure, and delivering and improving key freight programs and projects, including the Restart NSW funding which has been made available for Fixing Country Roads ($543 million) and Fixing Country Rail ($400 million). > Removing red tape for road and rail operators in NSW to enhance productivity across the network. > Increase use of safer and more productive vehicles through implementing the NSW Heavy Vehicle Access Policy Framework, which sets out networks for Performance Based Standards (PBS) vehicles across the whole of NSW (reducing the need for operators of PBS fleets to obtain permits) and assisting local councils to make access decisions. > Reduce fatalities and serious injuries from crashes involving heavy vehicles or light trucks by implementing the NSW Road Safety Plan 2021. > Developing a rest stop framework to assist future decision making around the planning, provision and management of rest stops. > Develop a Heavy Vehicle Safety Strategy in partnership with industry to improve safety, including by increasing the take up of safety technologies. > A focus on the safety of level crossings through the Level Crossing Safety Improvement Program. > Actions arising from the Staysafe Inquiry– a Parliamentary Joint Standing Committee on Road Safety requested by the Minister for Roads, Maritime and Freight. > Assist local councils to plan for freight needs by providing assistance to identify current and future freight and logistics requirements, and promote, guide and inform appropriate local responses to freight and

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logistics planning issues in local strategic planning statements, local environmental plans and development control plans.

Road Safety Plan 2021, NSW Government The Road Safety Plan contains targeted and proven initiatives to progress towards road safety goals, including reducing deaths by 30 per cent by 2021, and zero deaths by 2056. The Plan is based on evidence and expert advice from across Australia and countries with the safest roads worldwide. The Safer Roads Program is a state-wide infrastructure improvement program that aims to deliver projects addressing road safety issues such as blackspots. The 2018–2019 program will see 180 projects funded, with the majority in regional areas via the Saving Lives on Country Roads. The program has completed, or committed funding to the following projects in, or close to the New England region: > Safety improvements on the section of the New England Highway between Uralla to Armidale to reduce the likelihood of crashes including audio-tactile line marking and sealed shoulder ($10,000,000, FY2018/ 2019); > Safety improvements on the section of the New England Highway between Uralla to Wallabadah to reduce the likelihood and severity of crashes including safety barrier, delineation, audio tactile line marking and sealed shoulder ($3 million in FY2018/ 2019 and $3 million in FY2019/ 2020); > Safety improvements on a short section of Waterfall Way near METZ, to reduce the likelihood and severity of crashes including safety barrier and delineation ($452,300, FY2018/ 2019); and The NSW Government also commits to partner with the heavy vehicle industry to: > Increase safety features in the fleet, such as blind spot monitoring and under run protection; and > Enhance integration of fleet safety into heavy vehicle access policy.

Building Momentum - State Infrastructure Strategy 2018 – 2038, Infrastructure NSW The vision of the State Infrastructure Strategy is to boost productivity, global competitiveness and to improve quality of life through implementing the right infrastructure in the right places. The strategy acknowledges the diversity of each region in NSW, with specific infrastructure and service needs. It aims to support regional development through reliable and efficient access to markets, including international gateways and the National Land Transport Network, and also reduce the levels of accident trauma on the regional transport network, as well as protect regional communities and physical infrastructure from extreme weather and climate change. Identified road issues in regional NSW include: > A lack of overtaking lanes; > Restricted access for high productivity freight vehicles due to road design constraints; > Recurring road and rail closures in flood-prone areas; > A shortfall of facilities to manage driver fatigue for heavy vehicle operators; > Rail level crossings without boom gates that decrease the safety for road and rail users; and > Narrow bridges, road shoulders and clear zones that increase the risk of vehicle crashes. The strategy’s assessment of Gross Value Add indicates that the New England & North West region is the area of NSW most reliant on agriculture for contribution to its economy. Armidale is referred to as an education and research city, with excellence in education and a number of joint research partnerships with local industries and focused research centres. Key strategic directions from the strategy address geographical and sectoral outcomes. Of relevance to the New England road network, the strategy’s responses include: > Improved east-west connections to markets and access to international gateways; > Provide connections to and from Inland Rail; > Supporting the development of regional hubs by enhancing their accessibility and connectivity via major north-south and east west links;

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> Overcoming local constraints on the regional road and rail networks that limit the use of high productivity freight vehicles and rail freight; and > Completing missing links in the regional network, creating travel time savings and safety benefits that increase productivity. Infrastructure programs supported by the strategy include: > Fixing Country Roads Program: providing targeted funding to local councils to repair and upgrade regional NSW roads. As at the end of 2017 a total of 210 projects valued at $319 million have received $195 million in Restart NSW funds. It is also recommended for ongoing funding for another 10 years, with a focus on targeting safety and productivity upgrades to the road network to unlock High Productivity Freight Vehicle network capacity. > Regional Road Freight Corridor Fund: Infrastructure NSW recommends that the NSW Government continue the Regional Road Freight Corridor Fund for a further 10 years to ‘overcome physical challenges and network restrictions. In particular, funding should focus on freight productivity upgrades on key east- west routes linking the National Land Transport Network, via a ‘top down’ strategic approach, and supported by completed Corridor Strategies. > Bridges for the Bush Program: The program improves road freight productivity by replacing or upgrading bridges across NSW. The strategy recommends funding this program for a further 10 years, once the Rebuilding NSW fund is exhausted in 2025. > Fixing Country Rail Program: a $400 million program to fund rail infrastructure enhancements that eliminate connectivity constraints and reduce the costs of moving freight on the regional rail network. A pilot, run in 2016, allocated $14 million in funding to six projects across NSW. The total reservation of $150 million for the first round of the program was forecast to be fully allocated to projects by early 2018.

2.2 Regional strategies and plans

New England North West Regional Plan 2036, Department of Planning and Environment The New England North West Regional Plan presents strategic planning considerations for land use and infrastructure for the region, guiding development and investment to 2036. The vision of the Plan is for a sustainable future that maximises the advantages of the region’s diverse climates, landscapes and resources. The plan notes that Armidale is one of the major growth centres and planning infrastructure to support this growth in population and economy is critical. A goal of the plan includes a growing and diversified agricultural sector, with the following relevant actions to achieve it: > Implement local planning controls to protect freight and logistics facilities from encroachment of sensitive land uses; > Protect freight and transport corridors, and strategically locate freight intermodal terminals to support further industry development; > Support the work of councils to investigate funding opportunities to provide greater access for high productivity vehicles across the region to support freight productivity; and > Work with councils to identify, coordinate and prioritise local road projects that help support the regional freight network.

Newell Highway Corridor Strategy, NSW Government The Newell Highway Corridor Strategy sets the direction for managing road safety, transport efficiency and asset maintenance issues on the Newell Highway over the next 20 years. The corridor is a highly significant, major rural highway, located west of the Great Dividing Range, and servicing western NSW as a north-south corridor. The corridor objectives include supporting efficient access for freight vehicles and enhancing safety for all road users. Key corridor issues and challenges identified cover: > Urban amenity, particularly when the highway passes through towns; > Lack of overtaking lanes that impacts travel times; > Poor road geometry resulting in reduced travel speeds;

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> Limitations on higher productivity vehicle access by current intersection configurations; > Pavement strength and remaining life doesn’t address the current and future needs of freight vehicles; > Low level of flood immunity along the entire corridor; > Conflict points between vehicle types; > Inadequate rest stop areas; and > Rail level crossings are a safety risk. A number of town bypasses are underway or in planning over the next 20 years, including for Moree, West Wyalong, Parkes, and Dubbo. The strategy also identifies a number of intersections along the corridor at which heavy vehicles cannot safely manoeuvre, including and rail level crossings. The Moree Bypass was completed in August 2015 and the Parkes Bypass is currently being designed. Short, medium and long-term investment priorities for the corridor over the next 20 years are discussed in the strategy. These include intersection improvements, town bypasses, improvements to rest areas, pavement reconstruction, providing overtaking lanes, implementing safety barriers, improving signalling and improving flood immunity.

New England Highway Corridor Strategy, NSW Government The New England Highway Corridor Strategy aims to plan for an efficient road transport corridor with capacity for future growth. The short-term priorities for the corridor include: > Constructing the realignment at Bolivia Hill; > Planning for heavy vehicle enforcement facilities to support the growth in freight; and > Continuing to develop the Tenterfield heavy vehicle bypass.

Waterfall Way Draft Corridor Strategy The Waterfall Way Draft Corridor Strategy will guide development of the corridor to improve safety, traffic efficiency and sustainability. The corridor is highly utilised by primary industry including agriculture and mining. The corridor also provides regional access to tourist locations and to the University of New England in Armidale. The Strategy’s vision for the corridor is for a safe route for all road users and to support regional development by maintaining a reliable link for key freight movements. The Strategy describes a number of challenges on the corridor as well as associated actions to improve conditions. These actions include: > Completing an audit and assessment of bridges along the corridor suitable for widening; > Working with council to investigate opportunities to improve flood immunity level and route reliability; > Improving eastbound and westbound overtaking opportunities; > Identifying opportunities to strengthen pavement and carry out pavement repair work along the corridor on a priority basis; > Progressively addressing identified high risk slopes on a priority basis; > Investigating options to install permanent vehicle activated signage and widen sealed shoulders and lane widths in narrow sections; and > Investigating opportunities for high visibility line marking, raised pavement markers and fluorescent signage to assist motorists during times of fog and rain.

Northern Inland Region of NSW – Freight Study, Peece for RDANI The Northern Inland Region of NSW Freight Study was produced by Peece for Regional Development Australia – Northern Inland (RDANI) in 2012 to outline a clear strategy to improve the efficiency of road freight movements across the region. The study presents the drivers for freight in the region and gaps in infrastructure provisions. The study concludes with eight strategies for improving freight efficiency. They are: 1. RDANI to encourage councils to prepare a $40 million funding project with 50 per cent funding from future tranches of the Commonwealth Regional Development Australia Fund;

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2. RDANI to publish a map of the freight route network locating the high priority freight projects as a reference for individual councils and groups of councils in making submissions for road funding; 3. Collect time‐series data across the region to quantify the benefits from investment in road infrastructure; 4. Support the extension of Freight Efficient Vehicles (FEVs) where the infrastructure can accommodate the higher vehicle mass; 5. Encourage the Commonwealth to maintain funding for the National Highways in the region, namely the New England and Newell Highways; 6. Encourage the State Government to invest in those regional and local roads that are critical for the efficient movement of freight; 7. Explore options for improving productivity on the Kamilaroi Highway; and 8. Encourage stakeholders including the transport industry to use the freight priority program as a platform for lobbying for road funding within the region.

2.3 Summary of planned and committed transport investment Major investments in improvements to the transport system are underway across NSW, with road upgrades, safety improvements, and major new rail projects all planned to move people and goods more efficiently. Several projects and planning initiatives directly or indirectly affect the New England road network, are summarised in Table 2-1. Not all of these projects are approved to proceed, some are in planning, proposal or business case stage.

Table 2-1 Planned and under investigation or construction projects and initiatives Project Source Location Timing New England Inland Rail Regional NSW Services Moree Plains Shire Committed 0-10 and Infrastructure Plan, Council, Narrabri years. Freight and Ports Plan Shire Council. 2018-2023, FT56. Inland Rail Intermodal Facility Regional NSW Services Moree Plains Shire For investigation investigations and Infrastructure Plan. Council, Narrabri 0-10 years. Shire Council. Newell Highway, Mungle Back Creek to FT56, Regional NSW Moree Plains Shire Committed 0-10 Boggabilla heavy duty pavement Services and Infrastructure Council. years. Plan. Newell Highway heavy vehicle pavement FT56, Regional NSW Moree Plains Shire Committed 0-10 upgrades – Narrabri-Moree, North of Services and Infrastructure Council, Narrabri years. Moree (Planning). Plan. Shire Council. Newell Highway Overtaking Lanes Regional NSW Services Moree Plains Shire Committed 0-10 and Infrastructure Plan. Council, Narrabri years. Shire Council. Newell Highway Improvements (in addition Regional NSW Services Moree Plains Shire For investigation to those committed) and Infrastructure Plan. Council, Narrabri 0-10 years. Shire Council. New England Highway, Bolivia Hill Regional NSW Services Tenterfield Shire Under Upgrade and Infrastructure Plan. Council. construction. New England Highway Improvements Regional NSW Services Armidale Regional For investigation (Armidale to border) and Infrastructure Plan, Council, Glen Innes 0-10 years. New England Corridor Severn Council, Strategy. Tenterfield Shire Council. New England Highway Tenterfield Bypass Department of Tenterfield Shire Planning Infrastructure, Transport, Council. underway. Regional Development and Communications

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Project Source Location Timing Waterfall Way corridor improvements Regional NSW Services Armidale Regional For investigation and Infrastructure Plan, Council 0-10 years Waterfall Way Corridor Strategy Gwydir Highway Improvements (between Regional NSW Services Glen Innes Severn For investigation Grafton and Glen Innes, Jackadgery) and Infrastructure Plan Council 0-10 years Gwydir Highway improvements (Inland) Regional NSW Services Moree Plains Shire For investigation and Infrastructure Plan Council, Inverell 0-10 years Shire Council, Glen Innes Severn Council Gwydir Highway improvements (Inland) - Regional NSW Services Moree Plains Shire At design stage, Washpool and Infrastructure Plan Council, Inverell committed 0-1 Shire Council, Glen years Innes Severn Council Kamilaroi Highway Improvements Regional NSW Services Narrabri Shire For investigation and Infrastructure Plan Council 0-10 years Main Northern Line - improvements to Regional NSW Services Uralla Shire Council, For investigation address pinch points and Infrastructure Plan Armidale Regional 0-10 years Council Adjacent to New England , second road bridge over Premier’s Priorities, Completion by railway line, Gunnedah Regional NSW Services Council February 2021 and Infrastructure Plan Oxley Highway Improvements Regional NSW Services Council For investigation and Infrastructure Plan, 0-10 years Oxley Highway Corridor Strategy New Tabulam Bridge, Clarence River, Premier’s Priorities Tabulam Completion by Bruxner Highway July 2020 New England Highway Improvements Regional NSW Services Tamworth Regional For investigation (between Willow Tree to Armidale) and Infrastructure Plan Council, Uralla Shire 0-10 years Council State-wide programs and initiatives A comprehensive Freight and Ports Plan FT56 NSW-wide to provide investment planning guidance and give industry direction on initiatives and reforms that encourage collaboration in decision making Create ‘smart’ networks that support FT56 NSW-wide integrated ‘freight as a service’ offerings with a unified access and pricing framework, that reflects the quality of service Continue to work with the Commonwealth, FT56 NSW-wide the National Transport Commission (NTC) and other jurisdictions on road pricing as part of the Heavy Vehicle Road Reform program Integrate transport and land use planning FT56 NSW-wide to separate freight and passenger traffic on major freight corridors and efficiently plan collection points in centres and at network interchanges Maximise the long term capacity and FT56 NSW-wide performance of the state’s three ports

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Project Source Location Timing Improve east-west connections to support FT56 NSW-wide the regional export task Electric Car quick charging stations NSW-wide $3 million allocated

2.4 Emerging trends and technology

2.4.1 Policy and planning background Changes in demand and technology will have an impact on the characteristics of the future freight network, resulting in different vehicles types, industries and volumes. Infrastructure will need to be designed to adapt to these changes, and other environmental factors such as changing levels of interaction with light vehicles and vulnerable roads users. The Australian Government acknowledges the importance of preparing for major technological change in the transport sector. It released the Transport and Infrastructure Council’s National Policy Framework for Land Transport Technology and Action Plan in August 2019, to provide guidance for governments as they consider the disruptive future changes. The policy framework commits to identifying and facilitating emerging technologies to improve freight outcomes. Improvements in efficiency, risk reduction, fuel usage, greenhouse gas emissions, and supply chain traceability are identified for research under the National Action Plan of the National Freight and Supply Chain Strategy. The policy framework highlights a case study of connected heavy vehicles trialled on the which tested vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communication, with a focus on sharing collision warnings, speed warnings and red-light warnings.

2.4.2 Future technologies Advances in connected and autonomous vehicles, smart infrastructure, digital information, sustainability and accessibility will transform future freight and logistics. This section outlines expected future technologies that should be considered when planning for the NEJO region.

2.4.2.1 Connected and autonomous freight vehicles TfNSW’s Future Transport Strategy 2056 outlines that NSW will be proactive and prepare for the emergence of connected and autonomous vehicles (CAVs), and work with the Federal Government and other jurisdictions to develop national standards and road rules. Part of this planning also includes conducting CAV testing on NSW roads. CAVs refer to vehicles that communicate with other vehicles and with road infrastructure. The Austroads webinar and supporting paper, Infrastructure Changes to Support Automated Vehicles on Rural and Metropolitan Highways and Freeways, was presented on 7 November 20191. This presentation provided an overview of the current gaps in physical and digital infrastructure needed to support CAVs in the future. It is predicted that by 2025, most new vehicles will be equipped with vehicle vision, capable of reading traffic signs and lane configuration. The benefits of CAVs used in freight movement include: > Improved road safety due to guidance technology; > Reduced driver fatigue; > Fewer emissions if CAVs are fuelled by alternative sources such as electricity or hydrogen energy; > Greater vehicle reliability and reduced maintenance costs; and > Digital optimisation of route and speed for movements.

1 Austroads webinar accessed from:https://austroads.com.au/publications/connected-and-automated-vehicles/web-r606-19

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Autonomous long-haul freight vehicles could save ten per cent in fuel costs by forming platoons when travelling in a close convoy due to reduced air drag2. This concept is illustrated in Figure 2-1. CAVs use Lidar sensory to determine its position in relation to the road and its features such as road lines and road signs. Potential road line marking requirements for freight CAVs are: > Quality and width; > Luminance contrast ratio; > Retro reflectivity (wet and dry performance); and > Line markings on both sides of the lane (edge lines, centre lines and lane lines). Current applications of vehicle vision technology also include identifying pot holes, road pavement and weather conditions.

Figure 2-1 CAV platooning concept

Source: 23rd World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems, held in Melbourne, October 2016

2.4.2.2 Intelligent Transport Systems Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) encompasses advanced digitised information and communications technology to deliver safer, more efficient and sustainable transport across all modes, including freight vehicles and rail. ITS enables a fully connected public and private transport network through physical and digital infrastructure. Implementation of ITS can greatly improve the competitiveness and performance of the freight/ logistics system in NSW. ITS Australia3 describes the benefits and opportunities to include: > Reduction in congestion at intermodal terminals and reduced operator costs; > Facilitate CAVs operating in platoon formations; > Optimisation of freight routing including distance, travel time congested areas; > Ability to travel in low congestion conditions at off peak times of the day to better utilise infrastructure; > Improved fuel efficiency due to digitised environmental and road network information; > Reducing empty vehicle movements through digitised planning practices; > Reduced labour costs; > Better enforcement of heavy vehicle restricted roads; > Better monitoring of dangerous goods carrying vehicles; and > Tracing and tracking of goods.

2 Infrastructure Partnerships Australia, Automated Vehicles – Do We Know Which Road to Take? 2017 3 ITS Australia, Smart Transport for Australia, March 2017

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2.4.2.3 Electric vehicles Currently, logistics heavy vehicles consist of common internal combustion engines vehicles. Alternatively fuelled vehicles are being investigated including electric vehicles and hydrogen fuelled vehicles. Factors to consider when planning for electric vehicles are: > Recharge/ fuelling station provision and location; > Energy grid supply and demand; and > Battery storage capabilities and driving range of vehicles. Another important factor to consider is that freight operators could be reluctant to purchase electric vehicles without certainty that charging stations will be provided on major freight routes. Despite higher capital cost, the benefits of electric freight vehicles over traditional vehicles are lower maintenance and running costs, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

Tesla Semi vehicle is expected to have a maximum range of 800 kilometres per a full battery charge, with an acceleration from 0 to 100 in 20 seconds with 40 tons payload4.

2.4.2.4 Hydrogen fuel cell powered vehicles Hydrogen is fuel captured through water electrolysis, with the only by-product being water. Considerations for hydrogen as fuel include: > Difficult storage of fuel source; and > Expensive process to extract fuel. The Hydrogen Highway is a concept developed by Innovate Australia and other interested parties5. The concept involves provision of a network of hydrogen fuelling stations for hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles situated along the National Highway 95 (located in Western Australia). A joint venture of Seven-Eleven Japan and Toyota is testing hydrogen fuel cell delivery trucks to transport goods to the convenience stores in Tokyo6.

4 https://www.businessinsider.com/this-expert-says-tesla-semi-is-economically-and-ecologically-pointless-2019-2/?r=AU&IR=T 5 Innovate Australia, Hydrogen Highway, https://innovateaustralia.org/projects/hydrogen-highway/? 6 https://global.toyota/en/newsroom/corporate/22833613.html

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3 Road network vision and objectives

3.1 Road network vision and objectives The vision and set of objectives for the New England freight road network is described in the following sections.

3.1.1 Vision

The New England Road Network moves people, freight and services safely and efficiently, supporting access to centres, economic productivity, both local and regional trips, and a range of vehicles. With a focus on the reliable movement of goods, and safe interaction between road users, the New England Network Road Strategy aims to: Prioritise safety; Improve freight efficiency; Provide capacity for the growing freight task; Facilitate access to the regional road network; Integrate the road network with other existing air and rail transportation networks; Prioritise investment; Facilitate access to markets; Support growth in population and economy; and Embrace adaptability towards emerging technologies.

3.1.2 Objectives The seven road network objectives for the New England road network will guide the development and prioritisation of improvement actions and initiatives:

Reduce the number of serious injury and fatality crashes. Reduce interaction between heavy vehicles and other road users. Improve travel times to key freight destinations. Improve local industry access to intermodal terminals, existing airports and the national highway system. Accommodate changing vehicle sizes, standards and technologies. Embrace technologies to reduce operating costs and emissions, and improve safety and efficiency. Reduce the disruptions and delays to road users from planned and unplanned road closures.

3.1.3 Alignment with State Government plans The New England road network objectives need to reflect NSW Government plans and priorities. Each objective is presented in Table 3-1, along with the NSW Government plans and the relevant aspects of goals that it aligns with.

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Table 3-1 Alignment with NSW Government plans New England road Relevant NSW Relevant goal / customer outcome / aim network objective Government plan Reduce the number NSW Freight and Ports . Safety (reduce fatalities and serious injuries). of serious injury and Plan fatality crashes. Future Transport 2056 . A safe transport system for every customer with zero deaths or serious injuries on the network by 2056. Reduce interaction New England North West . Attractive and thriving communities. between heavy Regional Plan vehicles and other . road users. Future Transport 2056 The appropriate movement and place balance is established enabling people and goods to move efficiently through the network whilst ensuring local access and vibrant places. Improve travel times NSW Freight and Ports . Efficiency, connectivity and access (travel times and to key freight Plan reliability, trade gateway efficiency, increasing rail’s share of destinations. freight from Port Botany, safe and more productive vehicles, managing the growth and efficiency of urban areas). . Capacity (expand rail capacity, improve road network, protect land for freight, and travel time reductions). New England North West . A strong and dynamic regional economy. Regional Plan . Strong infrastructure and transport networks for a connected future. Future Transport 2056 . Changes in land use, population and demand, including seasonal changes, are served by the transport system. . Economic development is enabled by regional transport services and infrastructure. Improve local NSW Freight and Ports . Economic growth (productivity, sharing data, making NSW a industry access to Plan better place to do business). intermodal . terminals, existing New England North West A strong and dynamic regional economy. airports and the Regional Plan . Strong infrastructure and transport networks for a connected national highway future. system. Future Transport 2056 . Economic development is enabled by regional transport services and infrastructure. Accommodate NSW Freight and Ports . Efficiency, connectivity and access (travel times and changing vehicle Plan reliability, trade gateway efficiency, safe and more productive sizes, standards vehicles, managing the growth). and technologies. New England North West . Strong infrastructure and transport networks for a connected Regional Plan future. Embrace NSW Freight and Ports . Efficiency, connectivity and access (travel times and technologies to Plan reliability, trade gateway efficiency, safe and more productive reduce operating vehicles, managing the growth). costs and . Sustainability (manage noise impacts, reduce emissions and emissions, and health impacts). improve safety and efficiency. New England North West . A healthy environment with pristine waterways. Regional Plan Future Transport 2056 . A transport system that adapts to and embraces new technology. Reduce the NSW Freight and Ports . Efficiency, connectivity and access (travel times and disruptions and Plan reliability, trade gateway efficiency, safe and more productive delays to road users vehicles, managing the growth). from planned and . Capacity (expand rail capacity, improve road network, protect unplanned road land for freight, and travel time reductions). closures. New England North West . Strong infrastructure and transport networks for a connected Regional Plan future. Future Transport 2056 . A transport system that is resilient to significant weather events including floods, fog and bush fires.

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3.2 Performance measures Performance measures linked to objectives will help to provide understanding of how well each objective is being progressed. Suggested performance measures and their data sources are listed in Table 3-2.

Table 3-2 Performance measures New England road network Performance measures Data source objective Reduce the number of serious Number of road traffic crashes per year (by TFNSW reported crash statistics injury and fatality crashes. mode). Number of fatal and serious injuries (by TFNSW reported crash statistics vehicle type). Vehicle travel speeds in town centres. Radar Number and spacing of heavy vehicle rest Asset review areas. Reduce interaction between Proportion of heavy vehicles in town Classified vehicle counts heavy vehicles and other road centres. users. Proportion of through traffic in the town Origin – Destination survey centres. Improve travel times to key Travel times along key freight routes. Travel time surveys freight destinations. Length of delay experienced by freight Level of service vehicles. Improve local industry access Travel distances for freight vehicles. Origin – Destination survey to intermodal terminals, existing airports and the Volume and proportion of freight destined Freight data and forecasts national highway system. for outside of the region. Accommodate changing Length of network that accommodates TFNSW heavy vehicle network maps vehicle sizes, standards and different vehicle sizes. technologies. Satisfaction with road network by freight Stakeholder engagement operators. Embrace technologies to Changes to policy to facilitate electric Policy review reduce operating costs and vehicles. emissions, and improve safety and efficiency. Number of publicly accessible electric Asset review charging stations. Proportion of charging stations that use Asset review renewable energy. Vehicle operating costs. Economic estimates Estimate of greenhouse gas emission Economic estimates associated with travel. Reduce the disruptions and Number of complaints / reported incidents Community survey delays to road users from on the road network. planned and unplanned road closures. Community and stakeholder satisfaction Community survey with the road network. Length of time for road closures. Maintenance reports Rating from risk assessment of new Design reports. infrastructure.

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4 The New England region

4.1 Land use The Australian Bureau of Statistics identifies that 79 per cent of NEJO is predominantly made up of primary production land (over 64,000 square kilometres), followed by parkland/ national park (14 per cent). Land use areas are further broken down in Table 4-1. LEP zoning for the New England region is shown in Figure 4-1 and Figure 4-2.

Table 4-1 Land use breakdown Land use type Area (km2) Per cent of total Primary production 64,027 79% Parkland 11,322 14% Other 5,491 7% Residential 163 0.20% Water 62 0.08% Industrial 11 0.01% Education 5 0.01% Commercial 3 0.004% Hospital/ medical 1 0.001% Transport infrastructure 0 0.001% Grand total 81,085 100%

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2016

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Figure 4-1 LEP zoning (NEJO west)

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Figure 4-2 LEP Zoning – (NEJO East)

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4.2 Population

4.2.1 Current population The overall population of the NEJO region has decreased slightly in number from 96,020 in 2013 to 95,740 in 2018, as shown in Table 4-2. The highest proportion of residents live in Armidale Regional Council, approximately five times greater than the lowest population, in the Uralla Shire Council. Drought could have contributed to the declining or static population trends in recent years within New England JO regional area. Reduction in regional populations is typically symptomatic of tough economic conditions, particularly for those LGAs most dependent on the agricultural sector. This reduction in some LGA’s populations might be reversed when favourable climatic and economic conditions return.

Table 4-2 Recent population trends Local Government Area 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 PA Growth Armidale Regional Council 29,983 30,085 30,193 30,313 30,617 30,707 0.48% Glen Innes Severn Council 8,909 8,919 8,926 8,934 8,923 8,908 0.00% Inverell Shire Council 16,627 16,676 16,731 16,812 16,827 16,844 0.26% Moree Plains Shire Council 13,925 13,853 13,735 13,627 13,461 13,350 -0.84% Narrabri Shire Council 13,489 13,480 13,459 13,367 13,287 13,231 -0.39% Tenterfield Shire Council 6,834 6,769 6,713 6,697 6,660 6,638 -0.58% Uralla Shire Council 6,253 6,238 6,194 6,147 6,106 6,062 -0.62% NEJO total 96,020 96,020 95,951 95,897 95,881 95,740 -0.06%

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics population data (2013 – 2018)7

4.2.2 Forecast growth The population of the New England region is expected to grow to 102,950 in 2036. Almost one-third of the population will reside in the strategic centres of Inverell, Narrabri and Moree. Over 50 per cent of the region’s population are located in Tamworth and Armidale. These will be key growth centres for the region.8 Population growth for each LGA in NEJO is estimated by the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment, shown in Table 4-3. The greatest changes in population between 2011 and 2036 are expected to occur in Armidale Regional Council LGA, with an increase of 8,950 people, and in Moree Plains Shire Council, with a decrease of 2,950 people. The overall population in the NEJO LGA’s is expected to reach 102,950 people in 2036, which is about 0.4% compounding annually. The weakness of the regional economy to self-generate population leads to the arguable conclusion that the population growth that is occurring in this region has a direct link to State government investment in services and infrastructure.

7 Accessed at: https://itt.abs.gov.au/itt/r.jsp?RegionSummary®ion=17650&dataset=ABS_REGIONAL_LGA2018&geoconcept=LGA_2018&maplayeri d=LGA2018&measure=MEASURE&datasetASGS=ABS_REGIONAL_ASGS2016&datasetLGA=ABS_REGIONAL_LGA2018®ionLG A=LGA_2018®ionASGS=ASGS_2016

8 New England North West Draft Regional Plan

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Table 4-3 Population projection (2011 – 2036) Projected population 2011 – 2036 Local 2011 2016 2021 2026 2031 2036 Total Total % Annual % Government Area Change Change Change Armidale Regional 29,700 31,500 33,400 35,200 36,950 38,600 8,950 30.1% 1.1% Council Glen Innes Severn 8,900 8,800 8,650 8,450 8,200 7,850 -1,050 -11.8% -0.5% Council Inverell Shire 16,600 17,300 17,900 18,450 18,900 19,300 2,700 16.4% 0.6% Council Moree Plains Shire 14,050 13,750 13,250 12,650 11,950 11,100 -2,950 -20.9% -0.9% Council Narrabri Shire 13,450 13,400 13,300 13,100 12,800 12,400 -1,000 -7.6% -0.3% Council Tenterfield Shire 7,000 7,150 7,250 7,250 7,250 7,150 150 2.3% 0.1% Council Uralla Shire 6,250 6,350 6,450 6,500 6,550 6,550 300 5.1% 0.2% Council TOTAL 95,950 98,250 100,200 101,600 102,600 102,950

Source: Department of Planning, Industry and Environment. Accessed at: https://www.planning.nsw.gov.au/Research-and- Demography/Demography/Population-projections%20?acc_section=nsw_population_projection_scenarios

4.3 Economy NEJO is a subset within the New England North West (NENW) region which also includes the LGAs of Tamworth, Gunnedah, Liverpool Plains, Walcha and Gwydir. The NENW region has a strong and growing economy that is valued at almost $8.9 billion and supports almost 67,000 jobs9. It is the largest producer of agriculture and food in NSW, is home to other industries as diverse as higher education, renewable energy, healthcare and mining. This section draws on information from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), the New England North West Regional Plan, and the 2012 RDANI freight study final report10 that provides a good base for comparison for this 2019 study. That study also provides some useful benchmarks which can be applied here. Despite relatively adverse weather conditions which significantly impacted on agricultural production, many of the observations from that study still prevail.

4.3.1 Employment The ABS LGA Employment data for 2016 shows that NEJO accounts for about 57% of the employment in the NENW zone. Across NEJO, Armidale is the LGA with the largest employment, leading across most sectors except Agriculture, forestry and fishing where Moree Plains dominates. Manufacturing is dominated by Inverell and Narrabri dominates the sectors of Mining and the combined Transport, Postal and Warehousing group. Across the region, “agriculture, forestry and fishing” is clearly the prime industry, accounting for about 17% of NEJO employment. The second highest healthcare and social assistance with 12% across NEJO and third is Education and training with 12%. The education sector is driven by the contribution of the University of New England at Armidale. The region’s employment by sector is summarised in Table 4-4.

9 Draft New England North West Regional Plan, Department of Planning and Environment 10 Regional Development Australia – Northern Inland, 2012, Northern Inland Region of NSW – Freight Study, consultant’s report by Peece Pty Ltd

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Table 4-4 NEJO sectoral employment 2016 Employment Field Armidale Glen Innes Inverell Moree Plains Narrabri Tenterfield Uralla Total Agriculture, forestry and fishing 1,316 645 785 1,460 1,143 599 445 6,393 Mining 60 17 50 17 320 33 8 505 Manufacturing 317 109 722 157 180 85 95 1,665 Electricity, gas water and waste 85 37 69 52 75 18 19 355 services Construction 695 225 430 372 344 201 221 2,488 Wholesale trade 195 75 164 174 145 28 57 838 Retail trade 1,316 327 766 488 525 248 229 3,899 Accommodation and food services 951 273 380 314 361 178 164 2,621 Transport, postal and warehousing 268 129 158 221 274 111 84 1,245 Information media and 109 10 44 29 35 15 19 261 telecommunications Financial and insurance services 256 37 76 110 64 20 46 609 Rental, hiring and real estate 121 27 63 52 46 33 32 374 services Professional Scientific & Technical 634 88 196 215 268 93 120 1,614 Services Administrative and support services 402 102 177 162 192 49 68 1,152 Public administration and safety 585 256 323 349 291 152 188 2,144 Education and training 2365 259 544 529 402 196 396 4,691 Health care and social assistance 1,670 433 842 535 589 302 322 4,693 Arts and recreation services 85 34 31 40 29 25 24 268 Other services 402 153 234 261 268 72 76 1,466 Unknown 495 -12 339 -16 106 -97 20 835 Total 12,327 3,224 6,393 5,521 5,657 2,361 2,633 38,116

Source: Census, Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2016

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4.3.2 Industry sectors

4.3.2.1 Summary Generally, the regional economy is largely undiversified and there is a heavy dependence on agriculture. Adverse weather conditions such as flood, drought and fire create a large threat to the regional economy. The eastern shires along the New England Highway axis, Tenterfield, Glen Innes Severn, Armidale and Uralla are focussed on pastoral activity – sheep and cattle but there is significant forestry activity especially to the east of the New England Highway. These areas are unirrigated and not well suited to broad acre cropping activities. In the west along the Gwydir Highway, through Inverell and Gwydir Shires, the terrain becomes less hilly and there is a gradual transition into field crops and broad acre crops and artesian-sourced irrigation is located along the Newell Highway axis. Cotton and grain production dominate in the west with massive quantities of grain moving out of the district, predominantly by rail. There are thousands of truck movements from farm to silo or railhead for grain. Table 4-5 summarises primary industry sector within NEJO.

Table 4-5 Primary industry based activity in NEJO LGAs Local Pastoral Mixed Broad-acre- Processing Forestry Mining Government Agriculture cropping Area Armidale Mainly Some Minor Timber milling Extensive Negligible sheep with specialist forests to some cattle horticulture the east Glen Innes Mainly Some Minor Timber milling Extensive Negligible sheep with specialist forests to some cattle horticulture the east

Inverell Mainly Grain Large cattle Some Negligible sheep with production abattoir some cattle Moree Plains Mixed sheep Some Major winter Cotton gins Pilliga forest No mining and cattle specialist grain and horticulture summer cotton Narrabri Some Major winter Cotton gins Pilliga forest Major coal specialist grain and Extensive mines horticulture summer forests in cotton the east Tenterfield Mixed sheep Some Minor Timber milling Extensive Minor and cattle specialist forests to horticulture the east Uralla Mainly Some Minor Limited Minor Minor sheep with specialist some cattle horticulture

Other key sectors which provide a point of differentiation with the region are Armidale which has a major education and high-tech scientific research presence and Narrabri which has an emerging coal mining cluster in the area to the north east of Boggabri. These two sectors are insulated from the vagaries of weather conditions and this gives the local economies in those LGAs a degree of resilience not possible in the less economically diversified LGAs.

4.3.2.2 Agriculture sector The three largest agricultural businesses in New England are cotton, broad acre grains and livestock grazing. These have a significant impact on regional freight generation in transport of primary produce to market and of the transportation of inputs for production. Productive agricultural land covers around 67 per cent of the region, making it one of the top agricultural producing regions in NSW. Agricultural land use in the New England and the North West region are shown in Figure 4-3.

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Figure 4-3 Agricultural land uses in New England and the North West region

Source: ABARES, http://www.agriculture.gov.au/abares/research-topics/aboutmyregion/nsw-new-england#agricultural-sector

The Draft New England North West Regional Plan describes the following agribusinesses in the region: > Cotton - The North West district is Australia’s most productive cotton producing area, generating around 30 per cent of the nation’s cotton crop and the highest average cotton yields in Australia. Cotton is the highest value agricultural commodity in the region, with a gross value of around $800 million in 2011. > Broad acre grains - Wheat, sorghum and barley, together with legumes, are the region’s primary broad acre grain industries. The amount of land being used to grow wheat has increased over the last 20 years from 300,000 hectares in 1992 to over 500,000 hectares in 2013. Sorghum production accounts for around 80 per cent of the nation’s total production. Sorghum is mainly used in livestock feedlots, but there are emerging export opportunities for food-grade sorghum. > Beef and sheep grazing - The livestock industry is the third largest agricultural sector in the region and generates over $508 million. Major livestock facilities are located in Tamworth, Gwydir, Inverell and Glen Innes. > Poultry – Poultry is an emerging key industry in the region and generates over $130 million. The majority of production is in Tamworth, which generates 89 per cent of production in the whole region. The gross value of the agricultural sector in New England between 2017 and 2018 was worth $2.6 billion, as shown on the infographic in Figure 4-4.

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Figure 4-4 New England and North West gross value of agricultural production (2017 – 18)

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, cat. no. 7503.0, Value of agricultural commodities produced, Australia 2019

4.3.2.3 Mineral and chemical sector Mineral and energy resources contribute in the order of $1.7 billion to the region11. The movement of coal for export, local power generation and steel manufacturing makes up 74 per cent of the total regional freight task. Coal contributes approximately $7.6 billion in regional NSW. Newcastle Port is Australia’s largest terminal for coal exports. The port’s leasehold owners, the Port of Newcastle, are planning to diversify and expand the port’s trade base. Medium to long-term constraints on this expansion include the pressures on the shared rail network in the Upper Hunter Valley and access via the New England and Golden Highways.12

4.3.3 Forecast growth Forecasting is a difficult task and a normal approach is to follow long term trends and from there make future projections. This assumes a basic-business-as usual situation. However, with the 2019/ 2020 bushfire devastation and much of NSW in the grip by a protracted drought, projections are more hazardous than usual. Based on discussions with key stakeholders, the conditions facing the agricultural sector are the most challenging. There is increasing environmental awareness and in times of drought a new emphasis on long term, sustainability rather than the former boom and bust pattern in line with weather conditions. It is anticipated that wasteful water practices will be replaced by a more durable model with optimised consumption and not investing resources on opportunistic marginal or historically unviable lands. This infers that when normal times return, production will return to good harvest levels, but not to previous record- breaking as was the case in the past. Forecasts as they relate to growth in freight movements are discussed in Section 4.4.3.

11 Draft New England North West Regional Plan, Department of Planning and Environment 12 Freight and Ports Plan 2018-2023, TfNSW

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4.4 Freight task

4.4.1 Overview The RDANI Study divides the economic sectors which generate freight into two groups for the purposes of estimating freight flows: > The demands generated by local population bases; and > The demands generated by ‘export oriented’ industries and businesses.

Local population bases Regarding the first, there are two key drivers: population trends and disposable income, normally measured by average weekly earnings. Based on some of the recent population trends, the population of some NEJO LGAs has shrunk in recent times based partly on the weather conditions impacting on agriculture and jobs; and a drift to the cities effect which has been noticed across regional Australia. It is important to distinguish between these short term and long term trends. Thus there is quite a lot of difficulty is predicting future outcomes however in the medium to long term, those LGAs with a proportionally; lesser dependence on agriculture as the primary employment and production sector. Further, it is not just the direct connection with agriculture which is important but the downstream activities such as saw milling, cotton ginning, and meat processing facilities, which represent secondary impacts. Tertiary impacts are those occurring on industries which support the direct and indirect agriculture and relate to things such as fuel and material suppliers, and equipment suppliers and repairers.

Export orientated industries and businesses “Export oriented” means industries providing output which will be sold or traded beyond the region including for domestic Australian use and for international export. The most obvious is agricultural production and mining output. Most coal mines in Australia have mine lives of between thirty and fifty years which is beyond the horizon of this strategy document. It is understood more mines in the Gunnedah basin would come on line except for capacity constraints on the rail corridor. As noted above, agricultural production is quite variable but the long-term prognosis is for a return to historic but not record level. Within the agricultural sector the rise of feedlots presents a modern solution to attempt to drought-proof livestock production. Plantation forests represent a similar application which has been in wide usage for decades.

Heavy vehicle movements The RDANI study estimated the number of heavy vehicle movements based on “freight consumed by the population ranged between 1.6‐3.6 tonnes per capita or an average of approximately 3 tonnes per capita”.13 It was assumed heavy vehicle trips will be divided equally between laden trips carrying 25 tonnes, and unladen trips, giving an average freight of 12.5 tonnes per HV trip.” These are reasonable assumptions given the load capacity of heavy vehicles (25 tonnes loaded) for a Semi- Trailer Equivalent (STE). Given the lack of backloading except perhaps for two-way movement to and from Saleyards and Feedlots, it is reasonable to assume empty running is prevalent. Daily movements are therefore based on tonnage hauled divided by 12.5 tonnes (for two-way movements and 365 days a year.

The RDANI study concluded: “Total freight generation for inward and outward movements has been estimated at approximately million tonnes per annum or approximately 3,000 HV trips per day. The highest freight movements are generated by the aggregated transport of crop products and inputs (5.6 Mtpa), followed by coal haulage from mines of 4.7 Mtpa (of which 4 Mtpa is short haul only) and local population‐based demands in the main centres (0.6 Mtpa).”14

RDANI forecast growth The RDANI study identified the potential growth of road freight as:

13 RDANI page 20 14 RDANI page 58

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> Local population‐based demand: to broadly track population growth of approximately 1‐ 2% per annum; > Most primary products and processing (excluding mineral products): variable production from year to year but a relatively static long-term average growth); > Coal production: the development pipeline indicates expansion of production capacity by an average of approximately 5 Mtpa over the next 10 years, with total coal production to rise from about 17 Mtpa to 66 Mtpa or some 15% per annum”15. Based on Cardno research, the population-based estimates seem a little high given the population decline, however, in much of the general freight market, the per annum growth rate has been above the historical population growth rate and inflation rate so 1% - 2% pa is not unreasonable although possibly a little high. For primary industries, the assumptions made by RDANI are basically corroborated by the events of history and feedback from the consultative process. The estimates for coal are inaccurate including significant volumes outside NEJO and reflect the optimism of peak coal in 2011. Producers are still struggling to match these levels, mainly because of market perceptions of coal as a dirty and environmentally unfriendly fuel, but more realistically by supply chain constraints particularly regarding rail access to the export ports.

4.4.2 RDANI current freight task estimates The following sections summarise the RDANI freight task estimates. The RDANI study covered a much broader area than NEJO so the data summarised below has been adapted and modified to suit the New England region. From a heavy vehicle (HV) trip generation perspective, it has been necessary to include the Gwydir LGA even though it is not part of NEJO simply because of some of the significant trip generation it contributes will access the NEJO regional road network.

Population driven estimates Table 4-6 summarises demand from resident populations based on 3000kg per capita per year. Gwydir LGA is equivalent to an additional 5% of the NEJO total. The impact of tourism is unknown but it is obvious that the different rates and duration of visitation will have a major but unseen impact on the demand for store goods such as groceries.

Table 4-6 Estimates of local population‐based freight demands LGA Population TPA HV Trip/Day Armidale 30,572 91,716 20 Glen Innes 9,306 27,918 6 Inverell 16,953 50,859 11 Moree Plains 14,465 43,395 10 Narrabri 13,769 41,307 9 Tenterfield 7,118 21,354 5 Uralla 6,315 18,945 4 NEJO 98,498 295,494 65 Gwydir 5,391 16,173 4

Source: adapted from RDANI Table 3.2: Estimates of local population‐based freight demands

Cereal grain, sorghum, oilseed, and legume Table 4-7 summarises movements from farm to silo/railhead/processing plant. Many of these movements are relatively short haul (less than 50 kilometres) fully contained within the LGA however, Gwydir and Inverell have no direct rail access thus many of these movements actually impact on the Moree Plains road network. Gwydir LGA is equivalent to an additional 18% of the NEJO total. Compared with the big three, Moree, Narrabri and Gwydir, which are all irrigated, the volumes from the other LGAs is much smaller. There are

15 RDANI page 59

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Table 4-7 Cereal grain, sorghum, oilseed, and legume: freight generation from NEJO LGA TPA HV Trip/Day Armidale 7,614 2 Glen Innes 21,357 5 Inverell 87,562 19 Moree Plains 1,259,909 276 Narrabri 402,032 88 Tenterfield 4,270 1 Uralla 1,258 0 NEJO 1,784,002 391 Gwydir 327,386 72

Source: adapted from RDANI Table 4.4: Cereal grain, sorghum, oilseed, and legume: freight generation from NEJO

Cotton seed and lint The main cotton gins are located in Narrabri and Moree LGA with some across the border in Queensland and Gunnedah. Many of the movements are short haul from farm to plant and fully contained within the LGA with the exception of Gwydir, which accounts for an extra 12% of tonnes and trips over the NEJO total, summarised in Table 4-8.

Table 4-8 Cotton seed and lint: freight demands based on 2005/06 results LGA Seed (T) Lint (T) Total (T) HV Trips/Day Armidale - - - - Glen Innes - - - - Inverell 2,355 535 2,889 1 Moree Plains 544,116 143,776 687,892 151 Narrabri 304,036 82,418 386,454 85 Tenterfield - - - - Uralla - - - - NEJO 850,507 226,729 1,077,235 237 Gwydir 34,083 8,627 42,710 9

Source: adapted from RDANI Table 4.9: Seed cotton and cotton lint: freight demands based on 2005/06 results

Broad acre crop inputs Many of the movements are short haul from nearest distribution centre, nominally the LGA seat or from beyond NEJO. RDANI notes that across NEJO the volume of crop inputs is about equal to 6% of the production level, summarised in Table 4-9.

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Table 4-9 Broad‐acre crop inputs: freight demands LGA Freight HV trips per Main corridors tonnes day Armidale 239 0 New England Hwy Glen Innes 484 0 New England Hwy Inverell 2992 1 Gwydir Hwy Moree 112058 25 Newell Hwy, Carnarvon Hwy, Gwydir Hwy Plains Narrabri 47887 10 Newell Hwy, Kamilaroi Hwy Tenterfield 19 0 New England Hwy Uralla 19 0 New England Hwy

NEJO 163698 36

Gwydir 16776 Gwydir Hwy, Newell Hwy, New England Hwy, Tamworth-Yetman Rd

Source: adapted from RDANI Table 4.10: Broad‐acre crop inputs: freight demands

Sheep production Sheep production in NEJO is concerned with the relocation of farm-bred sheep to the saleyards. The Armidale LGA dominates with about 35% of the sales. As indicated by their focus on broad acre and cotton cropping, Moree and Narrabri together play a relatively minor role (about 15% of the NEJO total). Sheep production is summarised in Table 4-10.

Table 4-10 Sheep production ‐ freight demands of NEJO LGA Sales(head) % fat lambs Sheep (tonnes) HV trips per day Armidale 423,838 32% 25,430 6 Glen Innes Severn 172,408 36% 10,344 2 Inverell 196,246 35% 11,775 3 Moree Plains 99,936 42% 5,996 1 Narrabri 83,927 61% 5,036 1 Tenterfield 39,537 19% 2,372 1 Uralla 195,858 20% 11,751 3 NEJO 1,211,750 34% 72,704 17 Gwydir 61,521 33% 3,691 1

Source: adapted from RDANI Table 4.12: Sheep production ‐ freight demands of farms

Beef cattle production Beef cattle production in NEJO is concerned with the relocation of farm-bred cattle to the saleyards. The Armidale LGA dominates with about 21% of the sales. Gwydir, an enclave within NEJO, has a more prominent role than even Armidale, equivalent to 35% of the NEJO total. Beef cattle production is summarised in Table 4-11.

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Table 4-11 Beef cattle production ‐ freight demands of NEJO LGA Beef cattle Estimated cattle Live animals HV trips per day herd size (head) sales (head) (tonnes) Armidale 200,459 150,345 75,172 17 Glen Innes 154,730 116,048 58,024 13 Inverell 131,761 98,821 49,410 11 Moree Plains 176,622 132,467 66,233 15 Narrabri 105,351 79,013 39,507 9 Tenterfield 115,409 86,557 43,278 9 Uralla 66,814 50,111 25,055 5 NEJO 951,146 713,362 356,679 79 Gwydir 204,644 153,483 76,742 17

Source: adapted from RDANI Table 4.12: Beef cattle production ‐ freight demands of farms

4.4.3 Transport for NSW future freight estimates The Transport for NSW (TfNSW) Strategic Freight Model (SFM) provides freight estimates at 10-year intervals: 2016, 2016, 2036, and 2046. The SFM was used to identify the current freight destinations for goods produced in the New England region. The Strategic Freight Model data is contained as SLA3 level with three zones representing NEJO: > Armidale; > Inverell-Tenterfield; and > Moree-Narrabri. Three types of Origin-Destination (O-D) directly concern NEJO. > Wholly within NEJO; > From NEJO to external destinations (outwards movements); and > To NEJO from external origins (Inwards movements). Fifteen market segments were identified based on a wide variety of commodities covered by the TfNSW data. A summary of the commodity concordance is given in Table 4-12.

Table 4-12 Commodity Concordance by Market Segment Segment TfNSW Commodity Group TfNSW Commodity Detail Broad acre Agricultural Commodities Grain Lint Cotton Oil Seeds Meal oilseeds Oil oilseeds Seeds oilseeds Building Materials Alumina & Aluminium Alumina Aluminium Construction Materials Bitumen Bricks Cement Concrete Fly Ash Plasterboard Quarry

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Segment TfNSW Commodity Group TfNSW Commodity Detail Timber Steel Steel Cars and Machinery Motor Vehicles Motor Vehicles Coal Coal Coal Consumer Goods Consumer Goods Food Non Food Forestry Forestry Forestry Fuel Fuel Fuel IMEX Containers Metro Containers Containers Livestock Agricultural Commodities Livestock Manufactured Goods Manufactures Manufactures C1 Manufactures C10 Manufactures C11 Manufactures C12 Manufactures C13 Manufactures C14 Manufactures C15 Manufactures C2 Manufactures C3 Manufactures C4 Manufactures C5 Manufactures C6 Manufactures C7 Manufactures C8 Manufactures C9 Other Waste CD Waste CI Waste MSW Waste Other Agriculture Agricultural Commodities Horticulture Wine Grapes Other Mining Minerals Minerals Processed Agricultural Products Agricultural Commodities Meat Milk Other Dairy Wine

Freight trips wholly within NEJO Daily two-way HV, semi-trailer equivalent (STE) trips wholly within NEJO have been estimated on the same basis as the RDANI study. That is 12.5 tonne payload each way and 365 days per year. The results are summarised in Table 4-13 and Moree-Narrabri internal broad acre accounting for 75% of internal movements followed by 18% for broad acre crops from Inverell – Tenterfield to Moree -Narrabri. It is highly likely this is mainly Gwydir LGA to Moree LGA movements.

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Table 4-13 Estimated daily HV trips wholly within NEJO Segment Origin Destination 2016 2026 2036 2046 Broad acre Inverell - Inverell - 2.6 3.1 3.6 4.1 Tenterfield Tenterfield Moree - Narrabri 157.3 185.8 214.8 244.7 Inverell - 14.3 17.1 20.0 22.9 Tenterfield Moree - Narrabri 656.2 773.3 893.0 1,016.6 Forestry Armidale Inverell - 4.6 3.8 5.5 4.0 Tenterfield Livestock Armidale Armidale 13.6 17.2 19.2 21.8 Inverell - 2.6 3.2 3.6 4.1 Tenterfield Moree - Narrabri 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 Inverell - Armidale 1.1 1.4 1.6 1.8 Tenterfield Inverell - 13.6 17.0 19.0 21.7 Tenterfield Moree - Narrabri 0.9 1.2 1.3 1.5 Moree - Armidale 0.3 0.3 0.4 0.4 Narrabri Inverell - 0.6 0.8 0.9 1.0 Tenterfield Moree - Narrabri 7.3 9.2 10.3 11.7 Other Agriculture Armidale Armidale 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Inverell - Inverell - 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Tenterfield Tenterfield Moree - Moree - Narrabri 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Narrabri Processed Inverell - Armidale 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 Agricultural Tenterfield Products Inverell - 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 Tenterfield Moree - Narrabri 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

TOTAL NEJO 876 1,034 1,194 1,358

Source: Strategic Freight Model, Transport for NSW, supplied 2019

Note: a score of 0.0 means less than 225 tonnes per year. A score of 1 HV = 4262.5 tonnes per year

From NEJO to external destinations (outwards movements) Outwards movements of freight from NEJO to other LGAs are summarised in Table 4-14. The results show volatility between segments and zones. For example, in 2016 forestry products from Armidale mostly to coastal NSW account for 35% of movements but declining to 23% in the long term. Moree-Narrabri broad acre crops are expected to significantly increase tonnage and proportion of trips. In the north there are a significant number of cross border trips into Queensland and in the south to surrounding LGAs.

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Table 4-14 Estimated daily HV trips from NEJO to other areas Origin Segment 2016 2026 2036 2046 Armidale Forestry 113 102 132 102 Livestock 18 30 35 40 Processed Agricultural 9 11 12 14 Products Inverell – Tenterfield Broad acre 4 5 5 6 Forestry 31 29 30 29 Livestock 16 26 30 35 Other Agriculture 0 0 0 0 Processed Agricultural 14 25 29 34 Products Moree – Narrabri Broad acre 107 125 143 163 Forestry 4 4 5 4 Livestock 7 11 12 14 Processed Agricultural 0 0 0 0 Products

Total NEJO Outwards 324 367 434 440

Source: Strategic Freight Model, Transport for NSW, supplied 2019

To NEJO from external origins (Inwards movements) Movements from other LGAs into NEJO are summarised in Table 4-15.

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Table 4-15 Table 4-1 Estimated daily HV trips to NEJO from other areas Destination Segment 2016 2026 2036 2046 Armidale Building Materials 19 16 18 20 Cars and Machinery 1 1 1 1 Consumer Goods 24 27 30 35 Fuel 10 12 13 14 Livestock 8 10 11 12 Other Agriculture 1 1 1 1 Processed 1 1 1 1 Agricultural Products Inverell - Tenterfield Broad acre 10 12 14 16 Building Materials 19 15 16 16 Cars and Machinery 1 1 1 1 Consumer Goods 24 25 26 28 Forestry 1 1 1 1 Fuel 11 13 14 15 Livestock 12 15 17 19 Other Agriculture 2 2 3 3 Processed 1 1 1 1 Agricultural Products Moree - Narrabri Broad acre 318 377 437 498 Building Materials 13 10 9 8 Cars and Machinery 1 1 1 1 Consumer Goods 16 16 15 14 Fuel 45 52 59 63 Livestock 9 11 12 14 Other Agriculture 1 1 1 1 Processed 1 1 1 1 Agricultural Products

Total Inwards 549 622 703 787

Source: Strategic Freight Model, Transport for NSW, supplied 2019

Through movements The remaining task is to estimate the essentially non-stopping trips through NEJO, that is to and from destinations beyond NEJO. One of the key corridors is the Newell Highway which provides a link between Queensland and other states such as Victoria, ACT, and SA, and locations in central and western NSW such as Wagga Wagga. Based on the TfNSW data, daily non- NEJO movements to Queensland along the Newell Highway are summarised in Table 4-16. Movements out of Victoria clearly dominate.

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Table 4-16 Estimated daily HV trips to Queensland via the Newell Highway – non NEJO Origin Segment 2016 2026 2036 2046 Bourke - Cobar - Coonamble Broad acre 2.2 2.5 2.9 3.4 Orange Broad acre 1.2 1.4 1.5 1.7 SA Consumer Goods 122.7 148.0 170.3 189.6 SA Manufactured Goods 52.6 55.0 63.4 71.7 VIC Consumer Goods 220.9 273.1 323.8 375.0 VIC Manufactured Goods 82.8 87.1 102.5 119.1 WA Consumer Goods 7.2 9.4 10.4 10.7 WA Manufactured Goods 9.9 10.4 12.6 14.9 TOTAL 500 587 688 786

Source: Strategic Freight Model, Transport for NSW, supplied 2019

Based on the TfNSW data, daily non- NEJO movements to Queensland along the New England Highway are summarised in Table 4-17. Movements out of Tamworth-Gunnedah clearly dominate.

Table 4-17 Estimated daily HV trips to Queensland via the New England Highway – non NEJO Origin Segment 2016 2026 2036 2046 Maitland Manufactured Goods 3.9 3.9 4.4 5.5 Tamworth - Gunnedah Broad acre 5.5 6.4 7.3 8.5 Processed Agricultural Products 2.6 6.5 7.7 8.9 TOTAL 12 17 19 23

Source: Strategic Freight Model, Transport for NSW, supplied 2019

Based on the TfNSW data, daily non- NEJO movements from Queensland along the Newell Highway are summarised in Table 4-18. Movements out of Victoria clearly dominate accounting for about 65% of the trips.

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Table 4-18 Estimated daily HV trips from Queensland via the Newell Highway – non NEJO Destination Segment 2016 2026 2036 2046 Albury Livestock 0.04 0.05 0.06 0.07 Bourke - Cobar - Coonamble Livestock 5.93 7.46 8.34 9.49 Broken Hill and Far West Livestock 0.58 0.73 0.82 0.93 Dubbo Livestock 2.89 4.44 5.08 5.79 Hawkesbury Manufactured Goods 1.32 1.75 1.75 1.75 Lithgow - Mudgee Livestock 0.50 0.63 0.71 0.81 Lower Murray Livestock 0.28 0.35 0.39 0.44 SA Consumer Goods 122.74 148.01 170.33 189.58 SA Manufactured Goods 52.60 54.96 63.43 71.73 Upper Murray exc. Albury Livestock 0.07 0.09 0.10 0.11 VIC Consumer Goods 262.36 325.28 378.88 427.86 VIC Manufactured Goods 124.27 130.58 153.80 178.71 WA Consumer Goods 16.88 21.93 24.34 24.95 WA Manufactured Goods 9.86 10.44 12.63 14.88 Wagga Wagga Livestock 0.64 0.87 0.98 1.12 Total 601 708 822 928

Source: Strategic Freight Model, Transport for NSW, supplied 2019

Based on the TfNSW data, daily non- NEJO movements from Queensland along the New England Highway are summarised in Table 4-19. Movements out of Tamworth-Gunnedah clearly dominate.

Table 4-19 Estimated daily HV trips from Queensland via the New England Highway – non NEJO Origin Destination 2016 2026 2036 246 Maitland Livestock 0.15 0.18 0.21 0.23 Manufactured Goods 39 52 58 62.5 Tamworth - Gunnedah Fuel 76 88 98 105 Livestock 81 128 147 167 Total 196 268 303 335

Source: Strategic Freight Model, Transport for NSW, supplied 2019

4.4.4 Freight movement by mass The freight destinations by annual kilo-tonne (kt) from the Transport for NSW (TfNSW) Strategic Freight Model are shown visually on Figure 4-5 for 2016 and on Figure 4-6 for 2036.

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Figure 4-5 Current freight task (2016)

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Figure 4-6 2036 freight task

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5 The New England road network

5.1 Road network classification State roads are managed and financed by Transport of New South Wales (TfNSW) formerly through Roads and Maritime Services (Roads and Maritime), and regional / local roads are managed and financed by councils. Regional roads perform an intermediate function between the main arterial network of state roads and council controlled local roads, and therefore receive financial assistance from State Government agencies. The breakdown of the road hierarchy for the key highways and roads of the NEJO road network is provided in the following sections, and also shown on Figure 5-1. The alpha-numeric route numbering system developed by the NSW Government does not directly relate to this classification of roads and has been discussed in Section 4 of the New England Road Network Strategy Stage 1 – Revised Summary Report in greater detail.

5.1.1 State roads The state roads provide the key north-south and east-west links through the New England region, and are listed in Table 5-1.

Table 5-1 State roads Road Road Key areas connected Number Carnarvon 28 The Carnarvon Highway is a state highway linking Moree south of the NSW/QLD Highway border, via the town of St George, eventually to the township of Rolleston. The Carnarvon Highway connects the Gwydir and Newell Highways at Moree to on the Queensland border via Ashley, Garah, and Weemalah. Over the border, the road travels hundreds of kilometres to central Queensland. Gwydir Highway 12 The Gwydir Highway connects the Pacific Highway near Grafton in the east, with the Castlereagh and Kamilaroi Highways near Walgett via Glen Innes, Inverell, , Moree, . Kamilaroi 29 The Kamilaroi Highway is a state highway located in the north-western region of New Highway South Wales. The Kamilaroi Highway connects Bourke to the New England Highway near Willow Creek via Brewarrina, Walgett, Burren Junction, Wee Waa, Narrabri, Boggabri, Gunnedah, Curlewis, and . New England 9 The New England Highway connects Newcastle to Brisbane (via the Highway). The highway also services Tamworth and Armidale as an alternative route to the Pacific Highway/ Motorway. The New England Highway links Yarraman (near Kingaroy in Queensland) with Hexham (NSW) via) Toowoomba, Warwick, Tenterfield, Glen Innes, Armidale, Tamworth, Muswellbrook, Maitland. Newell Highway 17 The Newell Highway is the longest highway in NSW. The corridor is a major inland interstate connection between Victoria, New South Wales, and Queensland for freight and passengers, including tourists. The Newell Highway connects the Queensland border at Boggabilla to Tocumwal on the Victorian border via Moree, Narrabri, Gilgandra, Dubbo, Parkes, West Wyalong and Narrandera. Waterfall Way 76 Waterfall Way provides an important east-west connection between the Pacific Highway near Coffs Harbour, and the New England Highway at Armidale. Bruxner Highway 16 The Bruxner Highway/Bruxner Way connects the Pacific Highway near Ballina with Boggabilla on the Newell Highway. It is basically an east-west corridor via Lismore, Casino, and Tenterfield. Note that the section known as Bruxner Way is a regional road MR 462.

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5.1.2 Regional roads The regional roads of the New England road network are listed in Table 5-2.

Table 5-2 Regional roads Road Road Key areas connected Number Armidale – Yarrowyck 124 From the Waterfall Way (MR76) at Armidale, to the Walcha - Inverell Road Road (MR73) at Yarrowyck Ashford Road 137 Ashford Road connects the Gwydir Highway to the rural town of Ashford located within the Inverell Shire. Boonangar Road 232 Boonangar Road connects Carnarvon Highway at Garah to the near Talwood (Qld) via the town of Boomi located in the Moree Plains Shire. Bundarra Road 73 Bundarra Road connects the Gwydir Highway at Inverell to the Thunderbolts Way via Gilgai. Barraba Road 132 Links Bundarra to Barraba (MR73 to MR 63)

Cypress Way 329 Cypress Way connects the rural town of Gwabegar to the rural town of Pilliga located in the Narrabri Shire. Ebor- Gilgai Road 135 Guyra Road connects the Waterfall Way near Ebor to the Bundara Road near (Guyra Road) Gilgai. It crosses the New England Highway at Guyra. Emmaville Road 7706 Emmaville Road connects the Gwydir Highway at Glen Innes to the town of Emmaville. Carrigan Road 507 Goondiwindi - Mungindi Road connects the Newell Highway at the to Carnarvon Highway near the town of Mungindi. Grain Valley Road 7709 Grain Valley Road connects Kamilaroi Highway at Boggabri to Oxley Highway at Nombi via Willala and Ghoolendaadi. The road is a significant route for bus and truck drivers, as well as residents and tourists, connecting the Mullaley and Boggabri townships. Edward Street and 7784 In Moree urban area for vehicle to access the Newell Highway Jones Avenue Bulluss Drive 7785 In Moree urban area for vehicle to access the Newell Highway

Killarney Gap Road 133 Killarney Gap Road connects the Cobbadah Road at Bingara to Newell Highway located near Narrabri. North Star Road 7705 North Star Road connects Bruxner Highway to Warialda Road via North Star a small town in the Gwydir Shire. Pilliga Road 7716 Pilliga Road connects Kamilaroi Highway at Wee Waa to the town of Coonamble via Pilliga and Cuttabri. Thunderbolts Way 7719 Thunderbolts Way connects Gloucester to the Gwydir Highway near Inverell. It crosses the New England Highway at Uralla. Thunderbolts Way provides a strategic link to the Newcastle Port from the and hinterlands of the north coast of NSW. Yetman Road 187 Yetman Road connects Warialda Road to Gwydir Highway at Inverell via Oakwood. Old New England 7708 Connects Waterfall Way at Armidale to New England Highway at North Highway Armidale via Marsh Street and Glen Innes Road. Bruxner Way 462 West of Tenterfield Bruxner Highway is called Bruxner Way with regional road status. Mt Lindesay Road 622 Mt Lindesay Road Connects New England Highway in Tenterfield to Amosfield Road 290 Amosfield Road Connects High Street in Stanthorpe to Mt Lindesay Road in Amosfield Clarence Way 361 Clarence Way connects Mt Lindesay Road to Bruxner Highway

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Killarney Road 189 Killarney Road connects Mt Lindesay Road to the border of Queensland

5.1.3 Local roads Local roads are managed and financed by councils. Table 5-3 provides the list of local roads within the New England road network, grouped by the respective councils that have jurisdiction. The NEJO local road network list was compiled based on the local road nominations provided by each council. Local roads allow for the transport of local / agricultural goods to major highways for access to markets. For example, as seen in Figure 5-1, Culgoora Road provides a route from Wee Waa to Narrabri which could enable more efficient and cost-effective ways for trucks coming from the west and north-west. Trucks can access the Narrabri West Intermodal Terminal by bypassing the Narrabri town centre through Culgoora Road rather than staying on Kamilaroi Highway.

Table 5-3 Local roads Local Government Road Local Government Road Moree Plains Shire Council Croppa - Moree Road Armidale Regional Council Booroolong Road Buckie Road Castledoyle Road Croppa Creek Road Old Armidale Road County Boundary Road Tenterden Road Terry Hie Hie Road Old Armidale Road Berrigal Creek Road Nowlands Road Narrabri Shire Council Mille Road Wards Mistake Road Spring Plains Road Baldersleigh Road Bald Hill Road Herbert Park Road Harparary Road Rockvale Road Yarrie Lake Road Dangersleigh Road Culgoora Road Kempsey Road Doreen Lane Uralla Shire Council Kingstown Road Tenterfield Shire Council Tooloom Road Gostwyck Road Old Ballandean Road Mihi Road Glen Innes Severn Council Rangers Valley Road Torryburn Road Strathbogie Road Inverell Shire Council North Star Road Red Range Road Howell Road Glen Leigh Road Copeton Dam Road Mt Mitchell Road Emmaville Road

Kings Plains Road Nullamanna Road

Additional information has been supplied by councils which considered some of their priority roads and the ones which they want addressed as a going forward strategy. Councils populated a series of templates and the results are presented below starting at Table 5-4. The tables are self-explanatory and where there is a direct link to traffic counts, which have been separately sourced, this information has been tabled.

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Figure 5-1 Road hierarchy

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Table 5-4 and Table 5-5 cover the Armidale Regional LGA.

Table 5-4 Armidale Regional LGA nominated roads summary – main characteristics Ref Road Length Sealed General Lanes Average Width Shoulders Overtaking Max Truck Size kilometres condition (metres) Lanes

1 Kempsey Road 59.84 10% Poor 2 6.0 Unsealed 5.6 Sealed 0m 0 Rigid only 2 Rockvale Road 47.54 77% Ok 2 6.0 Unsealed 5.5 Sealed 0m 0 B-Double 3 Nowlands Road 13.73 0% Ok 2 5 0m 0 B-Double 4 Wards Mistake Road 37.77 100% Ok 2 6 0m 0 B-Double 5 Boorolong Road 41.95 95% Ok 2 5.0 Unsealed 5.5 Sealed 0m 0 B-Double 6 Baldersleigh Road 40.12 60% Ok 2 6.0 Unsealed 5.0 Sealed 0m 0 B-Double 7 Castledoyle Road 14.63 50% Ok 2 5.0 Unsealed 5.2 Sealed 0m 0 10T Load limited at Shingle Hut Bridge 8 Old Armidale Road 15.08 36% Ok 2 5.0 Unsealed 4.0 Sealed 0m 0 B-Double 9 Tenterden Road 11.69 100% Ok 2 6.2 0m 0 B-Double 10 Ben Lomond Road 11.93 100% Ok 2 4 0m 0 B-Double

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Table 5-5 Armidale Regional LGA nominated roads – other characteristics Ref Road Bridges/Culverts Annual Flood Impact Curves - number Grades Timber Other non HML km Duration <40kmh <60kmh >6% >8% >10% 1 Kempsey Road 4 5 x Concrete Bridge, 6 x 4 4 8 days (rockfalls) 85 175 12km 5km 2km Culvert 2 days (inundation)

2 Rockvale Road 2 6 x Culvert, 5 x Concrete 2 1 1 day 8 32 1km 0 0 Bridge 3 Nowlands Road 0 2 x Concrete Bridge 0 0.5 1 day 1 5 1 0 0 4 Wards Mistake Road 0 2 x Concrete Bridge, 2 x 0 5 1 day 5 19 3km 0.5km 0 Culvert 5 Boorolong Road 4 1 x 6 Cell Pipe, 1 x Culvert 4 2 2 day 4 27 1km 0 0 6 Baldersleigh Road 1 2 x Concrete Bridges, 4 x 1 2.5 1 day 3 12 0.5km 0 0 Culvert

7 Castledoyle Road 1 0 1 0.5 1 day 0 7 0.2km 0 0 8 Old Armidale Road 1 1 x Causeway 1 1.2 3 days 24 32 1.2km 0.2km 0

9 Tenterden Road 1 2 x Culverts 1 0.3 1 day 4 16 0.2km 0 0 10 Ben Lomond Road 0 0 0 0 0 6 18 0.4km 0 0

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Table 5-6 and Table 5-7 cover the Glen Innes Severn LGA

Table 5-6 Glen Innes Severn LGA nominated roads – main characteristics Ref Road Length Sealed General Lanes Average Shoulders Overtaking Max Truck kilometres condition Width Lanes Size (metres) 1 Bald Nob Road 12 100% Poor 2 2.5 sealed 0.5 unsealed 0 26m B-double 2 Strathbogie Road - Nullamanna Road to Emmaville 12.5 25% Average 2 7 varies 0 26m B-double 3 Gordon's Road Strathbogie - Inverell Shire Boundary 2 0% Average 2 7 varies 0 26m B-double (becomes Emmaville Road) 4 Rangers Valley Road - Emmaville Road to Rangers 7 0% Poor 2 6 varies 0 general access Valley Feedlot (50,000 head)

Table 5-7 Glen Innes Severn LGA nominated road – other characteristics Ref Road Bridges/Culverts Annual Flood Impact Timber Other non HML km Duration 1 Bald Nob Road 0 3 3 0 2 Strathbogie Road - Nullamanna Road to Emmaville 0 0 0 Severn river multiple times per year in normal season for crossing 2-3 days. 3 Gordon's Road Strathbogie - Inverell Shire Boundary (becomes 0 0 0 nil Emmaville Road) 4 Rangers Valley Road - Emmaville Road to Rangers Valley Feedlot 1 0 nil (50,000 head)

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Table 5-8 and Table 5-9 cover the Inverell LGA.

Table 5-8 Inverell LGA nominated roads summary – main characteristics Road Length Sealed General Lanes Average Shoulders Overtaking Max Truck kilometres condition Width Lanes Size (metres) Ashford Bonshaw Road 94 100% Ok 2 7.8 2.5 m 0 B-double Yetman Road 94 100% Ok 2 8 1.5 m 0 B-double Bruxner Way 186 100% Ok 2 6.5 2 m 0 B-double Warialda Road 51 100% Ok 2 6.4 3 m 0 B-double Bingara Road 25 100% Ok 2 5.6 1.5 m 0 B-double Bundarra Road 41 100% Ok 2 9 2.5 m 0 B-double Guyra Road 44 100% Ok 2 5.8 2.5 m 1 B-double Graman Road 24 10% Poor 2 5.5 0.5m 0 semi trailer Tarwoona Road 50 72% Ok 2 3.6 0.5m 0 semi trailer North Star Road 15 0% Poor 2 6 1m 0 B-double Howell Road 9 100% Ok 2 5.8 1m 0 semi trailer Copeton Dam Road 32 100% Ok 2 5.5 1m 0 B-double Kings Plain Road 41 51% Ok 2 5.5 1m 0 B-double Nullamanna Road 51 33% Poor 2 5.5 1m 0 B-double Emmaville Road 41 30% Ok 2 5.5 1m 0 semi trailer Delungra road 23 26% Poor 2 5.5 1m 0 B-double

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Table 5-9 Inverell LGA nominated roads summary – other characteristics Road Bridges/Culverts Annual Flood Impact Curves - number Grades Timber Other non HML km Duration <40kmh <60kmh >6% >8% >10%

Ashford Bonshaw Road 0 24 0 2 1 day 0 1 3 6 0 Yetman Road 0 17 0 4 1 0 0 2 1 0 Bruxner Way 0 46 0 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 Warialda Road 0 3 0 0 0 2.5 0 0 Bingara Road 0 3 0 0 0 2 0 0 Bundarra Road 0 14 0 0 0 1 5 0 Guyra Road 0 2 0 0 0 1 3 0 Graman Road 0 2 2 1 0 2 1.5 0 0 Tarwoona Road 0 0 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 North Star Road 0 1 5 2 0 0 0 0 Howell Road 0 3 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 Copeton Dam Road 0 6 10 0.5 day 1 1 0 2 0 Kings Plain Road 0 3 3 1 0 0 1.5 0 0 Nullamanna Road 1 6 2 1 1 1 0 2 0 Emmaville Road 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 Delungra Road 0 2 1 0 0 0 0

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Table 5-10 and Table 5-11 cover the Moree Plains LGA

Table 5-10 Moree Plains LGA nominated roads summary – main characteristics Road Length Sealed General Lanes Average Shoulders Overtaking Max Truck kilometres condition Width Lanes Size (metres) MR 232 Boonangar Road 60 100% poor 2 7 0 0 Road Train (Triple) MR462 Bruxner Way 18.7 100% okay 2 7.75 0 0 Road Train (Triple) MR507 Carrigan Road / Gunsynd Way 151 75% okay 2 8 0 0 Road Train (Triple) RR7785 Bulluss Drive & SR261 Bullus Drive 5.3 60% Okay 2 10 0 0 Road Train (Triple) SR101 Terry Hie Hie Road 71.4 60% Okay 2 6.78 0 0 Road Train (Triple) SR13 Moloney Road 18.4 5% Poor 2 6.5 0 0 Road Train (Triple) SR131 Croppa Moree Road 28 100% Okay 2 7.7 0 0 Road Train (Triple) SR243 Tapscott Road 0.5 100% okay 2 7.5 0 0 Road Train SR25 Caloona Road 18 5% Poor 2 7 0 0 Road Train (Triple) SR6 Telleraga Road 10.6 40% Poor 2 6.6 0 0 Road Train (Triple)

Table 5-11 Moree Plains LGA nominated roads – matched traffic counts Road Count station AADT Year MR 232 Boonangar Road North of Boomi 1860 2017 MR462 Bruxner Way MR507 Carrigan Road / Gunsynd Way East of Boomi end of 50 kmh zone 163 2017 RR7785 Bulluss Drive & SR261 Bullus Drive In Moree urban area SR101 Terry Hie Hie Road Between Gravsend Rd and Melburra Rd 244 2015 SR13 Moloney Road West of Gurley 138 2015 SR131 Croppa Moree Road 5 km away from Newell Hwy 138 2015 SR243 Tapscott Road SR25 Caloona Road South of Weemalah 88 2017 SR6 Telleraga Road Just after 1st grid off the highway 162 2015

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Table 5-12 and Table 5-13 cover the Narrabri LGA.

Table 5-12 Narrabri LGA nominated roads – main characteristics Road Length Sealed General Lanes Average Shoulders Overtaking Max Truck kilometres condition Width Lanes Size (metres) Millie Road (SR01) 78 32% Fair/Poor 2 3.1 0.5 0 A-Double Spring Plains Road (SR04) 54 77% Fair/Poor 2 3.2 0.5 0 A-Double Courada Road (SR07) 26 23% Poor 2 3.1 0.5 0 B-Double Bald Hill Road (SR09) 51 7% Poor 2 3.3 0.5 0 A-Double Harparary Road (SR11) 31 38% Fair/Poor 2 3.3 0.5 0 19m Articulated Yarrie Lake Road (SR29) via Sandy Hook Lane (SR212) 51 76% Fair/Poor 2 3.2 0.5 0 B-Double Doreen Lane (SR46) 20 100% Good 2 3.5 0.5 0 A-Double Middle Route Road (SR47) 39 25% Good/Fair 2 3.1 0.5 0 A-Double Homestead Road (SR55) 14 0% Poor 2 3 0 0 A-Double Waiwera Lane (SR107) 36 3% Poor 2 3.2 0.5 0 A-Double

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Table 5-13 Narrabri LGA nominated roads – other characteristics Road Bridges/Culverts Annual Flood Impact Curves - number Grades Timber Other non HML km Duration <40kmh <60kmh >6% >8% >10%

Millie Road (SR01) 0 0 0 2 2 days 0 4 0 0 0 Spring Plains Road (SR04) 0 1 1 3 2 days 0 2 0 0 0 Courada Road (SR07) 0 0 0 1 1 day 0 2 0 0 0 Bald Hill Road (SR09) 1 1 2 2 2 days 0 4 0 0 0 Harparary Road (SR11) 0 2 2 3 4 days 0 3 0 0 0 Yarrie Lake Road (SR29) via Sandy Hook 0 4 4 3 2 days 2 1 0 0 0 Lane (SR212)

Doreen Lane (SR46) 0 0 0 4 3 days 2 0 0 0 0 Middle Route Road (SR47) 0 1 1 1 1 day 0 4 0 0 0 Homestead Road (SR55) 0 0 0 7 5 days 0 0 0 0 0 Waiwera Lane (SR107) 0 0 0 2 1 day 0 2 0 0 0

Table 5-14 and Table 5-15 cover the Tenterfield LGA.

Table 5-14 Tenterfield LGA nominated roads – main characteristics Road Length Sealed General Lanes Average Shoulders Overtaking Max Truck

kilometres condition Width Lanes Size (metres) Mt Lindesay Road 136 88% Fair 2 6.8 0.7 0 Semi-Trailer Bruxner Way 82 100% OK 2 7.6 0.5 0 26m B-double Sunnyside Platform Road 2 100% OK 2 5.8 0.5 0 26m B-double Amosfield Road 8.6 100% Fair 2 7 0.5 0 Semi-Trailer Old Ballandean Road 3.8 100% OK 2 5.4 0.5 0 26m B-double Tooloom Road 28.3 100% Poor 2 5 1.15 0 Semi-Trailer

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Table 5-15 Tenterfield LGA nominated roads – other characteristics Road Bridges/Culverts Annual Flood Impact Curves - number Grades Timber Other non HML km Duration <40kmh <60kmh >6% >8% >10%

Mt Lindesay Road 1 23 0 45 1 day 1 20 5km 0 0 Bruxner Way 0 26 0 40 1 day 0 4 2km 0 0 Sunnyside Platform Road 0 1 0 1 0.5 day 0 0 0 0 0 Amosfield Road 0 3 0 8.6 0.5 day 0 0 0 0 0 Old Ballandean Road 0 2 0 2 1 day 0 2 0 0 0 Tooloom Road 1 3 0 16 0.5 day 0 20 8 8 0

Table 5-16 and Table 5-17 cover the Uralla LGA.

Table 5-16 Uralla LGA nominated roads – main characteristics Road Length Sealed General Lanes Average Shoulders Overtaking Max Truck kilometres condition Width Lanes Size (metres) Thunderbolts Way 34 100% OK 2 5.5 1m 0 B-double Kingstown Road 42.88 100% OK 2 5.5 No 0 B-double

Table 5-17 Uralla LGA nominated roads – other characteristics Road Bridges/Culverts Timber Other non HML

Thunderbolts Way 0 2

Kingstown Road 0 0

Uralla Road 0 4

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5.2 Key road network The New England Joint Organisation road network is made up of the following key highways and roads: > Newell Highway; > New England Highway; > Gwydir Highway; > Bruxner Highway; > Waterfall Way; > Kamilaroi Highway; > Carnarvon Highway. Other important connectors include: > Fossickers Way; > Thunderbolts Way. The alpha-numeric route naming system was developed by the NSW Government, to help motorists navigate the network. The routes that connect to the NEJO region are described Table 5-18, and include A-routes, which are those of national significance, and B-routes, which are those of state significance. These road routes are shown in Figure 5-2.

Table 5-18 Key roads summary Key road Number Start / end Key towns/ areas connected Newell A39 Shepparton (Victoria), The Newell Highway is the longest highway in NSW. The Highway to Goondiwindi corridor is a major interstate connection between Victoria, New (Queensland) South Wales and Queensland for freight and passengers, including tourists. New England A15 Warwick The New England Highway connects Newcastle to Brisbane Highway (Queensland) to (via the Cunningham Highway). The highway also services Newcastle Tamworth and Armidale as an alternative route to the Pacific Highway/ Motorway. Gwydir B76 Bourke to Grafton Gwydir Highway provides a key east-west connection between Highway Walgett and Grafton, via Moree, Inverell and Glen Innes. Bruxner B60 Casino to Tenterfield The Bruxner Highway/ Bruxner Way provides an east-west Highway/ connection along the NSW/QLD state border, connecting Bruxner Way between Boggabilla, Tenterfield and Byron Bay. Waterfall Way B78 Armidale to Urunga Waterfall Way provides an important east-west connection between the Pacific Highway near Coffs Harbour, and the New England Highway at Armidale. Kamilaroi B51 Narrabri to Quirindi The Kamilaroi Highway connects between the New England Highway Highway at Willow Tree, with Narrabri, Walgett and Bourke. Carnarvon B55 Moree to Rolleston The Carnarvon Highway connects the Gwydir and Newell Highway (Queensland) Highways at Moree to Mungindi on the Qld border via Ashley, Garah and Weemalah. Over the border, the road travels hundreds of kilometres to central Queensland.

The road network is further assessed for its characteristics and capacity in Stage 2 of the Road Network Strategy development. The road network as it relates to key freight movements is described in Section 5.2.2.

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Figure 5-2 New England road network

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5.2.2 Road characteristics

5.2.2.1 Speed limits The speed limits across the New England road network typically range from 10km/h to 110km/h in 10km/h increments, but the majority of roads will be 50km/h in urban areas, 100km/h in rural areas, and 110km/h on motorways and freeways. As a generally rural area, most of the roads within the New England road network have a speed limit of 100 km/h except for the Newell Highway which is mostly 110km/h posted. The speed limits applicable across the key road network are mapped on Figure 5-3.

5.2.2.2 Number of lanes The number of lanes of the road network is mapped in Figure 5-4. Most of the road network in the New England region has two or more lanes. The number of lanes has been mapped as the total number of lanes in the carriageway, irrespective of the direction of travel. The data for the locations of overtaking lanes was not available for analysis.

5.2.3 Key road infrastructure The locations of the key road infrastructure like bridges, rail crossings, rest areas, and intermodal terminals are provided in the below subsections.

5.2.3.1 Bridges There are 390 bridges within the New England road network, the location of the bridges is mapped on Figure 5-5. The distribution of the bridges is mostly along the state roads such as Newell Highway, New England Highway, Gwydir Highway, Kamilaroi Highway, Bruxner Highway. In October 2018 a comprehensive bridge assessment report was prepared for Uralla Shire Council by Bridge Design PL16. According to their report parts of which are summarised below: "A level 3 inspection was undertaken at each of the bridges to ascertain their condition. The bridges were then analysed for Higher Mass Limit (HML) loading in accordance with AS5100.7." The following HML vehicles were analysed: > 45.5t Semi‐trailer > 68t B‐Double > 85t Road Train The basic conclusion is that “the capacity exceeded the effect under HML loading for all members… [the structures] are therefore capable of carrying HML vehicles.” The results for each bridge are summarised in Table 5-19.

16 Bridge Design PL 2018 Uralla Bridges ‐ Load Rating Report, consultants report to Uralla Shire Council

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Table 5-19 Uralla LGA bridge condition assessment (2018) Road Crossing Bridge Built Metres Spans Width Deck Comments (m) MR73 Thunderbolts Salisbury 1965 54.9 6 7.3 PSC Good condition. Sufficient capacity determined from Way Waters drawings. MR73 Thunderbolts Uralla Creek 1929 22.9 3 6.1 RC Good condition. Sufficient capacity determined from Way drawings. Shanahans Bridge MR73 Thunderbolts Tolleys Gully 1929 13.5 3 6.1 RC Good condition. No drawings available to determine Way capacity. Available evidence suggests sufficient capacity is present. MR73 Thunderbolts 1959 72.5 6 7.3 Steel Good condition. Sufficient capacity determined from Way drawings. MR73 Thunderbolts Cachs Creek 1952 37.2 5 6.7 RC Good condition. Sufficient capacity determined from Way drawings. MR73 Thunderbolts Dairy Creek 2002 16.5 2 7.6 PSC Good condition. Sufficient capacity determined from Way drawings. MR73 Thunderbolts Basin Creek 1982 36.7 3 8 PSC Good condition. Sufficient capacity determined from Way drawings. MR73 Thunderbolts Laura Creek 1959 54.9 4 7.3 Steel Good condition. Sufficient capacity determined from Way drawings. MR124 Bundarra Saumarez 1969 35.3 2 7.3 Steel Good condition. Sufficient capacity determined from Road Creek drawings. MR124 Bundarra Boorolong 1961 82.3 6 7.3 Steel Good condition. Sufficient capacity determined from Road Creek drawings. Milsons Bridge MR124 Bundarra Iwata Gully 2011 12 1 7 Precast Largely in good condition although repairs will need to be made to the decks. No Road drawings available to determine capacity. Decks designed to T44 loading so there is sufficient capacity for HML.

MR124 Bundarra Oaky Creek 2002 26 3 8 Precast Flexural cracking and sagging of girders but structural capacity not compromised. Road Drawings not available to determine capacity of decks, abutments and piers. Bridge designed to T44 loading o there is sufficient capacity for HML.

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Road Crossing Bridge Built Metres Spans Width Deck Comments (m) MR124 Bundarra Iwata Gully 2011 12 1 7 Precast Largely in good condition although repairs will need to be made to the decks. No Road drawings available to determine capacity. Decks designed to T44 loading so there is sufficient capacity for HML at Westbury Bridge

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Bridge data for the Glen Innes Severn LGA is summarised by road in Table 5-20.

Table 5-20 Glen Innes Severn LGA bridge characteristics summary by road Road Metres Number Approved for Bald Nob Road 38 4 B-Double - 25/26m Bargens Road 8 1 General Access Bezzants Road 8 1 General Access Bourke St 23 1 General Access Browns Road 14 2 General Access Bushy Park Road 8 1 General Access Camerons Road 9 1 General Access Cherry Tree Road 28 2 General Access Clairville Road 8 1 General Access Coopers Road 7 1 General Access Coxs Road 16 1 General Access Donnelly Road 10 1 General Access Eimers Road 9 1 General Access Emmaville Road 139 5 B-Double - 25/26m Furracabad Road 30 1 General Access Glen Elgin Road 113 5 General Access Glen Legh Road 101 4 General Access Grahams Valley Road 7 1 B-Double - 25/26m Grey Street 8 1 General Access Gulf Road 104 2 General Access Homestead Road 10 1 General Access Kilkenny Place 8 1 B-Double - 25/26m Kings Plains Road 34 1 B-Double - 25/26m Kookabookra Road 10 1 General Access Lang Street 12 1 B-Double - 25/26m Maybole Road 49 2 General Access Meade Street 12 1 General Access Mt Mitchell Road 96 5 B-Double - 25/26m Mt Slow Road 32 3 General Access Nine Mile Road 79 2 General Access Old Grafton Road 141 3 General Access Oliver Street 12 1 General Access Pinkett Road 156 7 B-Double - 25/26m Polhill Road 26 1 NA Rangers Valley Road 38 4 B-Double - 25/26m Raynors Road 30 1 General Access Red Range Road 141 3 B-Double - 25/26m Rileys Road 15 1 General Access Rodgers Road 7 1 General Access

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Road Metres Number Approved for Ruwenzorie Road 17 1 General Access Severn River Road 30 1 General Access Shannon Vale Road 133 4 General Access Shaws Road 11 1 General Access Six Mile Road 8 1 General Access Stonehenge Road 24 1 General Access Strathbogie Road 266 12 B-Double - 25/26m Tablelands Road 27 2 General Access Tangoa Road 36 1 General Access Taylor Street 24 2 General Access Ten Mile Road 29 2 General Access Tent Hill Road 117 4 General Access Tuttles Lane 24 1 General Access Waterloo Road 56 2 General Access Wellington Vale Road 112 7 B-Double - 25/26m Wentworth Street 13 1 General Access Yarraford Road 32 1 General Access Grand Total 2,554 121

This same data has been sorted according to location in Table 5-21. The table indicates a high degree of seamlessness with respect to vehicle standards along continuous parts of the same road.

Table 5-21 Glen Innes Severn LGA bridges - summary by locale

Area Metres Number Area Metres Number Backwater 22 1 Maybole 18 1 Bald Nob 29 4 Moggs Swamp 18 1 Deepwater 72 6 Mount Mitchell 126 7 Diehard 65 1 Newton Boyd 76 2 Dundee 170 10 Pinkett 40 2 Emmaville 152 7 Rangers Valley 47 2 Furracabad 58 3 Red Range 103 6 Reddestone 87 2 Glen Elgin 113 5 Shannon Vale 152 6 Glen Innes 256 18 Stonehenge 39 2 Glencoe 61 4 Wellingrove 312 11 Kingsgate 17 1 Wellington Vale 227 9 Kookabookra 40 2 Grand Total 2,554 121 Lambs Valley 190 5 Matheson 65 3

Bridge data for the Tenterfield Shire is summarised in Table 5-22. This outlines the current bridge program and identifies where network deficiencies exist.

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Table 5-22 Tenterfield LGA key bridge issues summary Bridge Place Load limit Works Current Other comments No 67202 Kangaroo Creek 10 tonne GVM, Grant funding approved for bridge replacement and Load limit and speed restriction Detour: Bruxner Highway to – Paddys Flat maximum axle documentation is being prepared for the replacement signage in place. Clarence Way to Urbenville To Rd (North) load of 5 tonne tendering. Interim works deferred. Commence: Tender process to commence 2019/2020 financial year. 73901 Deepwater River No application Grant funding approved for bridge Speed limits are in place to To Commence: Tender process to – Torrington Rd of load limit for replacement (Federal Govt Bridges Renewal minimise dynamic load impacts commence 2019/2020 financial present Program) and documentation is being prepared for the on the bridge. year. replacement tendering. Interim works deferred. 73903 Kangaroo Creek No application Strengthening of abutment supports. Speed limits have been put in To Commence: 2020 – Torrington Rd of load limit for place to minimise dynamic load present impacts on the bridge. In addition to signage, speed humps have now been installed. 54511 Deepwater River Complete Speed limits are in place to – Castlerag Rd minimise dynamic load impacts on the bridge. 72111 Blacksmith’s Single axle Additional girders and continuous kerb boards Load limit and speed restriction Detour: Bruxner Highway Creek – vehicles, max signage now in force. In Sunnyside Loop axle load of 8 addition to signage, a speed Rd tonne hump has now been installed on the western side of the bridge. 62218 Boonoo Boonoo Side track in Side track and temporary bridge are in place to allow Temporary road signage and Detour: Wide loads access via River – Mt place - Width for new bridge replacement. Funding for new bridge speed restriction signage in Wallangarra and Stanthorpe – New Lindesay Rd Limit – 3.0 provided through State Govt Fixing Country place for the detour. England Highway metres Roads. Tenders have been called for the replacement works and are being assessed. 61111 Emu Creek - Temporary bypass in place. Grant funding for new Speed restriction signage To Commence: 2019/ 2020 Hootons Road bridge replacement provided through State currently in place on detour. financial year. Govt Fixing Country Roads. Tenders have been called for the replacement works and are being assessed. 61112 Clarence River – 9 tonne GVM, Bridge replacement funding being considered with Load limit and speed restriction Detour: Bruxner Highway to Hootons Road maximum axle Kyogle Shire Council. signage now in force. Clarence Way to Urbenville load of 5 tonne

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Source: https://www.tenterfield.nsw.gov.au/engineering/road-information-closures-roadworks-etc/load-limits-bridges-tenterfield-shire accessed 16/01/2020

Bridge data for Armidale Regional Council which summarises the improvements required to support high productivity vehicle is shown in Table 5-23.

Table 5-23 Armidale Regional Council – Bridge Summary Rank Asset Project Suburb Project Description Existing Existing New Comments Category Location Bridge Bridge Bridge Width Length Width

1 Bridge Lynhurst Thalgarrah Upgrade bridge 4.84km from Rockvale Road 4.7 5.1 4.8 Likely require load and/or speed limit to be Road over Lambs Valley Creek applied as recommendation of next Level lll inspection. 2 Bridge Old Hillgrove Renew bridge over Bakers Creek 4.9 34.4 4.8 Likely require load and/or speed limit to be Hillgrove applied as recommendation of next Level Road lll inspection. 3 Bridge Boorolong Boorolong Strengthen bridge over Two Mile Water 6.1 6.6 8 Likely require load and/or speed limit to be Road applied as recommendation of next Level lll inspection. 4 Bridge Shambrook Armidale Upgrade bridge 0.41km from Drew Street over 6.4 18.2 8 Likely require load and/or speed limit to be Avenue Martins Gully applied as recommendation of next Level lll inspection.

5 Bridge Boorolong Boorolong Upgrade bridge 25.59km from former ACC 3.7 4.14 4.8 Road boundary over Boorolong Creek

6 Bridge Kookaboora Kookaboora Upgrade bridge 22.25km from Wards Mistake 4.1 4.35 4.8 Road Road over

7 Bridge Melrose Enmore Upgrade bridge 4.41km from Blue Knobby 3.7 4.15 4.8 Likely require load and/or speed limit to be Road Road over Postmans Gully applied as recommendation of next Level lll inspection. 8 Bridge Sissons Aberfoyle Upgrade bridge 1.3km from MR135 over 3.7 4.3 4.8 Likely require load and/or speed limit to be Road Boundary Creek applied as recommendation of next Level lll inspection. 9 Bridge Exmouth Boorolong Upgrade bridge 0.32km from Toms Gully 4.4 4.4 8 Likely require load and/or speed limit to be Road Road over Dumaresq Creek applied as recommendation of next Level lll inspection. 10 Bridge Old Boorolong Upgrade Kaurala Bridge, 6.4km from MR135 4.7 26.7 4.8 Likely require load and speed limit to be Armidale over Laura Creek applied as recommendation of next Level Road lll inspection.

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11 Bridge Wakefield Woolomombi Upgrade bridge 1.96km from Waterfall Way 5 4.5 8 Likely require load and/or speed limit to be Road over applied as recommendation of next Level lll inspection. 12 Bridge Dulvay Boorolong Upgrade bridge 3.27km from Boorolong Road 3.8 4.24 4.8 Likely require load and/or speed limit to be Road over Abington Creek applied as recommendation of next Level lll inspection. 13 Bridge Baldersleigh Baldersleigh 3.95 4.32 4.8 Road Upgrade bridge 27.75km from MR135 over Laura Creek 14 Bridge Lynhurst Thalgarrah Upgrade bridge 1.96km from Rockvale Road 3.9 4.3 4.8 Likely require load and/or speed limit to be Road over Boundary Creek applied as recommendation of next Level lll inspection. 15 Bridge Tanners Jeogla Upgrade bridge 0.92km from Waterfall Way 3.4 11 4.8 Temporary bridge provided by Forestry Road over Oak River Corporation. Will need to be replaced.

16 Bridge Herbert Herbert Park Upgrade bridge 12.17km from Rockvale Road 3.8 4.1 4.8 Likely require load and/or speed limit to be Park Road over applied as recommendation of next Level lll inspection. 17 Bridge Tenterden Wandsworth Upgrade bridge 2.65km from MR135 over 3.8 18.82 4.8 Excess deflection under load damaging Road Willis Creek precast decking units and requiring frequent maintenance.

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5.2.3.2 Railway crossings There are an estimated 114 railway crossings within the New England road network. The highest number of railway crossings are located within the Narrabri Shire LGA which has 45 railway crossings followed by Moree Plains Shire which has 34 railway crossings. Uralla Shire, Walgett Shire and Armidale Shire each have nine railway crossings. Adjacent Gunnedah Shire and Gwydir Shire have four level railway crossings each. The railway north of Armidale is non-operational although the formation, track and sleepers are still in situ. The locations of the crossings are mapped on Figure 5-5.

5.2.3.3 Rest areas There are 75 vehicle rest stop areas provided along the major routes within the New England road network. More vehicle rest areas are provided along the highways providing north-south linkages such as Newell Highway, New England Highway, and Carnarvon Highway, when compared to the highways providing east- west linkages such as Gwydir Highway, Bruxner Highway, Waterfall Highway, Kamilaroi Highway, and Carnarvon Highway. The locations of rest areas are mapped on Figure 5-5.

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Figure 5-3 Road network speed limit

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Figure 5-4 Number of lanes

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Figure 5-5 Key road infrastructure

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5.2.4 Connectivity

5.3 Freight network The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Cities and Regional Development has identified the key freight routes and secondary freight routes across Australia, to provide a comprehensive understanding of the freight system, and a detailed picture of the routes connecting significant places for freight. The key freight routes within the New England road network are mapped on Figure 5-8.

5.3.1 Overview The National Land Transport network is a network of nationally significant road and rail infrastructure corridors and intermodal facilities. Within NEJO, this includes the Newell Highway and New England Highway, which both provide key north-south connections within and through NSW. Restricted vehicle access is dictated by TFNSW. B-double routes areas are located in Moree Plains Shire Council, Narrabri Shire Council and Armidale Regional Council. B-triple and road train access is limited to Moree Plains Shire Council and Narrabri Shire Council.

5.3.2 Restricted vehicle access Any vehicle, which exceeds the overall dimensions of vehicles as defined in the Heavy Vehicle National Law (NSW), is considered a restricted access vehicle. The Law defines the width, height, length and some internal dimensions of vehicles. These include but are not limited to B-doubles, road trains and vehicle combinations operating at Higher Mass Limits. The restricted vehicle access on the freight network is dictated by the road owner – councils or TfNSW and is mapped on Figure 5-9. The key freight routes are mapped on Figure 5-6, and heavy vehicle restrictions are shown in Figure 5-7.

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Figure 5-6 Freight network

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Figure 5-7 Restricted vehicle routes

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Figure 5-8 Freight routes, intermodal terminals, and airport locations

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Figure 5-9 Restricted vehicle areas

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5.3.3 Description of key freight corridors

Newell Highway Connects Queensland border at Boggabilla to Tocumwal on the Victorian border via Moree, Narrabri, Gilgandra, Dubbo, Parkes, West Wyalong and Narrandera. Currently approved for AB triples between the Queensland border and Narrabri.17 Road trains and B-doubles in the NEJO region can run unimpeded on the Cunningham and to the outskirts of Toowoomba and on the RT1 network in Queensland. A summary of the Newell Highway is presented in Table 5-24.

Table 5-24 Newell Highway freight activities Item Summary of freight Main . Support freight from Victoria to Queensland and return. functions . Support internal movements within NSW to and from ports at Newcastle and Botany. . Support local short haul movements in the area. . Short haul movements interstate. . Round town movements. Through freight Victoria to Transports goods northwards which is driven by population and consumer demand. Has averaged Queensland over 4% for 20 years especially as transport costs have declined in real terms and people are more freight willing to source more distant products. The availability of backloaded freight defrays some of the cost movements of a two-way trip and makes this an attractive route. Queensland Mainly agricultural and horticultural products. Driven by consumer demand but also acutely impacted to Victoria by climatic and seasonal events (drought/flood/cyclones etc.) and cheap backloaded freight rates. freight Long term trend is slightly above Victorian population growth. movements To / from New England To / from . Containerised and baled cotton to/from Western Sydney (Yennora/ Moorebank, Camelia) or direct NSW to Botany – reverse movements for empty containers (north). . Containerised and bulk rice and horticulture (south). . Bulk fuel for three main user groups: for agriculture and industry, for mining sector and for consumer usage. - Agricultural sector – always lower in drought condition. - Industry – Railways are a major user, driven by coal and grain exports. - Mines – depends on contracts and coal prices- mostly increasing at about 2% pa. There are many questions surrounding the long-term future of coal. - Consumers – always above pop growth and supplemented by large grey nomad/recreational market. . Consumer Goods – an always slightly above population growth but differs for particular areas because some places have population decline. However, tourism growth is offsetting some of this effect. . Industrial inputs – depends on general state of the regional economy, housing demand etc., and mine inputs- explosive, chemicals, agriculture is dependent on fertilisers. Local and . Mainly grain/broad acre crops from farm to silo/storage and railhead - variable climate/season and short haul market driven but long term increasing by about 1% pa. movements . Also repositioning livestock/ feedlot exchanges – variable climate/season and market driven. . To support TFNSW/INSW infrastructure projects. . Local government sponsored projects. Short haul . Consumer and industrial products goods go south. northern NSW – Queensland

17 https://www.TfNSW.nsw.gov.au/business-industry/heavy-vehicles/maps/road-train-map/index.html

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Item Summary of freight . Bulk fuel goes south from Brisbane via Toowoomba (Road Train)/Warwick/Goondiwindi (B- double), Of special significance is the comparatively regional airport at Moree which is dependent on supplies of aviation fuels. . Bulk agriculture goes north – grain/horticultural products/cotton for ginning/processing/storage domestic consumption and some is exported. Rail support The proposed Melbourne Brisbane Inland Railway will basically parallel the Newell Highway and potentially relieve the corridor of some of the long- haul interstate freight currently using the corridor. The line is primarily aimed point-to-point whole-trainloads rather than milk-run stopping-all-stations operations. If this remains the case, there is little prospect of removing most of the short and medium road hauls on the route unless the loads can be consolidated into whole trainload quantities which is unlikely.

New England Highway An approved 25 metre B-double route linking Yarraman (Queensland) with Hexham (NSW) via) Toowoomba, Warwick, Tenterfield, Glen Innes, Armidale, Tamworth, Muswellbrook, Maitland. A summary of the New England Highway is presented in Table 5-25.

Table 5-25 New England Highway freight activities Item Summary of freight Main . Support freight from WNS (Wollongong/Sydney/Newcastle) to Queensland and return. functions . Support internal movements within NSW to and from ports at Newcastle and Botany. . Support local short haul movements in the area. . Short haul movements interstate. . Round town movements. Through freight WNS to Predominantly manufactures including steel and industrial products, and store goods northwards. Queensland Demand for this is driven by population and consumer demand. Has averaged over 4% for 20 years freight especially as transport costs have declined in real terms and people are more willing to source more movements distant products. Queensland Mainly agricultural and horticultural products. Driven by consumer demand but also acutely impacted to WSN by climatic and seasonal events (drought/flood/cyclones etc.). Long term trend is slightly above NSW freight population growth. movements To / from New England To / from . Containerised and baled cotton to/from Western Sydney (Yennora/ Moorebank, Camelia) or direct NSW to Botany – reverse movements for empty containers (north). . Bulk fuel for five main clientele: for agriculture and for consumer usage. - Agricultural sector – always lower in drought condition. - Industry – very little except for processing raw agricultural products. - Aviation – large regional airport at Armidale. - Transport – Armidale is an important logistics hub and refuelling point midway between Brisbane and Sydney. - Mines – nil. - Domestic consumption – always growing above population growth and supplemented by large and growing grey nomad/recreational market. . Consumer Goods – always slightly above population growth but differs for particular areas because some places have population decline. However, tourism growth is offsetting some of this effect. The route has many tourist attractions and in Armidale, for example, regard tourism as one of its three pillars for economic growth and success. . Industrial inputs – depends on general state of the regional economy, housing demand etc. and mine inputs- explosive, chemicals, agriculture is dependent on fertilisers. Local and . Mainly grain/ broad acre crops from farm to feedlot – beef, pork, poultry -variable climate/season short haul and market driven but long term increasing by about 1% pa. movements

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Item Summary of freight . Also repositioning livestock/ feedlot exchanges/ sale yards/ abattoirs– variable climate/season and market driven. . To support TFNSW/INSW etc. infrastructure projects – e.g. quarry materials. . Local government sponsored projects. Short haul . Consumer and industrial products goods go south. northern . Bulk fuel goes south. NSW – . Queensland Bulk agriculture goes north – grain/horticultural products/cotton. . There is a major Big W regional distribution centre near Warwick (Queensland) with good access to the New England Highway. It is also connected to the Newell Highway via the Cunningham Highway in Queensland. Rail support There are no rail freight operations north of the Junction to the south of Armidale although the lines open to passenger services. It is maintained to passenger standards which exceed those required for freight operations. Modern rail freight operations are based around consolidated loads into whole trainload point to point operations and even Armidale, which is the largest city could not generate or sustain these volumes on a commercial basis.

Kamilaroi Highway The Kamilaroi highway connects Bourke to the New England Highway near Willow Creek via Brewarrina, Walgett, Burren Junction, Wee Waa, Narrabri, Boggabri, Gunnedah, Curlewis, Quirindi. Currently approved for B-triples to all points north of Gunnedah. Following the Second Road Bridge over rail at Gunnedah, the route south of Gunnedah may be reclassified and be suitable for HPVs and road trains via the NEJO region. A summary of the Kamilaroi Highway is presented in Table 5-26.

Table 5-26 Kamilaroi Highway freight activities Item Summary of freight Main . In the southern part, direct connection from the Hunter Valley to Narrabri via Gunnedah and functions bypassing Tamworth. . Support internal movements within NSW to and from ports at Newcastle and Botany. . Support local short haul movements in the area. . Round town movements. Through freight Victoria to Predominantly manufactures and store goods northwards which is driven by population and consumer Queensland demand. Has averaged over 4% for 20 years especially as transport costs have declined in real freight terms and people are more willing to source more distant products. The availability of backloaded movements freight defrays some of the cost of a two-way trip and makes this an attractive route. Queensland Mainly agricultural and horticultural products. Driven by consumer demand but also acutely impacted to Victoria by climatic and seasonal events (drought/flood/cyclones etc.) and cheap backloaded freight rates. freight Long term trend is slightly above Victorian population growth. movements To / from New England To / from . Northwards, predominantly manufactures and store goods northwards which is driven by NSW population and consumer demand. The availability of backloaded freight defrays some of the cost of a two-way trip and makes this an attractive route. Stagnating population and hence demand, is impacting on freight volumes. . Mainly agricultural and horticultural products going south. Driven by export demand but also acutely impacted by climatic and seasonal events (drought/flood/cyclones etc.) and cheap backloaded freight rates. Long term prognosis is a return to previous volumes after current drought ends. . Containerised and baled cotton to/from Western Sydney (Yennora/ Moorebank, Camelia) or direct to Botany – reverse movements for empty containers (north). . Bulk fuel for three main clienteles: for agriculture and industry, for mining sector, for consumer usage. - Agricultural sector – always lower in drought condition. - Industry – Railways are a major user, driven by coal and grain exports.

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Item Summary of freight - Mines – depends on contracts and coal prices- mostly increasing at about 2% pa. There are many questions surrounding the long term future of coal. At the moment many are planning some sort of expansion. - Consumers – always above pop growth and supplemented by large grey nomad/recreational market. There are several interesting attractions within NEJO making it a tourist destination. . Consumer Goods – an always slightly above population growth but differs for particular areas because some places have population decline. However, tourism growth is offsetting some of this effect. . Industrial inputs – depends on general state of the regional economy, housing demand etc. and mine inputs- explosive, chemicals, agriculture is dependent on fertilisers. . Towns where mining rather than agriculture dominate economic activity and employment have been less impacted by adverse weather conditions. Local and . Mainly grain/broad acre crops from farm to silo/storage and railhead - variable climate/season and short haul market driven but long term increasing by about 1% pa. movements . Also repositioning livestock/ feedlot exchanges – variable climate/season and market driven. . To support TFNSW/INSW etc. infrastructure projects. . Local government sponsored projects. Rail support Rail support is provided by heavy rail which runs parallel and for much of its length, adjacent to the Kamilaroi. Rail performs a major role in the export coal and bulk grain sectors where products are transported in whole trainload quantities. Periodic rationalisation of grain terminals means that when one silo is closed, typically longer road hauls to the next available railhead are required placing extra pressure on the road network.

Bruxner Highway The Bruxner Highway/ Bruxner Way connects the Pacific Highway near Ballina with Boggabilla on the Newell Highway. It is basically an east-west corridor via Lismore, Casino and Tenterfield. West of Tenterfield, 25metre B-doubles are the maximum permitted truck size.18 East of Tenterfield, semi-trailers are the maximum truck size. A summary of the Bruxner Highway is presented in Table 5-27. West of Tenterfield, the road is called Bruxner Way with regional road status.

Table 5-27 Bruxner Highway freight activity Item Summary of freight . Support freight from coastal areas to Tenterfield and hinterland and return. Main . Support local short haul movements in the area. functions . Round town movements. To / from New England To / from . Timber and forestry products to the coast. NSW . Limited agriculture but some dairy and livestock. . Bulk fuel for three main clientele: for agriculture/forestry and industry and for consumer usage. - Agricultural sector including livestock is always lower in drought condition. - Industry – timber milling is significant and processing raw agricultural products. - Mines – nil. - Domestic consumption –population growth depends on the state of the regional economy but is supplemented by large and growing grey nomad/recreational market. . Consumer Goods – an always slightly above population growth but differs for particular areas because some places have population decline. However, tourism growth is offsetting some of this effect. The former home town of entertainer Peter Allen is being promoted as a tourist attraction. . Industrial inputs – depends on general state of the regional economy, housing demand etc. and mine inputs- explosive, chemicals, agriculture is dependent on fertilisers.

18 https://www.TfNSW.nsw.gov.au/business-industry/heavy-vehicles/maps/restricted-access-vehicles-map/map/index.html

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Item Summary of freight Local and . Mainly log and cut timer, wood chips, process timber products etc. short haul . Repositioning livestock/ feedlot exchanges /saleyards/abattoirs– variable climate/season and movements market driven. . To support TFNSW/INSW etc. infrastructure projects – e.g. quarry materials. . Local government sponsored projects. Rail support NA

Gwydir Highway The Gwydir Highway connects the Pacific Highway near Grafton in the east with the Castlereagh and Kamilaroi Highways near Walgett via Glen Innes, Inverell, Warialda, Moree, Collarenebri. The section between Inverell and all points west is currently classified for B-triples and there is potential for future HPV access between at least Inverell and Moree (in line with future Newell Highway HPV access). Between Inverell and the coast, 25metre B-doubles are the maximum permitted truck size. Broadly speaking it is an east-west connector like the Bruxner Highway. A summary of the Gwydir Highway is presented in Table 5- 28.

Table 5-28 Gwydir Highway freight activity Item Summary of freight Main . Support internal movements within NSW to and from the coast. functions . Support east west movements to internal hubs and railheads. . Support local short haul movements in the area. . Round town movements. To / from New England Main . Bulk fuel for three main client groups: agriculture and industry, mining sector and consumers. commodities - Agricultural sector – always lower in drought condition. - Industry – Railways are a major user, driven by coal and grain exports. - Mines – negligible. - Consumers – always above pop growth and supplemented by large grey nomad/recreational market. . Consumer Goods – an always slightly above population growth but differs for particular areas because some places have population decline. However, tourism growth is offsetting some of this effect. . Industrial inputs – depends on general state of the regional economy, housing demand etc. and mine inputs- explosive, chemicals, agriculture is dependent on fertilisers. . Industrial Outputs – timber products, wool products, livestock products. Local and . Mainly grain/broad acre crops from farm to silo/storage and railhead - variable climate/season and short haul market driven but long term increasing by about 1% pa. movements . Some containerised broad acre crops which are repositioned to the Moree railhead. . Also repositioning livestock/ feedlot exchanges – variable climate/season and market driven. . Distribution of products to smaller towns from the regional transport hubs located on the cross roads e.g. Moree, Glen Innes. . To support TFNSW/INSW etc. infrastructure projects. . The section between Glen Innes and Grafton is suitable for 25 mete B-doubles Local government sponsored projects. Rail support Rail support: zero. There was formerly the Inverell Branch connecting Moree to Inverell via Warialda. The branch operation was wound down until full closure in 1994. In 2017 three km of line was recommissioned for a bumper grain crop and to remove a large number of truck trips off this road and adjoining roads to access mainline storage facilities via Moree town. The line is not suitable for modern rail operations and reinstatement would be financially unviable. Thus grain repositioned to the railhead at Moree is all carted on this road.

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Waterfall Way The Waterfall Way connects the New England Highway near Armidale to the Pacific Highway near Coffs Harbour. The section between Armidale and Dorrigo is an approved 25 metre B-double route. East of Dorrigo, semi-trailers are the maximum truck size. The road passes through very difficult mountainous terrain and functions as an east west connector to the coast. Although cattle and timber have been transported along the route for many years, it is not a major connector compared with other NEJO freight routes however it is important to the Dorrigo area and provides as southern alternative to the Gwydir Highway in accessing NEJO from the coast. Its scenic attractions and the growing self-drive holidays and caravanning mean its future strategic role may be linked to the tourism sector. A summary of Waterfall Way is presented in Table 5-29.

Table 5-29 Waterfall Way freight activities Item Summary of freight Main . Support internal movements within NSW to and from the coast. functions . Support local short haul movements in the area. To / from New England Main . Agricultural products – principally livestock and timber to the coast for processing. commodities . Consumer Goods – to the small hamlets enroute. There are very few end-to-end Coffs Harbour – Armidale movements as Armidale tends to be supplied more directly from Newcastle/ Sydney via Tamworth. Local and . Repositioning livestock/ feedlot exchanges – variable climate/season and market driven. short haul . Distribution of products to smaller towns from the regional transport hubs located on the cross movements roads e.g. Armidale/Coffs Harbour. . To support TFNSW/INSW etc. infrastructure projects. . Local government sponsored projects. Rail support Rail support: None. There was formerly the Dorrigo Branch connecting Glenreagh on the North Coast Line (about 30km north of Wauchope). The branch operation was closured in 1972 after flood damage19. The line is not suitable for modern rail operations and reinstatement would be financially prohibitive given the terrain.

Fossickers Way The section relevant to NEJO connects the Oxley Highway/New England Highway at Tamworth and the Gwydir Highway near Warialda. the New England Highway near Armidale to the Pacific Highway near Coffs Harbour. Various parts of the road are called Manilla Road, Cobbadah Road and Allan Cunningham Road. The road is approved for B-doubles but only with travel conditions. That is, not for unconditional usage of B- doubles. Although agricultural products including grains, cattle and timber have been transported along the route for many years, it is not a major connector compared with other NEJO freight routes. Feedback from transport operators indicate its main usage is as a short cut between Tamworth and Warialda and points beyond such as Moree. As indicated by its name there are many attractions and the growing self-drive holiday and caravanning market may be its major future strategic role. A summary of Fossickers Way is presented in Table 5-30.

19 https://www.nswrail.net/lines/show.php?name=NSW:dorrigo

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Table 5-30 Fossickers Way freight activities Item Summary of freight Main . Support movements between Tamworth and Warialda and all points between. functions . Support local short haul movements in the area. To / from New England Main . Agricultural products – principally grains, livestock and timber to the Tamworth for transhipment. commodities . Consumer Goods – south to north to Warialda and other towns enroute. . Fuel and industrial consumables – the demand driver is the state of the local economy. Local and . Repositioning livestock/ feedlot exchanges – variable climate/season and market driven. short haul . Distribution of products to smaller towns from the regional transport hub namely Tamworth. movements . To support TFNSW/INSW etc. infrastructure projects. . Local government sponsored projects. Rail support Rail support: None. There was formerly the Barraba Branch connecting Tamworth and Barraba via Manilla. The branch operation was progressively scaled back towards Tamworth closed beyond Manilla in 1983 and entirely from 1987.20 The line is not suitable for modern rail operations and reinstatement would be financially prohibitive given the length and the large structures required. A considerable amount of grain is trucked to the railhead at Tamworth for railing to port for export.

Thunderbolts Way The relevant part of Thunderbolts Way connects the Gloucester to the Gwydir Highway near Inverell. It crosses the New England Highway at Uralla. Within NEJO, it is an approved 25 metre B-double route. Thunderbolts way provide connectivity between Walcha and Inverell as well. Although cattle and timber have been transported along the route for many years, it is not a major connector compared with other NEJO freight routes. It provides a shortcut from Tamworth to Inverell via Uralla. Feedback indicates the section for Uralla to Bundarra is the most difficult for trucks to negotiate. Between Uralla and Inverell there are only three small towns Yarrowyck (population 150), Bundarra (population 400) and Gilgai (population 300). A summary of Thunderbolts Way is presented in Table 5-31.

Table 5-31 Thunderbolts Way freight activities Item Summary of freight Main . Support internal movements within between Tamworth /Uralla and Inverell. functions . Support grain movements to railheads. . Support local short haul movements in the area. To / from New England Main . Agricultural products – principally grain, livestock and timber. commodities . Consumer Goods – to the small hamlets enroute. Movements are dominated by end to end trips and also because there are so few towns enroute. . Industrial products and agricultural inputs are mainly trucked direct to site or farm. . Fuel -direct to farm or depot. Local and . Repositioning livestock/ feedlot exchanges – variable climate/season and market driven. short haul . To support TFNSW/INSW etc. infrastructure projects. movements . Local government sponsored projects. Rail support NA

20 https://www.nswrail.net/lines/show.php?name=NSW:barraba

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Carnarvon Highway The relevant part of the Carnarvon Highway connects Mungindi on the Queensland border with the Newell Highway and the Gwydir Highway near Moree. Just as the Newell/ connect northern NSW and central Queensland, the Carnarvon is basically a parallel western version. Within NEJO, it is an approved 25 metre B-double route. Although livestock , grain and cotton have been transported along the route for many years, it is not a major connector compared with other NEJO freight routes. It provides a shortcut from Moree to Thallon in Queensland. Feedback indicates the southern section also known as the Ashley Road is the most trafficked and costly to maintain. Between Mungindi and Moree Uralla and Inverell there are only three small towns – Ashley (population 400), Garah (population 300) and Weemelah (population 150), Bundarra (population 400) and Gilgai (population 300). There are no other practical alternative routes to connect these towns. A summary of the Carnarvon Highway is presented in Table 5-31.

Table 5-32 Carnarvon Highway freight activities Item Summary of freight Main . Support internal movements within between Moree and Mungindi /Thallon. functions . Support grain movements to railheads. . Support long distance livestock movements. To / from NEJO Main . Agricultural products – principally grain, cotton. commodities . Consumer Goods – to the small hamlets enroute. Movements are dominated by end to end trips and also because there are so few towns enroute. . Industrial products and agricultural inputs are mainly trucked direct to site or farm. . Fuel -direct to farm or depot. Local and . Repositioning livestock/ feedlot /saleyard exchanges – variable climate/season and market driven. short haul . To support TFNSW/INSW etc. infrastructure projects. movements . Local government sponsored projects. Rail support NA

5.3.4 Rail The Hunter Valley freight network is owned by TfNSW and leased to and managed by the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC). This network operates a mixed use, open-access rail system that supports coal, grain, general and bulk freight goods as well as serves passengers21. The Hunter Valley network is approximately 1,400 kilometres in length from the Port of Newcastle, to Muswellbrook, west to Parkes on the Ulan Lines, and north to Narrabri, Moree and to the Queensland border. The regional freight rail network is shown in Figure 5-6. There are 91 rail level crossings located within the NEJO area, including the following types: > Active control with flashing lights (11 crossings); > Passive control with give way signs (13 crossings); and > Passive control with stop signs (55 crossings).

5.3.5 Intermodal freight hubs Intermodal freight hub locations are listed in Table 5-33.

21 https://www.artc.com.au/community/proud-to-keep-the-hunter-moving/

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Table 5-33 Intermodal terminals Local government area Intermodal terminal Moree Plains Shire Council Broadbent Grain Moree Plains Shire Council Louis-Dreyfus Commodities Narrabri Shire Council Auscott Narrabri Shire Council Louis-Dreyfus Narrabri Shire Council Viterra Narrabri Shire Council Namoi Cotton Alliance Tamworth Regional Council (bordering NEJO) Former Hills Transport/ Pacific National site Tamworth Regional Council (bordering NEJO) Tamworth Intermodal (Westdale) Walgett Shire Council AWB Grainflow

As the Inland Rail project is progressed, the private sector is expected to invest in intermodal terminals along the corridor, with Parkes emerging as a major freight hub22. Regional intermodal terminals are critical to support container exports (including containerised grain) and improve regional supply chains. The NSW government does not have a role in operating intermodal terminals, however it can have a role in identifying, protecting and zoning land for new terminals.

5.3.6 Truck rest areas Truck rest stop areas are provided on all freight routes within NEJO. These are shown in Figure 5-6.

5.3.7 Heavy vehicle safety stations Heavy vehicle safety stations are permanent Roads and Maritime (now TfNSW) facilities, located along major transport routes. Roads and Maritime uses HVSS to ensure drivers and heavy vehicles are operating legally and in a safe manner on NSW roads. Drivers and vehicles that do not comply provide a significant risk to other road users, the road infrastructure and the environment. There are no heavy vehicle safety stations within the New England region however, the region is covered by Weight of Loads Groups which conduct heavy vehicle enforcement.

22 NSW Freight and Ports Plan, NSW Government

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5.4 Airports Regional airports are of vital social and economic importance for communities. They are a crucial part of regional strategies to attract and retain investment and growth and require efficient road access for a range of vehicle types. There are over 30 airports/ airstrips/ runways within the New England area which provides important links to Sydney, Brisbane, and Toowoomba. The location of the main airports is mapped in Figure 5-8. The regional airport network provided important linkages essentially to Sydney, Brisbane and Toowoomba. Airports at Armidale and Moree support regular commercial services but airport facilities exist at Glen Innes Inverell, Narrabri, and Tenterfield. These offer basic facilities and are used for private charters, medical evacuation and maintenance activities. Airports in the Armidale and Moree LGAs support regular commercial services. This places them in a much better position to support the tourist market than do the other locations. Armidale sees their airport as a crucial link to supporting its university, health and research facilities as well as a tourism support. Airport facilities also exist in Glen Innes Inverell, Narrabri, and Tenterfield LGAs that are mostly located near the bigger towns. These offer basic facilities and are used for private charters, medical evacuation, and maintenance activities. The results of a survey of airports using commercial websites is summarised in Table 5-34. This also contains information on airport activities in adjoining non NEJO LGAs.

Table 5-34 Summary of airports, airstrips and runways Airport/Runway Status NEJO LGA Armidale Regional Y AR Moree Regional Y MPS Narrabri Regional Y NS Glen Innes Regional Y GIS Inverell Regional Y IS Tamworth Regional Y Tamworth Gunnedah Regional Y Gunnedah Boomi Small Y MPS Mungindi Small Y MPS Boggabri Small Y NS Inverell North Small Y IS Barraba Small Tamworth Bingara Small Gwydir Walcha Small Walcha Warialda Small Gwydir Tenterfield Small Y TS Burren Small Y NS Ashford Small Y IS Glencoe Small Y GIS Pilliga Small Y NS Lake Keepit Small Gunnedah Wee Waa Small Y NS Dunmore Manilla Small Tamworth Boggabilla Small Y MPS

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Airport/Runway Status NEJO LGA Upper Horton Small Gwydir Biniguy NA Y MPS Cooranga NA Y IS Collymongle NA Y MPS Tellaraga NA Y MPS Bellatta NA Y NS Keytah NA Y MPS Wollomombi NA Y AR

Sources: https://airportguide.com/, https://ourairports.com/

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6 Traffic volumes

6.1 State roads Roads and Maritime historical traffic volume data was obtained from the permanent counting/ classifying stations on major state roads which provide Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) data for traffic movements. Figure 6-3 illustrates the locations of the counting stations across the New England road network, also listed below: > Gwydir Highway – 940 metres West of Tamboura Close, Inverell 2360 (Station Number 6133); > New England Highway – 280 metres North of Severn River Road, Dundee 2370 (Station Number T0259); and > Newell Highway – 670 metres South of Marshall Street, Boggabilla 2409 (Station Number BGBSTC). Figure 6-1 shows the historical AADT data at the four TFNSW counting stations.

Figure 6-1 Historical annual average daily traffic volumes

4,500

4,000

3,500

3,000

2,500

2,000 AADT (Veh) 1,500

1,000

500

0 6133 (Gwydir Highway) 6134 (Gwydir Highway) T0259 (New England BGBSTC (Newell Highway) Highway) Counter Number

2015 2017 2018 2019

Source: TFNSW Traffic Volume Viewer (Data for 2016 was not complete), accessed: 10/12/2019

Across the four counting stations, the Newell Highway carries the most average daily traffic, approximately 4,000 vehicles. Over the four-year period from 2015 -2019, overall there has been an increase in the average daily traffic volumes by 1.2% in the New England road network. Table 6-1 summarises the annual average daily traffic volumes and the heavy vehicle proportion for the sample station data.

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Table 6-1 Annual average daily traffic volume Station Location 2015 2017 2018 2019 AADT HV % AADT HV% AADT HV% AADT HV% 6133 Gwydir 1,296 17.67% 1,478 21.85% 1,390 21.87% 1,317 21.87% Highway 6134 Gwydir 1,375 18.62% 1,799 20.34% 1,581 20.43% 1,442 19.28% Highway T0259 New 2,134 23.48% 2,167 24.78% 2,104 25.81% 2,062 25.95% England Highway BGBSTC Newell 3,847 32.83% 4,051 32.76% 3,847 33.17% 3,933 32.42% Highway Average NEJO 2,163 23.15% 2,374 24.93% 2,231 25.32% 2,189 24.88%

Source: TFNSW Traffic Volume Viewer (Data for 2016 was not complete), accessed: 10/12/2019

Heavy vehicles account for approximately 32% of the total traffic volume along Newell Highway and approximately 25% along the New England Highway. Gwydir Highway also carries a high proportion of heavy vehicles (HV), which accounts for 20% of the total traffic. By way of comparison, the TfNSW guidelines for project evaluation use a 5% proportion of HV as a benchmark. Figure 6-2 suggests that there was an 18.1% increase in the average heavy vehicle volumes in the New England area between 2015 and 2017, whereas the light vehicles increased by only 7.2% during that period. The traffic volumes declined slightly by 4.5% in heavy vehicles between 2017 and 2018. The decline in the same period for light vehicles was 6.5%. Between 2018 and 2019 the light vehicle traffic volumes declined by 1.3% and the heavy vehicle traffic volumes declined by 3.5%. Drought conditions are likely to have contributed to this effect.

Figure 6-2 NEJO average traffic volumes

2,000 1,782 1,800 1,662 1,666 1,644 1,600

1,400

1,200

1,000

AADT (Veh) 800 592 565 544 600 501

400

200

0 2015 2017 2018 2019 Year

Light Vehicles Heavy Vehicles

Source: TFNSW Traffic Volume Viewer (Data for 2016 was not complete), accessed: 10/12/2019

Heavy vehicle movements during the average weekend are significantly lower than an average weekday. This suggests that heavy vehicles predominantly travel during weekdays when compared to the weekend

80020022 | 24 November 2020 | Commercial in Confidence 86 New England Road Network Strategy Final Report periods. Taking this a step further, long distance and inter-capital city freight tends to be a 24-7 operation whereas local pick-up and delivery (PUD) and short haul movements are more in line with normal business hours. Table 6-2 summarises the proportion of heavy vehicles during typical weekday and weekend periods.

Table 6-2 Heavy vehicles proportion – weekday vs weekend Station Location 2015 2017 2018 2019 HV % HV % HV % HV % HV % HV % HV % HV % Weekd Weeken Weekd Weeken Weekd Weeken Weekd Weeke ay d ay d ay d ay nd 6133 Gwydir Highway 19.90% 11.40% 24.16% 14.29% 23.75% 15.52% 23.86% 15.43% 6134 Gwydir Highway 23.79% 12.87% 22.19% 12.65% 22.02% 13.78% 20.83% 12.72% T0259 New England 25.74% 16.42% 27.02% 17.03% 27.80% 17.79% 28.03% 17.92% Highway BGBST Newell Highway 33.32% 29.92% 33.53% 27.85% 33.67% 29.10% 32.95% 28.38% C Average 25.69% 17.65% 26.73% 17.96% 26.81% 19.05% 26.42% 18.61%

Source: TFNSW Traffic Volume Viewer (Data for 2016 was not complete), accessed: 10/12/2019

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Figure 6-3 Traffic count locations

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6.2 Local roads Traffic volumes data received from several councils and the results have been presented in the following sections.

6.2.1 Armidale Regional LGA The traffic volumes provided by Armidale Regional Council on their regional and local roads are summarised in Table 6-3. The data suggests that the roads carry a wide range of traffic densities ranging from 44 (Old Armidale Road) to 10909 (Old New England Highway). It is probable that the latter measurement is actually within the Armidale urban area given the comparatively low commercial vehicle proportion and therefore somewhat different from the majority of roads on this list. A simple average of these roads indicates an average AADT of 1147 and 94 CV (8.1%). When the Old New England Highway outlier is removed, the simple average of the remaining sites is 396 AADT and 67 CV representing 17% of the total.

Table 6-3 Armidale Regional LGA traffic volumes – selected roads Road Name Road Hierarchy Type of Road AADT CV Year Baldersleigh Road Local Road Sealed 76 13 2004 Ben Lomond Road Local Road Sealed 138 19 2005 Boorolong Road Local Road Sealed 308 38 2015 Castledoyle Road Local Road Sealed 845 68 2016 Kempsey Road Local Road Predominately 121 19 2016 unsealed MR124 - Armidale — Yarrowyck Regional Road Sealed 1,787 95 2016 Road MR135 - Ebor — Gilgai (Guyra Regional Road Sealed 503 89 2006 Road) Nowlands Road Local Road Sealed 50 8 Old Armidale Road Local Road Predominately 44 2 2015 sealed Puddledock Road Local Road Predominately 145 15 2000 sealed Rockvale Road Local Road Predominately 80 14 2014 sealed RR7709 - Old New England Regional Road Sealed 10,909 447 2013 Hwy Tenterden Road Local Road Sealed 55 11 2011 Wards Mistake Road Local Road Sealed 1,000 476 2012

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6.2.2 Glen Innes Severn LGA The traffic volumes provided by Glen Innes Severn Council on their regional and local roads are summarised in Table 6-4. The data suggests that the roads carry very low traffic volumes, with average daily traffic less than 400 vehicles per day. Rangers Valley Road has the highest percentage of heavy vehicles which suggests that the road is used to provide access to freight hubs such as Rangers Valley Feedlot.

Table 6-4 Glen Innes Severn LGA traffic volumes – selected roads Road Name Road Hierarchy Type of Road AADT % Commercial Vehicles Emmaville Road Regional Road Sealed 335 11.70% Rangers Valley Road Local Road Sealed 120 48.90% Strathbogie Road Local Road Sealed/Unsealed 248 19.04% Red Range Road Local Road Sealed 215 6.90% Glen Leigh Road Local Road Sealed Unsealed 203 24.80% Mt Mitchell Road Local Road Sealed/Unsealed 42 16.50%

Source: Glen Innes Severn Council (The year traffic data was collected and the exact locations of the counters were not provided).

A more comprehensive dataset covering 1,113 count stations was also analysed. The source data was then reclassified as shown in Table 6-5 and contains a mix of urban and rural, sealed and unsealed roads of various road hierarchy rankings.

This data was then summarised by location – rural or urban in Table 6-6. The sample shows urban roads have a higher proportion of sealed roads. For rural road, collector roads are mostly sealed but local access roads are overwhelmingly unsealed.

The same data was then categorised by the count cohorts. These results are summarised in Table 6-7 and show 78% have less than ADT = 50.

Table 6-5 Glen Innes Severn LGA traffic count data set Class Road Type Number of sites ADT Location 1 Arterial (Sealed) 40 100+ Rural 1 Arterial (Sealed) 7 100+ Urban 2 Primary (Sealed) 29 150+ Rural 2 Primary (Sealed) 33 150+ Urban 3 Major Collector (Sealed) 47 100 to 150 Rural 3 Major Collector (Sealed) 20 100 to 150 Urban 3 Major Collector (Unsealed) 5 100 to 150 Rural 4 Minor Collector (Sealed) 43 50 to 100 Rural 4 Minor Collector (Sealed) 10 50 to 100 Urban 4 Minor Collector (Unsealed) 16 50 to 100 Rural 5 Local Access Type A (Sealed) 46 30 to 50 Rural 5 Local Access Type A (Sealed) 90 30 to 50 Urban 5 Local Access Type A (Unsealed) 109 30 to 50 Rural 5 Local Access Type A (Unsealed) 1 30 to 50 Urban 6 Local Access Type B (Sealed) 31 6 to 30 Rural 6 Local Access Type B (Sealed) 172 6 to 30 Urban 6 Local Access Type B (Unsealed) 249 6 to 30 Rural 6 Local Access Type B (Unsealed) 74 6 to 30 Urban 7 Local Access Type C (Unsealed) 75 less than 5 Rural

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Class Road Type Number of sites ADT Location 7 Local Access Type C (Unsealed) 8 less than 5 Urban 8 Formation Only (Unsealed) 7 less than 5 Rural 8 Formation Only (Unsealed) 1 less than 5 Urban Total 1113

Table 6-6 Glen Innes Severn LGA road classification by location summary Class Type Rural Urban Total 1 Arterial (Sealed) 40 7 47 2 Primary (Sealed) 29 33 62 3 Major Collector (Sealed) 47 20 67 3 Major Collector (Unsealed) 5 0 5 4 Minor Collector (Sealed) 43 10 53 4 Minor Collector (Unsealed) 16 0 16 5 Local Access Type A (Sealed) 46 90 136 5 Local Access Type A (Unsealed) 109 1 110 6 Local Access Type B (Sealed) 31 172 203 6 Local Access Type B (Unsealed) 249 74 323 7 Local Access Type C (Unsealed) 75 8 83 8 Formation Only (Unsealed) 7 1 8

Total 697 416 1113

Table 6-7 Glen Innes Severn LGA road ADT summary ADT  100 to 100+ 150+ 30 to 50 50 to 100 6 to 30 less than Total 150 5 Rural 52 40 29 155 59 280 82 697 Urban 20 7 33 91 10 246 9 416 Total 72 47 62 246 69 526 91 1113

6.2.3 Moree Plains Shire LGA Traffic counts conducted between 2017 and 2019 for a number of roads within the Moree Plains LGA are summarised in Table 6-8.

Table 6-8 Moree Plains LGA road AADT summary Road Road Name Description AADT Year Number Collected MR232 Boonangar Road North of Boomi 1860 2017 SR108 Burrington Road Approx 2km east of Newell Highway 584 2015 SR183 Romaka Road 479 2015 SR101 Terry Hie Hie Between Gravsend Road and Melburra Road 244 2015 Road SR120 Rosedale Road Just north of Ashley 168 2015 SR106 Back Pally Road Near the Gun Club 166 2015

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Road Road Name Description AADT Year Number Collected SR105 Mosquito Creek West of SR 106 164 2015 Road MR507 Carrigan Way East of Boomi end of 50 kmh zone 163 2017 SR6 Telleraga Road Just after 1st grid off the highway 162 2015 SR131 Croppa Moree 5 km away from Newell Highway 138 2015 Road SR13 Maloney Road West of Gurley 138 2015 SR102 Dolgelly Road Between 104 and SR 192 124 2016 SR25 Caloona Road South of Weemalah 88 2017 SR196 Wallanol Road End of seal 84 2016 SR130 Boundary Road End of seal 72 2015 SR134 Mount Jerrybang First sealed section after SH12 66 2015 Road SR4 Mallawa Road End of sealed section between SR 7 and 34 63 2015 SR111 Melburra Road South of Terry Hie Hie Road 63 2015 SR129 Gil Gil Creek 61 2015 Road SR127 Buckie Road End of sealed section 60 2015 SR5 Combadello Road Bridge close to SH12 56 2016 SR15 Morialta Road Northern end of seal on south of Watercourse 51 2017 SR172 Pennys Lane East of the rail crossing, before grain receival 50 2016 SR24 Sandholes Road First sealed section off SR 25 49 2015 SR200 Gwyderfield Road After Johnstones driveway 44 2015 SR139 Boo Boo Road South of Gurley Creek Road 40 2015 SR109 Gurley Creek Middle of Gwydirville village 35 2015 Road SR118 Tullaboobera Sealed Section 34 2015 Road SR132 Wongabindie Between SR 131 & SR 198 32 2016 Road SR110 Berrigal Creek West of intersection with SR111 30 2015 Road SR193 Menadool Road West of SR101 30 2015 SR121 Letter Box Road Between SR 123 and Newell Highway before 27 2015 concrete causeway SR104 Foxes Lane End of seal after the highway 27 2015 SR9 Bronte Road End of seal 26 2016 SR238 Stanester Road End of large sealed section on the South side 25 2015 SR178 Murrays Road Seal at the end of concrete causeway 22 2015 SR3 Goonal Road Between SH12 and SR60 22 2015 SR107 Grattai Road Sealed bit between Gwydir Highway and Mount 21 2015 Jerrybang SR1 Watercourse At the intersection of Morialta 21 2015 Road SR153 Calimpa Road Between SR 132 & SR 133 18 2016

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Road Road Name Description AADT Year Number Collected SR123 Limebon Road End of seal North of school 17 2015 SR11 Gingham Road Sealed section at causeway between SR 14 and SR 17 2015 12

6.2.4 Narrabri Shire LGA The average daily traffic (ADT) volumes between 2010 and 2019 for state, regional, and local roads within Narrabri Shire Council are shown in Figure 6-4. Data was also provided for the period between 2000 and 2010 but as this data is older than 10 years it was excluded as part of this assessment. The southern part of Kamilaroi Highway which provides a direct connection from the Hunter Valley to Narrabri via Gunnedah has the maximum ADT ranging from 1351-2153 vehicles. This route is recognised for its importance to livestock transporters, graziers, and the local councils as it is the main route leading to the key hub within the area such as Gunnedah sale yard. Most local roads within the councils have a typical ADT less than 400 vehicles which suggests that these are low volume roads. Local Roads such as Mille Road has the lowest ADT volume ranging from 26-42 vehicles, which indicates that it is a local access road for a low number of properties. The source data was further analysed as the results are summarised in Table 6-9. Most of the count stations show a high proportion of Commercial Vehicles - averaging 24%. By way of reference, the TfNSW Principles and Guidelines for Economic Appraisal of Transport Investments and Initiatives (PGEATII) recommend 5% as a benchmark. Combination vehicles (Semitrailer and B-doubles) account for 5%. Freight is therefore very important in the region. It is noted “96 per cent of road freight is moved by heavy vehicles over 3.5 tonnes”23

23 TfNSW 2019 A Focus on Freight: Enabling safer and more productive road freight outcomes in NSW, Powerpoint presentation by Luke McGregor (A/Senior Manager Stakeholder Relations and Delivery) to NEJO Transport Committee 18 Dec 2019

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Figure 6-4 Narrabri LGA traffic volumes

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Table 6-9 Narrabri LGA traffic count summary Road Road Site Location ADT Commercial Combination Class Year of Number within LGA Vehicles(%) Vehicles (%) of Road Count

SH29 Kamilaroi Highway 200m South of SR61 intersection Turrawan 2,400 32% 6% State 2018 SH29 Kamilaroi Highway 200m North of SR61 intersection Turrawan 1,513 34% 9% State 2018 SH29 Wee Waa Road Next to 44 Wee Waa Road Narrabri 1,762 13% 4% State 2018 SH29 Kamilaroi Highway 200m south of shire boundary West 304 24% 4% State 2019 RR7716 Come By Chance Road Shire boundary West 118 20% 2% Regional 2019 MR329 Cypress Way Sealed Strip About Halfway Gwabegar 44 15% 1% Regional 2019 SH29 Kamilaroi Highway 200m South of SR61 intersection Boggabri 268 26% 4% Regional 2019 SH29 Kamilaroi Highway 200m North of SR61 intersection East 244 21% 0% Regional 2019 SH29 Wee Waa Road Next to 44 Wee Waa Road Wee Waa 318 28% 13% Regional 2019 SH29 Kamilaroi Highway 200m south of shire boundary Boggabri 321 21% 1% Regional 2019 RR7717 Come By Chance Road Shire boundary Narrabri 213 15% 0% Collector 2017 MR330 Cypress Way Sealed Strip About Halfway Bellata 27 34% 9% Collector 2019 SH29 Kamilaroi Highway 200m South of SR61 intersection Boggabri 120 18% 0% Local Access 2019 SH29 Kamilaroi Highway 200m North of SR61 intersection Narrabri 57 13% 0% Local Access 2019 SH29 Wee Waa Road Next to 44 Wee Waa Road Edgeroi 22 33% 4% Local Access 2017 SH29 Kamilaroi Highway 200m south of shire boundary Narrabri 13 18% 0% Local Access 2017 RR7718 Come By Chance Road Shire boundary Narrabri 209 29% 1% Local Access 2019 MR331 Cypress Way Sealed Strip About Halfway Eulah Creek 78 14% 0% Local Access 2017 SH29 Kamilaroi Highway 200m South of SR61 intersection Narrabri 129 6% 1% Local Access 2017 SH29 Kamilaroi Highway 200m North of SR61 intersection Narrabri 111 19% 0% Local Access 2017 SH29 Wee Waa Road Next to 44 Wee Waa Road East 61 40% 0% Local Access 2018 SH29 Kamilaroi Highway 200m south of shire boundary Edgeroi 29 13% 4% Local Access 2017 RR7719 Come By Chance Road Shire boundary Turrawan 893 15% 0% Local Access 2018 MR332 Cypress Way Sealed Strip About Halfway West 15 33% 1% Local Access 2019 Average 386 24% 5%

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6.2.5 Tenterfield Shire LGA The average annual daily traffic (AADT) volumes for roads within Tenterfield Shire Council are shown in Table 6-10. The counts reveal very low traffic volumes but the proportion of HV is relatively high in most cases.

Table 6-10 Tenterfield LGA traffic count summary (updated) Number Road AADT HV HV % Mt Lindesay Road 180 16 9 B60 Bruxner Way 360 43 12 Sunnyside Platform Road 50 5 10 Amosfield Road 330 17 5 Old Ballandean Road 165 17 10 Tooloom Road 150 5 3

6.2.6 Inverell Shire LGA The average annual daily traffic (AADT) volumes for roads within Inverell Shire Council are shown in Table 6-11.

Table 6-11 Inverell Shire LGA traffic count Road Number Road Name Description AADT HV% Year Collected SR059 Graman Rd East of Yetman Rd 62.4 21 2014 SR092 Old Texas Rd North of Texas Rd 166.8 20 2014 SR106 Gunnee Rd Between SR118 and 300.8 37 2014 SR128 SR110 Rob Roy Rd North of Gwydir Hwy 80.3 22 2014 SR118 Oakwood Rd Between SR115 and 123.8 14 2019 SR117 SR123 Mt Russell Rd North of Gwydir Hwy 119.4 13 2015 SR141 Fernhill Rd South of Yetman Rd 298.6 45 2015 SR173 Delungra Bypass Rd East of Bingara Rd 131.8 13 2019 SR238 Woodstock Rd North of Gwydir Hwy 105.1 18 2017 SR254 Stannifer Rd South of Elsmore Rd 136.2 9 2014 SR285 Old Mill Rd South of Stannifer 131 21 2014 SR415 Howell Rd East of Bundarra Rd 126.1 19 2020

6.2.7 Uralla Shire LGA The average annual daily traffic (AADT) volumes for roads within Uralla Shire LGA are shown in Table 6-12.

Table 6-12 Uralla Shire LGA traffic count Road Category Road Name AADT % Heavy Vehicle Regional Thunderbolts Way (North) 636 26 Local Kingstown Road (Kentucky Creek 477 22 Bridge) Local Torryburn Road 85 18 Local Gostwyck Road 216 13 Local Bingara Road 110 28

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Local Bendemeer Road (Tamworth 105 16 Boundary) Local Mihi Road 51 27 Local Bundarra Road 564 20 Local Barraba Road 315 15

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7 Crash history

7.1.1 Recorded crash data Crash data from TfNSW was analysed for New England roads between 2014 and 2018. There was a total of 1,790 reported crashes that occurred within the area, of which 652 crashes (approximately 36%) involved a heavy vehicle. This is roughly 0.14 crashes per kilometre of road based on the network coverage that involves a heavy vehicle. The total number of heavy vehicle crashes per Local Government Area (LGA) is presented in Figure 7-1.

Figure 7-1 Total number of heavy vehicle crashes per local government area

Uralla 41 crashes Armidale Regional Tenterfield 6% 130 crashes 60 crashes 20% 9%

Narrabri Glen Innes Severn 130 crashes 72 crashes 20% 11%

Inverell 88 crashes 14% Moree Plains 131 crashes 20%

Source: Crash data Roads and Maritime Services, supplied 2019

Based on the analysis, the highest proportion of crashes occurred in the Armidale Regional, Narrabri and Moree Plains LGAs. In total, this accounts for 60% of all heavy vehicle crashes across these three areas. The breakdown of the heavy vehicle type involved in the crashes in each LGA is shown in Table 7-1.

Table 7-1 Heavy vehicle crashes per local government area Heavy vehicle Armidale Glen Inverell Moree Narrabri Tenterfield Uralla Total type Regional Innes Shire Plains Shire Shire LGA Shire LGA Severn LGA LGA LGA LGA LGA Articulated tanker 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 2 B-Double 5 3 4 22 15 1 2 52 Large rigid truck 10 5 5 3 7 5 5 40 Light truck 109 58 74 88 93 46 27 495 Road train 0 0 0 4 5 0 0 9 Semi-trailer 6 6 5 13 10 8 6 54 Total 130 72 88 131 130 60 41 652

Source: Crash data Roads and Maritime Services, supplied 2019

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7.1.2 Crash severity The crash severity is categorised under five classes including fatal, serious injury, moderate injury, minor/other injury, and non-casualty but resulted in vehicles being towed away. Figure 7-5 illustrates the locations of reported heavy vehicle crashes based on the crash severity and Table 7-2 summarises the results.

Table 7-2 Total number of crashes based on the severity Crash severity Total number of crashes Fatal 17 Serious injury 146 Moderate injury 211 Minor / other injury 62 Non-casualty – towaway 216

Source: Crash data Roads and Maritime Services, supplied 2019

The data shows that approximately 25% of reported crashes resulted in a fatality or serious injury which is a total of 163 incidents. The towns with the highest number of fatalities and serious injuries occurred in Moree with 16 incidents followed by Narrabri, Inverell, and Guyra with 8 incidents. It is noted that Boggabilla had the highest number of fatal crashes with three cases out of 17 incidents. The top three towns with the highest number of crashes were in Moree (70 incidents which is approximately 11%), Armidale (67 crashes which is approximately 10%) and Inverell (44 crashes which is approximately 7%).

7.1.3 Crash types Crash types are classified by Road User Movement (RUM) codes. The top ten RUM codes that were identified for the NEJO area included RUM codes 10, 20, 30, 32, 67, 70, 71, 73, 80 and 81. These codes are illustrated in Figure 7-2.

Figure 7-2 Top ten RUM code crashes

Source https://roadsafety.transport.nsw.gov.au/downloads/definitions-notes.pdf

It was found that cross-traffic crash (RUM Code 10) is the most common crash type in NEJO which accounts for 12% of crashes. This is when two vehicles travelling in perpendicular directions collide. The top ten locations of crash occurrences were on New England Highway (8 crashes), Edward Street (5 crashes) and Gwydir Highway (4 crashes). The top ten crash types are presented in Figure 7-3.

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Figure 7-3 Top ten crash types based on RUM code

Crash Types 90

80 75

70

60 56 51 50 38 37 40 34 34 33 30 25 24

Total Number of Crashes 20

10

0 10 20 71 81 30 73 67 70 32 80 Rum Code

Source: Crash data Roads and Maritime Services, supplied 2019

Armidale had the highest number of RUM code 10 incidents with 19 occurrences. However, for any given location, Edward Street in Moree had the highest number with five crashes. Of these, four crashes occurred at the same location at Edward Street / Heber Street intersection.

7.1.4 Time of day The greatest number of crashes occurred between 3:00 pm and 7:00 pm on any given day, which accounts for 186 crashes. This represents around 29% of the total number of crashes. In this period, most of the crashes occurred between 3:00 pm and 4:00 pm. Figure 7-4 shows the distribution of the total number of crashes on an hourly basis.

Figure 7-4 Total number of crashes based on time of day

Number of Crashes - Time of Day 60 50 48 50 45 43 43 40 39 40 36 34 33 28 30 27 26 24 23 20 18 18 14 15 11 11 10 9

Total Number of Crashes 10 6

0 00:00 - 01:00 01:00 - 02:00 02:00 - 03:00 03:00 - 04:00 04:00 - 05:00 05:00 - 06:00 06:00 - 07:00 07:00 - 08:00 08:00 - 09:00 09:00 - 10:00 10:00 - 11:00 11:00 - 12:00 12:00 - 13:00 13:00 - 14:00 14:00 - 15:00 15:00 - 16:00 16:00 - 17:00 17:00 - 18:00 18:00 - 19:00 19:00 - 20:00 20:00 - 21:00 21:00 - 22:00 22:00 - 23:00 23:00 - 24:00

Time of Day

Source: Crash data Roads and Maritime Services, supplied 2019

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7.1.5 Crash locations The roads with the top ten number of heavy vehicle crashes occurring on them are shown in Table 7-3. Based on the results, approximately 30% of the crashes occurred on Newell Highway and New England Highway. All the other roads with crash occurrences had seven or fewer crashes. It was identified that there were four crash clusters where greater than 40 crashes occurred within the NEJO study area. These include Moree (70 crashes), Armidale (67 crashes), Inverell (44 crashes) and Narrabri (41 crashes).

Table 7-3 Top ten roads with heavy vehicle crashes Road name Total number of crashes Newell Highway 106 New England Highway 88 Gwydir Highway 50 Bruxner Highway 28 Kamilaroi Highway 22 Thunderbolts Way 16 Waterfall Way 13 Guyra Road 11 Mount Lindesay Road 9 Rangari Road 7

Source: Crash data Roads and Maritime Services, supplied 2019

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Figure 7-5 Locations of heavy vehicle crashes based on crash severity

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7.1.6 Crash clusters Crash clusters occur when a number of vehicle crashes are located close to each other, indicating there might be conditions in the road environment that contribute safety issues. The Federal and NSW Governments have funding programs, the NSW Government Safer Roads Program and the Australian Government Blackspot Programme, that aim to improve road safety on Australian roads. The Safer Roads Program aims to help deliver a range of plans and initiatives (NSW Road Safety Plan 2021, Saving Lives on Country Roads, Liveable and Safe Urban Communities) to reduce fatalities and serious injuries in NSW by 30%. The Black Spot programme is an important contributor to the National Road Safety Strategy and Action Plan and targets specific road locations and utilise funds to reduce crash risks. These programs define crash clusters as: > Safer Roads Program (NSW Government)

- At least two casualties over a 5 year period (less than 3 kilometres long) - Average of at least 0.13 casualty crashes/ kilometre/ year (3 kilometres or greater length) > Blackspot Program (Australian Government)

- At least three casualties over a 5 year period (less than 3 kilometres long) - Average of at least 0.2 casualty crashes/ kilometre/ year over a 5 year period (3 kilometres or greater length) The analysis demonstrates which crashes will have the potential to apply to both funding programs and, which will have the potential to apply to only the Safer Roads Program. The issue of crash clusters relates to the New England road network objective: > Reduce the number of serious injury and fatality crashes. The crash clusters are shown on Figure 7-6 and are listed in Table 7-4.

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Figure 7-6 Crash cluster locations

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Table 7-4 Crash clusters on the New England road network Issue Code Road Location Armidale Regional Council CC3 Grafton Road From Achill Road to Road CC4 Miller Street From Barry Street to Kentucky Street CC5 Barney Street From Faulkner Street to Marsh Street CC6 Dumaresq Street From Taylor Street to Douglas Street CC7 Barney Street From O'Dell Street to Butler Street CC8 Markham Street From Beardy Street to Dumaresq Street CC9 Marsh Street From Newton Street to Erskine Street CC10 Elm Avenue From Abbott Road to Trevenna Road CC11 Madgwick Drive From Elm Avenue to Clarks Road CC12 Trevenna Road From Sport Une Drive to Elm Avenue CC14 Booloominbah Drive From Trevenna Road to end of drive CC15 New England Highway From Puddledock Road to Hoys Road CC16 Malpas Street From Tenterden Street to Ollera Street CC17 Ollera Street From Malpas Street to Ryanda Street CC18 Ollera Street From Llangothlin Road to Malpas Street CC19 Malpas Street From Ollera Street to O'Donnell Avenue CC34 Grafton Road From Thorpleigh Road to Achill Road CC35 Grafton Road From Silverton Road to Argyle-Mining Vale Road CC36 New England Highway From Mccannas Road to Sunnyside Road CC38 New England Highway From Ryanda Creek Road to Tubbamurra Road CC45 Kentucky Street From Kennedy Street to Chapel Street CC46 Canambe Street From Enid Street to Mann Street CC47 Lambs Avenue From O'Connor Road to Kentucky Street CC48 Uralla Road From New England Highway to Alinnya Lane CC49 Dangar Street From Mann Street to Brown Street CC50 Brown Street From Dangar Street to Faulkner Street CC51 Barney Street From Marsh Street to Taylor Street CC52 Brown Street From Jessie Street to Dangar Street CC53 Dangar Street From Brown Street to Barney Street CC54 Barney Street From Allingham Street to Jessie Street CC55 Marsh Street From Naughten Avenue to Beardy Street CC56 Markham Street From Butler Avenue to Barney Street CC57 Dumaresq Street From Marsh Street to Woodward Street CC58 Moore Street From Dangar Street to Faulkner Street CC59 Rusden Street From Butler Street to Markham Street CC60 Butler Street From Rusden Street to Beardy Street CC61 Marsh Street From Kirkwood Street to Donnelly Street

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CC62 Faulkner Street From Kirkwood Street to Donnelly Street CC63 Faulkner Street From Wade Avenue to Jeffrey Street CC64 Bundarra Road From Pearson Road to New England Highway CC65 Erskine Street From Taylor Street to Hilda Avenue CC66 Donnelly Street From Niagara Street to Edward Street CC67 Bundarra Road From Dumaresq Road to Tanglewood Road South CC69 New England Highway From Blanches Road to O'Connells Road CC70 Falconer Street From Everett Street to Sandon Street CC73 Guyra Road From Stratton Road to Inverness Road CC109 Grafton Road From Kempsey Road to Wongwibinda Road CC110 Grafton Road From Tanners Road to Point Lookout Road CC112 Platform Road From New England Highway to Burns Road CC113 New England Highway From Sunnyside Road to Elder Lane CC114 New England Highway From Elder Lane to Norden Road CC115 New England Highway From Springmount Road to Urandangie Road CC117 New England Highway From Tomato Road to Falconer Road CC119 New England Highway From Ross Road to Old Ben Lomond Road

Glen Innes Severn Council CC22 Grey Street From Bourke Street to Meade Street CC23 Gwydir Highway From Golf Links Road to Grafton Street CC24 Grafton Street From Church Street to Hunter Street CC28 New England Highway From Golf Links Road to Glen Elm Drive CC77 Lang Street From Macquarie Street to West Avenue CC78 Lang Street From Abbott Street to Lambeth Street CC80 Coronation Avenue From Wullamulla Street to Grafton Street CC90 New England Highway From Herbert Street to Severn River Road CC122 Gwydir Highway From Westfield Road to West Furracabad Road CC123 Gwydir Highway From Waterloo Road to Rose Hill Road CC124 New England Highway From Bezzants Road to Streeters Road

Inverell Shire Council CC21 Bundarra Road From Staggs Lane to Woodford Place CC25 Ross Street From Mansfield Street to Wood Street CC26 Byron Street From Campbell Street to Otho Street CC27 Evans Street From Wood Street to Swanbrook Road CC76 Bundarra Road From Bonvale Road to Guyra Road CC79 Rifle Range Road From Old Armidale Road to end of road CC81 Gwydir Highway From Nashs Lane to Long Plain Lane CC82 Vivian Street From Granville Street to Henderson Street CC83 Evans Street From Vivian Street to Lawrence Street CC84 Lawrence Street From Byron Street to Oliver Street

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CC85 Gwydir Highway From Jardine Road to Burgess Street CC86 Lawrence Street From Captain Cook Drive to Sweaney Street CC87 Ashford Road From Ring Street to Brissett Street CC88 Gwydir Highway From McNeils Road to Fernhill Road CC89 Gwydir Highway From Clinton Lane to Gratyns Road CC91 Ashford Road From Pindaroi Road to The Pocket Road CC120 Howell Road From Grove Road to Opal Street CC121 Rifle Range Road From Bundarra Road to Old Armidale Road Moree Plains Shire Council CC30 Frome Street From Albert Street to Heber Street CC31 Heber Street From Edward Street to Chester Street CC39 Newell Highway From Penneys Road to Kanimbla Road CC40 Newell Highway From Tyrone Road to Gurley Settlers Road CC92 Frome Street From Joyce Avenue to Warialda Street CC93 Arunga Street From Jones Avenue to Adelaide Street CC94 Anne Street From Frome Street to Dover Street CC95 Edward Street From Adelaide Street to Anne Street CC96 Alice Street From Gosport Street to Lou Swan Way CC97 Frome Street From Anne Street to Alice Street CC98 Balo Street From Frome Street to Albert Street CC99 Heber Street From Auburn Street to Balo Street CC100 Boston Street From Calgorm Street to Iris Street CC101 Newell Highway From Newport Road to Milo Road CC107 Carnarvon Highway From Daydawn Road to Yarrawa Road CC126 Newell Highway From Burrington Road to Blueberry Road

Narrabri Shire Council CC20 Maitland Street From Fitzroy Street to Spencer Street CC37 Kamilaroi Highway From Turrawan Road to Greylands Road CC71 Jacks Creek Road From Tuppiari Road to Sandy Creek Lane CC72 Newell Highway From Old Newell Highway to Mooloobar Street CC74 Pilliga Road From Loftus Street to council boundary CC75 Culgoora Road From Old Pilliga Road to Yarrie Lake Road CC116 Kamilaroi Highway From Kentucky Lane to Turrawan Road

Tenterfield Shire Council CC29 New England Highway From Mount Speribo Road to McCliftys Road CC32 Bruxner Highway From Leslie Creek Road to Mud Flat Road CC33 Bruxner Highway From Paddys Flat Road to Clarence River Road CC41 Bruxner Way From Sunnyside Loop Road to New England Highway CC42 Bruxner Highway From Bowerbird Road to Fairfield Street CC102 Rouse Street From Molesworth Street to High Street

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CC103 Cowper Street From Pelham Street to Western Boundary Road CC104 New England Highway From Bruxner Way to Geyers Road CC105 Bruxner Highway From Plains Station Road to Paddys Flat Road CC106 Bruxner Highway From Red Rock Road to Richmond Road CC125 New England Highway From Castlerag Road to Rockdale Road CC127 Bruxner Highway From Red Rock Road to Macleods Creek Road CC128 Mount Lindesay Road From Beaury Creek Road to Grahams Creek Road CC129 Mount Lindesay Road From Mount Clunie Road to Beaury Creek Road Uralla Shire Council CC1 New England Highway From Glenburnie Road to Old Wollun Road CC2 New England Highway From Wood Street to Kliendienst Road CC13 Bundarra Road From Barloo Road to Marble Hill Road CC43 Bridge Street From Salisbury Street to Hill Street CC44 Kingstown Road From Panhandle Road to Quartz Gully Road CC68 Bundarra Road From Barloo Road to Invergowrie Road CC108 New England Highway From to Kentucky Road CC111 New England Highway From Northeys Road to Arding Road CC118 Thunderbolts Way From Baldersleigh Road to Gwydir River Road

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8 Safety and capacity

These issues relate mainly to two areas: > Road safety and the consequences of infrastructure design and construction in the current configuration of the road network > Road, bridge and network capacity and their ability to be fit for purpose in a changing world of truck sizes freight volumes, and demands from motorists, transport operators and their customers. There is considerable overlap between the two and in many cases a single infrastructure will address multiple problems.

8.1 Safety The goal of safer roads and improved driving behaviour is a high priority nationwide, and the NSW Government aims to reduce fatalities by 30% from 2012 to 2021 as part of the Road Safety Plan 2021. Serious and fatal crashes affected all road users, local communities, and the NSW economy. In the last 5 years (2015-2019), NSW averaged 60 people killed per year from heavy truck crashes. In the 2008 to 2016 period, the majority of heavy vehicle fatal crashes occurred on State Highways (TfNSW Heavy vehicle trauma trends report). The identified safety issues on the New England road network are addressed in this section.

8.1.1 Lack of heavy vehicle rest areas Vehicle rest areas important facilities for long distant travelling for road users. Heavy vehicle rest areas help drivers to manage fatigue and comply with fatigue management regulations. The 2001 RTA Strategy for Major Heavy Vehicle Rest Areas on Key Rural Freight Routes in NSW recommends that a rest area that can accommodate heavy vehicles is provided every 100 kilometres. The 2019 Austroads Guidelines for the Provision of Heavy Vehicle Rest Area Facilities suggests the spacing depends on a number of factors including heavy vehicle volumes and the road environment, with rest areas recommended more frequently (15-25 kilometres apart) in built up areas with high heavy vehicle traffic volumes, and less frequently (70-100 kilometres apart) in rural and remote areas with low heavy vehicle traffic volumes. The issue of lack of heavy vehicle rest areas relates to the New England road network objective: > Reduce the number of serious injury and fatality crashes. The analysis of the road network showed that there are a number of road sections across the New England road network that have distances greater than 100 kilometres between rest areas that can accommodate heavy vehicles. The locations of the heavy vehicle rest areas that are greater than 100 kilometres apart are shown on Figure 8-1, and listed in Table 8-1.

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Table 8-1 Long distances between heavy vehicle rest areas Issue LGA Type Road Location Code of road HVR1 Armidale Shire Council State New England Highway Between Muswell Hill and Glen Innes HVR2 Armidale Shire Council State Grafton Road Between Armidale and Guyra Road HVR3 Armidale Shire Council State Thunderbolts Way Between Inverell and Uralla HVR4 Moree Plains Shire Council State Gwydir Highway Between close to Gundabloui Road and Moree HVR5 Narrabri Shire Council State Kamilaroi Highway Between Burren Junction and Narrabri HVR6 Narrabri Shire Council Local Rangar Road Between Boggabri and Manilla HVR7 Narrabri Shire Council Local Killarney Gap Road Between Narrabri and Bingara HVR8 Inverell Shire Council Local Bundarra Road General Sections HVR9 Inverell Shire Council Local Ashford Road General Sections HVR10 Inverell Shire Council Local Yetman Road General Sections HVR11 Inverell Shire Council State Bruxner Way General Sections

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Figure 8-1 Distances between heavy vehicle rest areas

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8.1.2 Road and rail spacing constraints There are 114 railway crossings within the New England study area. The highest number of railway crossings are located in Narrabri Shire LGA which has 45 railway crossings followed by Moree Plains Shire which has 34 railway crossings. A safety issue could occur if the railway crossing is located close to an intersection between two roads. Heavy vehicles waiting to turn at an intersection after crossing a rail level crossing could potentially obstruct the railway line if the length of the heavy vehicle extends across the railway line, posing a safety issue with potential for collision with incoming trains. The issue of road and rail spacing constraints relates to the New England road network objective: > Reduce the number of serious injury and fatality crashes. The distances between level railway crossings and road intersections were measured to assess locations where there is potential for B-Doubles and road trains to extend across a railway line while waiting at an intersection. This is emerging as a major problem along the Newell Highway where increasingly grain silos and railheads will be fed by triples and larger trucks as the feeder road network is upgraded to provide for these vehicles. These locations are listed in Table 8-2.

Table 8-2 Road and rail constraint issues Issue LGA Type of road Road Location Code RRD1 Armidale Regional Local Old Inverell From Boorolong Road to railway line Council Road RRD2 Armidale Regional Local Old Inverell From Old Inverell Road to railway Council Road line RRD3 Moree Plains Shire Local Bulluss Drive From Narrabri Road to railway line Council

8.1.3 Insufficient sight distances Insufficient sight distances can lead to risk of crashes on the road network. Line of sight can be affected by a variety of factors: trees and foliage, median kerbs, speed and overall design of the road. On the New England road network this is caused by narrow roads and a lack of verges which affect the driver’s line of sight. The reconfiguration of the truck fleet to longer and larger vehicles exacerbates the difficulties in passing and overtaking if there are line of sight deficiencies. The issue of insufficient sight distances relates to the New England road network objective: > Reduce the number of serious injury and fatality crashes. There is one location within the New England road network identified by councils as having insufficient sight distance, listed in Table 8-3 . It should be noted that insufficient sight distance is a general issue and the roads listed in Table 8-3 is not the exhaustive list of all the roads within the entire NEJO to have sight distance issues. Although there may be many strategic local roads within the NEJO region to have poor sight distance Narrabri Shire Council has particularly reported Yarrie Lake Road to have sight distance issues out of their ten strategic local roads.

Table 8-3 Insufficient sight distance issues Issue LGA Type Road Location Code of road ISD1 Narrabri Shire Council Local Yarrie Lake Road (SR29) Unsealed sections and adjoining intersections

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8.1.4 Unsafe road user interactions Locations of unsafe road user interactions were identified by councils across the New England road network. These issues could involve heavy vehicles needing to use local roads or travel through a town or urban area where they interact with pedestrians and light vehicles causing safety concerns. Issues cited concern heavy vehicles in urban areas lacking dedicated routes; meaning they need to traverse local intersection infrastructure like roundabouts, and are subject to lower speed limits in residential areas. Limited traffic control signage (give way and stop signs) at intersections can also pose a safety issue for road user interactions. The issue of unsafe road user interaction relates to the following New England road network objectives: > Reduce the number of serious injury and fatality crashes; > Reduce interaction between heavy vehicles and road users; > Improve travel times to key freight destinations; and > Embrace technologies to reduce operating costs and emissions, and improve safety and efficiency. The roads where unsafe road user interaction issues were nominated are listed in Table 8-4.

Table 8-4 Unsafe road user interaction issues Issue LGA Type of Road Road Location Code RUI10 Glen Innes Severn Council State Gwydir Highway General RUI11 Glen Innes Severn Council State Gwydir Highway Intersections RUI9 Glen Innes Severn Council State New England Highway Urban area east of the CBD RUI13 Inverell Shire Council Local Ashford Road Near Byron Street RUI12 Inverell Shire Council State Gwydir Highway Urban areas RUI14 Inverell Shire Council State Gwydir Highway General RUI15 Inverell Shire Council State Gwydir Highway Intersections RUI16 Moree Plains Shire Council State Bruxner Way (MR462) Intersection with RR7705 that leads into Gwydir Shire RUI4 Moree Plains Shire Council State Gwydir Highway Links to New England Highway at Glen Innes RUI5 Moree Plains Shire Council State Newell Highway East-West corridors, e.g. Waterfall Way RUI6 Moree Plains Shire Council State Newell Highway Urban areas RUI7 Narrabri Shire Council State Newell Highway East-West corridors, Kamilaroi Highway RUI8 Narrabri Shire Council State Newell Highway Bypass RUI1 Tenterfield Shire Council State Bruxner Highway General RUI2 Uralla Shire Council State New England Highway Middle of CBD RUI3 Uralla Shire Council Local Thunderbolts Way General CC4 Armidale Regional Council Local Miller Street Urban areas

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8.1.5 Narrow travel lanes and shoulders Desired travel lanes on rural roads are 3.5 metre (Austroads Road Design Part 3: Geometric Design). This is the width that allows large vehicles to pass or overtake smoothly. Road lanes that are too narrow are less efficient for vehicle movement, and may lead to safety issues. Within the NEJO area, narrow travel lanes and shoulders have been identified on a number of local roads by council representatives. Narrow travel lanes relate to the following network objectives: > Reduce the number of serious injury and fatality crashes; and > Accommodate changing vehicle sizes, standards and technologies. The roads where narrow travel lanes were nominated are listed below in Table 8-5.

Table 8-5 Narrow travel lanes Issue LGA Type Road Location Code of road NTL18 Armidale Regional Council Local Ben Lomond Road General

NTL15 Armidale Regional Council Local Kempsey Road Sections

NTL11 Armidale Regional Council State New England Highway West of main urban area

NTL16 Armidale Regional Council Local Nowlands Road General

NTL17 Armidale Regional Council Local Old Armidale Road General

NTL19 Armidale Regional Council Local Rockvale Road General

NTL20 Armidale Regional Council Local Wards Mistake Road General

NTL21 Armidale Regional Council Local Boorolong Road General

NTL22 Armidale Regional Council Local Baldersleigh Road General

NTL23 Armidale Regional Council Local Castledoyle Road General

NTL24 Armidale Regional Council Local Tenterden Road General

NTL25 Armidale Regional Council Regio Ebor- Gilgai Road General nal NTL26 Armidale Regional Council Regio Armidale-Yarroyck Road General nal NTL27 Armidale Regional Council Regio Old New England Highway General nal NTL10 Inverell Shire Council Local Delungra Road Unsealed sections

NTL9 Inverell Shire Council Local Tarwoona Road General

NTL3 Tenterfield Shire Council Local Amosfield Road General, one land bridge

NTL1 Tenterfield Shire Council State Bruxner Way Shoulders

NTL4 Tenterfield Shire Council Local Old Ballandean Road General

NTL2 Tenterfield Shire Council Local Sunnyside Platform Road General

NTL5 Tenterfield Shire Council Local Tooloom Road General

NTL7 Uralla Shire Council Local Kingstown Road Kingstown Road - Torryburn Road NTL13 Uralla Shire Council Local Kingstown Road - Torryburn General Road

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Issue LGA Type Road Location Code of road NTL6 Uralla Shire Council Local Thunderbolts Way Thunderbolts Way - Torryburn Road NTL12 Uralla Shire Council Local Thunderbolts Way - Torryburn General Road NTL14 Uralla Shire Council Local Uralla - Kingstown Road General

8.1.6 Lack of overtaking opportunities Slower vehicles such as caravans and heavy vehicles (especially on hills) will slow down traffic behind them if opportunities to overtake are not provided. Overtaking lanes can assist in reducing crashes. Before-and- after crash analysis of routes by Austroads24 showed that installing passing lanes reduced the average of injury crashes by 16% (Austroads AP-R596-19). Passing lanes also improve journey times by reducing the time spent following slower vehicles. The New England Highway lacks in capacity for overtaking opportunities. This affects the safety of road users but also increases travel times. Lack of overtaking opportunities relates to the following network objectives: > Reduce the number of serious injury and fatality crashes; > Reduce interaction between heavy vehicles and road users; > Improve travel times to key freight destinations. Roads with a lack of overtaking opportunities are listed in Table 8-6. Glen Innes Severn Council and Tenterfield Shire Council have highlighted the capacity issues long New England Highway at Northern section, Bolivia Hill and Bolivia Hill respectively. It should be noted that Table 8-6 is not the exhaustive list of strategic state road locations within the entire NEJO to have capacity issues but rather highlights the state road location reported by respective councils where there are not enough overtaking opportunities. Also, all the important strategic local roads reported by the respective councils within NEJO were reported to have no overtaking lanes.

Table 8-6 Lack of overtaking opportunities Issue Code LGA Type of Road Road Location LOO1 Glen Innes Severn Council State New England Highway Northern section, Bolivia Hill LOO2 Tenterfield Shire Council State New England Highway Bolivia Hill

8.2 Connectivity Road network connectivity is an important principle for an efficient transport system, facilitating movement with minimal travel distances and times for people and goods. This is achieved by connecting origins and destinations to key road corridors through local and regional roads, and identifying alternative routes for travel. A lack of connectivity affects industry through longer travel times and higher operating costs. Longer travel times also affect people travelling for employment and education, negatively impacting quality of life.

24 https://austroads.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0010/160030/AP-R596-19_Passing_Lanes_Safety_and_Performance.pdf

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The locations described below is not an exhaustive list of state and local road locations within the entire NEJO to have connectivity issues but rather highlights only the strategic state and local road location reported by respective councils where there is are road connectivity issues.

8.2.1 Lack of alternative routes Alternative routes are important in case of crashes, emergency evacuations, and road closures. In the event of a lane or road closure, a lack of suitable alternative routes will affect travel times and accessibility for drivers and emergency services. Councils nominated a number of roads within the NEJO region that are lacking in alternative routes. A lack of alternative routes relates to the following road network objectives: > Improve travel times to key freight destinations; > Improve local industry access to intermodal terminals, existing airports and the national highway system; and > Reduce the disruptions and delays to road users from planned and unplanned road closures. The roads within the New England road network that have been identified by councils as having a lack of alternative routes are shown in Table 8-7.

Table 8-7 Lack of alternative routes Issue LGA Type of Road Location Code Road ARC1 Glen Innes Severn State Gwydir Highway Remote area east of Gwydir Council ARC2 Glen Innes Severn State New England General Council Highway ARC3 Inverell Shire Council State Gwydir Highway Remote area east of Gwydir ARC4 Inverell Shire Council State New England General Highway ARC5 Moree Plains Shire State Newell Highway General Council ARC6 Moree Plains Shire Local Tapscott Road Between Newell Highway and Council (SR243) Burrington Road ARC7 Narrabri Shire Council State Newell Highway General ARC8 Tenterfield Shire Regional Bruxner Way West of Tenterfield Council

8.2.2 Lack of freight access routes In NSW, there are restrictions placed onto heavy vehicles by Roads and Maritime Services. These restrictions include the dimensions of vehicles as well as access to certain roads and areas. The following types of road trains and B-Doubles have been taken accounted for in this review of freight movement on the New England road network: > 25 / 26 metre B-Double; and > Type 1 A-Double (road train). Figure 8-2 and Figure 8-3 illustrate the roads and areas that vehicles of this size are able to access, and the locations of key industry origins and destinations: bulk grain, feedlots cotton terminals and intermodal terminals. The analysis shows where there is a gap in the heavy vehicle network to access these sites. Additionally, Armidale Regional Council nominated Kempsey Road for small radius curves which make it unsuitable for freight movement. Table 8-8 lists the sites that currently lack B-double or Type 1 A-Double (road train) access.

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Table 8-8 Lack of freight access Issue Code LGA Road / site Access issue Armidale Regional Council Kempsey Road Small radius curves prevent access by articulated vehicles FA1 Inverell Shire Council Whyalla Beef Feedlot Lack of B-Double and road train access (QLD) from west. FA2a Inverell Shire Council Bindara Beef Feedlot Lack of road train access. Inverell Shire Council Feedlot near Tingha Lack of road train access. FA2b Glen Innes Severn Council Eagle Hawk Feedlot Lack of road train access. Uralla Shire Council Tullimba Feedlot Lack of road train access.

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Figure 8-2 B-Double access to key industry locations

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Figure 8-3 Type 1 A-Double (road train) access

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8.3 Capacity As a generally rural road network, traffic congestion is not considered to be a constraint for the New England area. The capacity of bridges to accommodate larger vehicles was however noted by a number of councils, along with their potential vulnerability to fire and flood damage.

8.3.1 Bridge constraints Bridges are a common road infrastructure within the NEJO region and many require maintenance and inspection for use into the future. Many of the bridges in Armidale LGA are undersized and have yet to be rated for heavy vehicles. There are also a number of timber bridges in other councils that are vulnerable to fire and flood damage. Bridge constraints relates to the following network objectives: > Reduce the number of serious injury and fatality crashes; > Accommodate changing vehicle sizes, standards and technologies; and > Reduce the disruptions and delays to road users from planned and unplanned road closures. The locations of bridge constraints across the NEJO region as reported by councils are listed in Table 8-9.

Table 8-9 Bridge constraints Issue LGA State / local Road Location Code road BC1 Armidale Regional Council Local Baldersleigh Road Timber bridges - general BC2 Armidale Regional Council Local Boorolong Road Timber bridges - general BC3 Armidale Regional Council Local Castledoyle Road Shingle Hut Bridge BC4 Armidale Regional Council Local Old Armidale Road Kaurala Bridge BC5 Armidale Regional Council Local Tenterden Road Timber bridges - general BC6 Glen Innes Severn Council State Gwydir Highway Timber bridges - general BC7 Narrabri Shire Council Local Bald Hill Road (SR09) Timber bridge on sealed section BC8 Narrabri Shire Council Local Spring Plains Road Concrete bridge (SR04)

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8.4 Condition Poor road condition affects safety, travel speeds, road user satisfaction, and maintenance costs. It can be affected by traffic volumes, vehicle mass, axle loads and tyre pressures, as well as environmental conditions. Poor road conditions affect all road users, including heavy vehicles. One of the major problems is that although state and regional roads may be capable of handling newer larger vehicles. The council owned network often has pavements incompatible with these truck types. This means farms and feedlots which use these council roads are unable to gain the benefits of more efficient truck types. Clearly this less efficient infrastructure and logistics chain can affect regional competitiveness.

8.4.1 Drainage and flooding issues Drainage and flooding maintenance are to be factored in when assessing the conditions of the road. Maintenance of drainage and flooding infrastructure involve routine check-ups and adjustments to ensure that the proper infrastructure is up to Australian standards and RMS specifications. On the NEJO road network, there are stormwater culverts that are nearing their “end of life” asset value and are not rated for HML/ PBS vehicles. These are located on local roads and require maintenance to prevent potential structural failure of these sections. There are also roads that cross floodways, with the potential to be cut off during flooding events. Drainage and flooding issues relate to the following network objectives: > Improve travel times to key freight destinations; > Improve local industry access to intermodal terminals, existing airports and the national highway system; > Reduce the disruptions and delays to road users from planned and unplanned road closures. The roads where there are issues with drainage and flooding are listed below in Table 8-10.

Table 8-10 Drainage and flooding issues Issue Code LGA Type of Road Road Location DF1 Inverell Shire Council Local Copeton Dam Road Five floodways DF2 Inverell Shire Council Local Howell Road Section adjacent to private gravel pit DF3 Inverell Shire Council Local North Star Road Shoulders - general DF4 Narrabri Shire Council Local Bald Hill Road (SR09) Stormwater culverts DF5 Narrabri Shire Council Local Couradda Road (SR07) Stormwater culverts DF6 Narrabri Shire Council Local Doreen Lane (SR46) Floodways - general DF7 Narrabri Shire Council Local Harparary Road (SR11) Floodways - general DF8 Narrabri Shire Council Local Harparary Road (SR11) Stormwater culverts DF9 Narrabri Shire Council State Kamilaroi Highway General DF10 Narrabri Shire Council Local Middle Route Road (SR47) Stormwater culverts DF11 Narrabri Shire Council Local Millie Road (SR01) Stormwater culverts DF12 Narrabri Shire Council Local Spring Plains Road (SR04) Stormwater culverts DF13 Narrabri Shire Council Local Waiwera Lane (SR107) Stormwater culverts DF14 Narrabri Shire Council Local Yarrie Lake Road (SR29) Stormwater culverts DF15 Armidale Regional Local Kempsey Road Stormwater culverts Council DF16 Armidale Regional Local Rockvale Road Stormwater culverts Council DF17 Armidale Regional Local Nowlands Road Stormwater culverts Council DF18 Armidale Regional Local Wards Mistake Road Stormwater culverts Council

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Issue Code LGA Type of Road Road Location DF19 Armidale Regional Local Boorolong Road Stormwater culverts Council DF20 Armidale Regional Local Baldersleigh Road Stormwater culverts Council DF21 Armidale Regional Local Castledoyle Road Stormwater culverts Council DF22 Armidale Regional Local Old Armidale Road Stormwater culverts Council DF23 Armidale Regional Local Tenterden Road Stormwater culverts Council

8.4.2 Unsealed roads Unsealed roads can be associated with risks that include dust plumes impeding visibility, lack of facilities, inconsistent road widths and lack of access for heavy or oversized vehicle movements. Councils nominated a number of local roads with unsealed sections, many which are also subject to flooding. Unsealed road pavement relates to the following road network objectives: > Improve travel times to key freight destinations; > Improve local industry access to intermodal terminals, existing airports and the national highway system; > Accommodate changing vehicle sizes, standards and technology; and > Reduce the disruptions and delays to road users from planned and unplanned road closures. The roads where sections of unsealed roads were nominated by councils are listed below in Table 8-11.

Table 8-11 Roads with unsealed sections Issue LGA Type of Road Road Location Code UR1 Armidale Regional Local Kempsey Road 59 percent Council UR2 Armidale Regional Local Nowlands Road General Council UR3 Armidale Regional Local Old Armidale Road Some unpaved sections Council UR4 Armidale Regional Local Rockvale Road 11 kilometres Council UR5 Glen Innes Severn Local Strathbogie Road Some unpaved sections Council UR6 Inverell Shire Council Local Emmaville Road 59 percent UR7 Inverell Shire Council Local Kings Plains Road Majority of the road UR8 Inverell Shire Council Local Nullamanna Road Majority of the road UR9 Moree Plains Shire Local Bulluss Drive & SR261 Unsealed through to Council Bulluss Drive (RR7785) Burrington UR10 Moree Plains Shire Local Caloona Road (SR25) Some unpaved sections Council UR11 Moree Plains Shire Local Moloney Road (SR13) Some unpaved sections Council UR12 Moree Plains Shire Local Telleraga Road (SR6) Some unpaved sections Council

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Issue LGA Type of Road Road Location Code UR13 Moree Plains Shire Local Terry Hie Hie (SR101) Causeways and some Council bends UR14 Narrabri Shire Council Local Bald Hill Road (SR09) Majority of the road UR15 Narrabri Shire Council Local Couradda Road (SR07) Majority of the road UR16 Narrabri Shire Council Local Homestead Road (SR55) General UR17 Narrabri Shire Council Local Middle Route Road (SR47) Majority of the road UR18 Narrabri Shire Council Local Millie Road (SR01) Some unpaved sections UR19 Narrabri Shire Council Local Spring Plains Road (SR04) 25 percent UR20 Narrabri Shire Council Local Waiwera Lane (SR107) Majority of the road UR21 Narrabri Shire Council Local Yarrie Lake Road (SR29) 25 percent UR23 Tenterfield Shire Council Local Mount Lindesay Road Unsealed 15 km section over five location between Tenterfield and Legume UR24 Tenterfield Shire Council Local Mount Lindesay Road 12 percent UR25 Inverell Shire Council Local North Star Road General

8.4.3 Need for road rehabilitation Smooth pavement, clear line marking and clear shoulders are required for efficient and safe travel for all road users. Within the NEJO area, there are roads that have been damaged due to recent bushfires, and others that need maintenance due to uneven pavements, rutting, and unstable batters. The need for road rehabilitation relates to the following road network objectives: > Improve local industry access to intermodal terminals, existing airports and the national highway system; and > Accommodate changing vehicle sizes, standards and technologies. The roads where road rehabilitation is required is listed below in Table 8-12.

Table 8-12 Road rehabilitation required Issue Code LGA Type of Road Road RR1 Armidale Regional Council Local Kempsey Road General - cut batters RR2 Glen Innes Severn Local Bald Nob Road General Council RR3 Inverell Shire Council Local Ashford Bonshaw Road 35 kilometres RR4 Inverell Shire Council Local Bingara Road 15 kilometres RR5 Inverell Shire Council State Bruxner Way General RR6 Inverell Shire Council Local Bundarra Road 8 kilometres RR7 Inverell Shire Council Local Graman Road Majority of the road RR8 Inverell Shire Council Local Guyra Road 35 kilometres RR9 Inverell Shire Council Local Thunderbolts Way Bushfire locations RR10 Inverell Shire Council Local Thunderbolts Way General RR11 Inverell Shire Council Local Warialda Road 10 kilometres RR12 Inverell Shire Council Local Yetman Road 23 kilometres

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Issue Code LGA Type of Road Road RR13 Uralla Shire Council Local Thunderbolts Way Linking Walcha to Inverell via Bundarra RR14 Uralla Shire Council Local Thunderbolts Way Northern section RR15 Uralla Shire Council Local Thunderbolts Way Between Uralla and Bundarra RR16 Armidale Regional Council Local Rockvale Road Approx. 2 km section in poor condition RR17 Armidale Regional Council Local Nowlands Road General RR18 Armidale Regional Council Local Wards Mistake Road General RR19 Armidale Regional Council Local Boorolong Road General RR20 Armidale Regional Council Local Baldersleigh Road General RR21 Armidale Regional Council Local Castledoyle Road General RR22 Armidale Regional Council Local Old Armidale Road General RR23 Armidale Regional Council Local Tenterden Road General RR24 Armidale Regional Council Local Ben Lomond Road General RR25 Armidale Regional Council Regional Armidale – Yarrowyck Road General RR26 Armidale Regional Council Regional Ebor- Gilgai Road General

8.4.4 Expensive maintenance In some parts of the NEJO region, a disproportionate amount of council resources is being used on some roads, sometimes that are remote and have low traffic density. Expensive maintenance of such roads relates to the following network objective: > Embrace technologies to reduce operating costs and emissions, and improve safety and efficiency; and > Accommodate changing vehicle sizes, standards and technologies. The roads where maintenance spending is noted as particularly high is listed below in Table 8-13. In February 2019, the NSW Government announced the transfer of up to 15,000 kilometres of regional roads to the State as part of a broader package of support for local councils to better manage and maintain the rural road network. “Future Transport 2056” identifies the NSW Road Classification Review (Classification Review) as a key initiative to adjust the classification policy framework and update the road network to align with the ‘Hub and Spoke’ Transport Network Model and the ‘Movement and Place’ Framework.

Table 8-13 Road sections of expensive maintenance costs Issue Code LGA Type of Road Road EM1 Armidale Regional Council Regional Kempsey Road EM2 Inverell Shire Council Local Ashford Road EM3 Moree Plains Shire Council State Bruxner Highway EM4 Narrabri Shire Council Local Pilliga Road

8.4.5 Poor road geometry Poor road geometry affects all road users travelling on the NEJO road network. It can negatively affect driving ability, road safety perception and safe decision making. The consequences of poor road geometry become greater for heavy vehicle road users in areas of mountainous terrain with steep grades and sharp curves. It should be noted that the road listed in Table 8-14 is not the exhaustive list of all the roads within

80020022 | 24 November 2020 | Commercial in Confidence 124 New England Road Network Strategy Final Report the entire NEJO to have a road geometry problem but rather a compilation of strategic roads provided by individual councils to have poor road geometry. For example, Gwydir Highway east of Glen Innes is reported to have a major grade and curve problems. Although there may be many strategic local roads within the NEJO region to have poor road geometry Armidale Regional Council has particularly reported six of their ten strategic local roads to have poor road alignment. This issue relates to the following network objectives: > Reduce the number of serious injury and fatality crashes; > Improve local industry access to intermodal terminals, existing airports and the national highway system; and > Accommodate changing vehicle sizes, standards and technologies. The location where poor road geometry was nominated is listed in Table 8-14.

Table 8-14 Poor road geometry Issue LGA Type of Road Location Code Road RG1 Glen Innes Severn Council State Gwydir Highway East of the G.I.S council area, Mountain terrain areas RG2 Armidale Regional Council Local Kempsey Road General Sections

RG3 Armidale Regional Council Local Rockvale Road General Sections

RG4 Armidale Regional Council Local Nowlands Road General Sections

RG5 Armidale Regional Council Local Boorolong Road General Sections RG6 Armidale Regional Council Local Baldersleigh Road General Sections RG7 Armidale Regional Council Local Old Armidale Road General Sections

80020022 | 24 November 2020 | Commercial in Confidence 125 New England Road Network Strategy Final Report 9 Road network vision and objectives

The road network vision and objectives, with a focus on freight movement, was informed and developed in collaboration with NEJO. The align with the strategic context of the New England region.

9.1 Vision The New England Road Network moves people, freight and services safely and efficiently, supporting access to centres, economic productivity, both local and regional trips, and a range of vehicles. With a focus on the reliable movement of goods, and safe interaction between road users, the New England Network Road Strategy aims to: > Prioritise safety; > Improve freight efficiency; > Provide capacity for the growing freight task; > Facilitate access to the regional road network; > Integrate the road network with other existing air and rail transportation networks; > Prioritise investment; > Facilitate access to markets; > Support growth in population and economy; and > Embrace adaptability towards emerging technologies. Within this vision there is little scope for all encompassing infrastructure improvements, however, targeted improvements are feasible especially with a targeted set of objectives. The aim of this plan is to develop a plan to achieve these objectives.

9.2 Objectives The seven road network objectives for the New England road network will guide the development and prioritisation of improvement actions and initiatives. They are: 1. Reduce the number of serious injury and fatality crashes. 2. Reduce interaction between heavy vehicles and other road users. 3. Improve travel times to key freight destinations. 4. Improve local industry access to intermodal terminals, existing airports and the national highway system. 5. Accommodate changing vehicle sizes, standards and technologies. 6. Embrace technologies to reduce operating costs and emissions, and improve safety and efficiency. 7. Reduce the disruptions and delays to road users from planned and unplanned road closures.

The next section outlines strategies to achieve the vision and objectives and identifies recommendations.

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10.1 Reduce the number of serious injury and fatality crashes

10.1.1 Strategy focus areas Reducing the number of heavy vehicle crashes is of critical importance for the safety and efficiency of the New England freight network. Between 2014 and 2018, approximately 25 per cent of crashes resulted in a fatality or serious injury on New England roads. A number of infrastructure improvements can result in safer road environments for all users, including the following upgrades: > Upgrades to road geometry such as shoulder and lane width; > Improving vehicle sight distances; > Installing overtaking lanes; and > Road pavement maintenance. The freight industry relies on long haul trips with driver’s working hours extending beyond the average Australian work week. It is therefore important that drivers are provided with adequate resting areas where they can safely park their vehicles, rest, eat, drink, use restroom facilities and sleep if required. The most important reason for this is to combat driver fatigue. The TfNSW Centre for Road Safety describes driver fatigue with the following key points25: > Fatigue related crashes are twice as likely to be fatal; and > Being awake for about 17 hours has a similar effect on performance as a blood alcohol content of 0.05. Currently there are no NSW laws regulating driver fatigue as there are for drink-driving. The only means of addressing this issue is through public education programs. An emerging issue in the freight network is constraint between road and rail line. This can become an issue when larger road freight vehicles such as B-Doubles and road trains attempt to enter a rail crossing and encounter insufficient crossing distances. In New England, this issue could be faced at the three rail crossings on Old Inverell Road and Bulluss Drive as the freight task and vehicle types evolve. It is important to investigate these areas for improvement to road geometries and spacings to reduce the risk of vehicles extending across a rail line while waiting at nearby intersections.

10.1.2 Recommended improvements Recommended improvements are: > Investigate crash cluster locations for the following issues and plan for upgrades:

- Insufficient road geometry; - Insufficient road and rail spacings; - Poor pavement condition; - Insufficient sight distances; and - Lack of safe overtaking opportunities. > Provide heavy vehicle rest areas at least every 70 to 100 kilometres on New England freight routes in accordance with AustRoads guidance. > Support public driver-fatigue awareness programs and informational signage on key freight routes. > Undertake a lighting assessment for key roads and intersections in the network.

25 TfNSW, Centre for Road Safety- Fatigue, https://roadsafety.transport.nsw.gov.au/stayingsafe/fatigue/index.html

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> Seek funding opportunities for road maintenance and upgrades through the following programs:

- Level Crossing Safety Improvement Program; and - Safe Roads Program. 10.2 Reduce interaction between heavy vehicles and other road users

10.2.1 Strategy focus areas A significant issue for unsafe road user interactions occurs when large freight vehicles are required to use local roads or travel through town centres. This could result in safety issues caused by interactions with pedestrians, cyclists or light vehicles on local roads. Delays in freight vehicle movements can also be caused by lower speed limits in towns, and traffic control signage such as give way and stop signs at intersections. Any opportunities to separate heavy vehicle movements in towns and local roads should be investigated, including investigating alternate freight routes. Overtaking lanes allow other, faster vehicles such as private cars to overtake freight and other heavy vehicles safely. This is not only safer for freight vehicles, but can also improve travel time by reducing the time spent following slow moving vehicles. Overtaking lanes should be investigated, particularly on the New England Highway, to help reduce interactions of different sized vehicles. The interaction of larger freight vehicles such as road trains and B-Doubles with the freight rail line is also an emerging issue. If rail line crossing distances between intersections are not long enough, some larger freight vehicles may be forced to queue across the rail line, causing interaction issues and major safety concerns. It is important to investigate these rail line crossing locations for possible geometry improvements.

10.2.2 Recommended improvements Recommended improvements are: > Identify alternative freight routes and access points that bypass towns and local roads. > Identify locations for the provision of overtaking lanes, especially on the New England Highway. > Improve road geometry at rail line crossing locations.

10.3 Improve travel times to key freight destinations

10.3.1 Strategy focus areas Factors that can contribute to an increase in travel time include: > Network resilience, limited route/ diversion options; > Load/ weight rating of routes (pavement and bridges); > Geometry restrictions; > Other traffic and lack of overtaking lanes; and > Planned and unplanned events, including weather, road works or accidents. These items are discussed in more details as follows. Success of the freight industry greatly depends on delivery of goods in a timely and efficient manner. Due to the large area covering New England, many roads lack alternate routes, posing a threat to the task. Emergencies such as weather events, crashes or maintenance issues can result in road closures, which can severely effect travel time for freight and emergency vehicles. It is important that alternate freight routes are established and maintained to be used in events such as these, reducing impacts to efficiency and travel times. Additionally, some roads have restrictions placed on them limiting the size or length of vehicles that can use them. These roads may have restrictions due to the surrounding land uses, road geometry or pavement condition. This reduces freight efficiency and travel time if certain vehicles must take a detour using other routes to access the land uses they require. Old timber bridges in New England may be susceptible to fire and flood damage, which could result in road closure. It is important that all NEJO member councils undertake an updated audit of their bridge

80020022 | 24 November 2020 | Commercial in Confidence 128 New England Road Network Strategy Final Report infrastructure to ensure that they are in good condition to carry heavy loads from freight vehicles. This would result in fewer delays in freight activity. The condition of road pavement may also contribute to longer travel times on freight routes. Unsealed roads or roads requiring pavement rehabilitation should be investigated to achieve greater efficiency in the network. Travel time can also be improved with opportunities for safe overtaking. Overtaking lanes allow freight vehicles to get ahead of slower moving vehicles in a safe way, decreasing overall travel time. It is important that overtaking lanes are provided to benefit the freight network. Delays to freight vehicles can occur due to road blockages caused by drainage and flooding issues. Assets located on local roads such as culverts and stormwater drains must be assessed to determine if they can contain runoff from storm events, preventing delays in freight and other motor vehicle activity. Funding opportunities for road maintenance should be investigated in collaboration with TfNSW, which announced its support of local councils through transferring ownership of some local roads to the state.

10.3.2 Recommended improvements Recommended improvements are: > Identify alternate freight routes for isolated roads in the New England freight network. > Assess vehicle restrictions on freight routes or access points to determine if improvements to road geometry can remove the need for restriction. > Identify locations for the addition of safe overtaking lanes, particularly on the New England Highway. > Each NEJO member council to undertake an audit of the following infrastructure to be better positioned to future proof the freight network:

- Road pavement presence and condition; - Bridge location and condition; and - Culvert and drain condition and level of service on key freight routes. > Seek funding opportunities with the NSW State Government to transfer some cost.

10.4 Improve local industry access to intermodal terminals, existing airports and the national highway system

10.4.1 Strategy focus areas

Intermodal terminals An intermodal terminal involves any facility where there are a variety of modes used for different functions within the supply chain. An example is a rail-side grain silo operation. It is an intermodal terminal since grain is brought in by truck then loaded to trains for the line haul to an export port. These are relatively simple “through” type functions with simplistic materials handling and storage functions. “Intermodal” in the Australian context usually implies container movements. There are two types of containers: Import – Export (IMEX) containers and domestic – for the local in country trade. Container terminals involve more sophisticated terminals with more complex transactions and quite often backload movements. In addition, there are often value added activities such as warehousing, pick-up and delivery, load consolidation and deconsolidation, container cleaning and fumigation for food grade containers, bonded and secure storage, three phase power supply for refrigeration, hazardous material isolation and other activities such as materials handling, container lifting and storage. Transport and Logistics is a 24/7 operation which creates some amenity issues especially when located in areas of conflicting land use. For this reason, most intermodal terminals are located in clusters on city peripheries or away from residential areas. A recent trend is for logistics companies to co-locate with their clients onto a common site combining many phases of the supply chain and removing some costly non value added activities such as pick-up and delivery legs since movements can be made directly terminal to terminal. The terminals are characterised by high volumes of generally very large vehicles. The trucks operating between terminals are often articulated trailers or combinations of multiple trailers making them much less manoeuvrable than conventional passenger cars. This means increased turning circles, longer breaking

80020022 | 24 November 2020 | Commercial in Confidence 129 New England Road Network Strategy Final Report distances, reduced acceleration performance, etc. Access into and egress from a terminal is one of the major issues. A hub and spoke arrangement is considered best practice for logistics movements especially with multimodal hauls involved. The theory is based on optimising the comparative advantage of each mode. The high volume of consolidated load is best suited to rail for direct hub-to-hub movements. The individually low volume direct door-to-door movements is best provided by truck. Another type of terminal is a livestock saleyard where different sized trucks are often used for inwards and outwards movements depending of the logistics requirements and the volumes of freight whether consolidated into big trucks or dissipated smaller trucks. From a transport perspective these involve high volumes for only a day or two a week, the rest of the time nothing much is happening. These peak and trough fluctuations are quite demanding on transport operators and the infrastructure supporting them.

Popularity of containerised freight since the 1970s has several aspects. > Ease of handling – crane on and crane off between modes to take advantage of each mode’s advantage - rail for low-cost, high-volume long line hauls from terminal to terminal and trucks for pick- up and delivery (PUD) legs hubbing off the terminals. > Better security than a tarpaulin on a flat top truck. They can also operate as mobile warehouse/storage rooms if needed. > It is easy to provide clip- on refrigeration units. > Deregulation of the grain market mean it is now possible for farmers to grow and market boutique grains without entering the pool system and containers provide a convenient way to export smaller quantities than whole trainload volumes. > Uniform size and easy availability mean no specialised equipment is needed. > They are extremely versatile and can carry almost anything from bulk solids and powders to packaged products such as boxes of supermarket food or store goods and specialised ones can be fitted with bladders for liquids. > The rise in container market share has been at the cost of traditional bulk handing methods which was formerly the area of rail dominance particularly for long hauls. The effect has been to transfer freight mode share from rail to road.

New England intermodal terminals The newer intermodal terminals in Narrabri are all clustered to the north-west of the town with direct road and rail network access. In Moree there are several potential terminals all located rail-side although the access is more difficult since they are essentially in town. Extensive works have been carried out in the Armidale Airport precinct to improve access however new challenges may arise with the colocation of additional logistics support activities to the site. Potentially this will increase the amount of freight in and out of the airport resulting in much higher volumes of trucks than currently operate to service what is primarily a passenger based airport. Airfreight is normally low-volume high-value cargo which means there will only be relatively small land transport volumes which can be carried in small trucks as opposed to semitrailers. Secure on-site storage is necessary to protect the valuable cargo. At Armidale higher volumes of passengers in the future may result in more busses to replace cars as the primary means for passengers to access the terminal. The area around the airport has lower posted speed limit than most of the New England Highway. Moree Airport is located adjacent the Newell Highway which has different challenges since the trucks on the Newell can be virtually any size whereas the New England Highway is limited to B-doubles. The Newell Highway is generally signposted to 110 km per hour.

Intermodal terminal location The location of terminals should be supported to be adjacent to the major highways with the purpose to minimise interaction with local roads users and reduce wear and tear on local roads. Smaller towns are unlikely to have local distribution centres because the markets are small enough to deliver direct to site. But

80020022 | 24 November 2020 | Commercial in Confidence 130 New England Road Network Strategy Final Report with population growth, there may come a time when the major logistics companies decide a town is big enough to operate as a mini hub in its own right as opposed to hubbing off a larger more distant centre. Localised hubs mean a significant change in the logistics chain and on the pressures on the local road network. For example, if Armidale operates as a hub for Glen Innes and delivers direct into store, volumes will be small enough to be performed in simple two or three axle light and medium trucks. But if Glen Innes becomes a hub in its own right, freight will bypass Armidale and take deliveries direct from Sydney, saving time, cost inconvenience and double handling and risk of damage or spoilage. The secondary effect is that even though the same volume of freight is involved, the line haul into Glen Innes will be performed by semi- trailers which have much lower costs per tonne hauled. This also means less trucks on the New England Highway road. Local pick-up and delivery legs could continue to be performed by smaller more manoeuvrable trucks than presently used giving a much more flexible service to customers. One strategy is to locate all new terminals rail-side to give the future option of rail to displace truck movements and ease pressure of the road system. As emissions control becomes more important, and meeting carbon targets the energy efficiency of rail over road should be supported as much as possible for long line hauls. Even though rail is non–operational north of Armidale and the Inverell line is gone, the corridors should be preserved so a future rail operation is not irrevocably terminated. The proposed inland rail provides new opportunities to access interstate markets which was previously not possible. For towns along the New England Highway, there is the opportunity to connect to the proposed inland rail at Werris Creek or Gunnedah.

Clustering and colocation of activities Clustering and colocation activities into a single precinct can be done with master planning/ land zoning and development applications. Clustering of activities improves logistics chains by eliminating incompatible activities, reduces carbon emissions, and has potential for load consolidation making line hauls more productive when fully utilised. Because of close proximity, there is also the opportunity for backloading if a coordinating protocol can be managed. This clustering of activities also provides an opportunity for rail if loads can be sufficiently consolidated to make point to point operations viable. An example of the is the Somerton terminal north of Melbourne which is adjacent to the Hume Highway and has an 1800 metre rail spur into the site.

10.4.2 Recommended improvements Recommended improvements are: > Increase the length of turning lanes into and out of terminals. This has the following effects:

- It prevents a backlog of traffic while a vehicle is moving into the terminal. This improves safety for all vehicles especially if trucks are turning right across the other lane,

- For departing trucks, this gives additional space to build up speed to more seamlessly join other traffic. A sealed pavement will also reduce dust and dislodged stones which improves visibility for all vehicles and reduces potential damage to windscreens. > Provision of seagull intersections where the terminal directly accesses the main road.

- Greatly improves road safety for all vehicles; - Improves drivability of trucks especially longer combination vehicles; and - A strong argument can be put for a user pays developer contributions since the primary beneficiary is the intermodal terminal. > Improve road geometry especially for access to terminals for larger trucks. Where terminals are not adjacent to main roads, intersection improvements are required for improved drivability. > Revised signposted speed limits especially where ultra- long 30 metre and larger trucks are used. If there is already a reduced speed zone near a terminal, it may be necessary to extend its range to accommodate the driving characteristics of evolving larger vehicles than presently used.

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10.5 Accommodate changing vehicle sizes, standards and technologies

10.5.1 Strategy focus areas Improvements to the freight network and the introduction of new technologies will likely require new types of digital and physical infrastructure. It is important to be aware of these requirements which could include upgraded line markings and road widths to accommodate autonomous long haul freight vehicles. Consideration is also needed for pot holes, pavement conditions and managing weather events. A major issue faced when introducing larger and heavier vehicles in the freight network are bridges. Some bridges in New England have not yet been rated for heavier vehicles, and may be constructed out of timber which is susceptible to fire and flooding. Bridges in New England must be audited and monitored to ensure that they will be able to support larger and heavier vehicles which would be using them. Collaboration with industry partners and government agencies will be critical in establishing the requirements for the future freight task, including road infrastructure and supporting technology. This collaboration will ensure consistency with New England and the connected freight network, and will promote innovative and best practice solutions. It is critical that governmental funding opportunities are utilised and major projects such as inland rail are leveraged from to secure funding for road improvements. Current gaps in data sources for NEJO member councils such as asset information and freight task is not conducive to providing strong evidence for business cases and funding applications. Consistent and useful data is essential in the planning process for future vehicles and technologies. New freight vehicles may require roads to be paved. It is required to understand which routes new freight vehicles can take through an audit of existing infrastructure.

10.5.2 Recommended improvements Recommended improvements are: > Collaborate with the NSW Government, the Australian Government and industry partners to better integrate freight vehicle standards. > Collaborate with the NSW government to determine the requirements for electric vehicle (EV) charging stations and the implications for the current energy grid. > Collaborate with the NSW Government to investigate requirements for implementing Smart Motorways, Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) and Connected Autonomous Vehicles (CAVs). > Seek funding opportunities for road and infrastructure upgrades through the following initiatives:

- Fixing Country Roads; - Fixing Country Rail; - Road Safety Plan (2021); and - Bridges for the Bush Program. > Identify gaps in current data supply that may limit a strong evidence base that could be used for funding applications. > Undertake a consistent audit of existing road infrastructure for all NEJO council members to determine the condition of assets such as bridges and pavement conditions.

10.6 Embrace technologies to reduce operating costs and emissions, and improve safety and efficiency

10.6.1 Strategy focus areas It is critical that planning for the New England freight network involves consideration for emerging transport technologies. Compatibility of new technologies in New England and the surrounding freight networks is essential and can be achieved by alignment with government plans. These plans include the: > Future Transport Strategy 2056 (TfNSW); > Future Transport 2056, Regional NSW Services and Infrastructure Plan; > Future Transport 2056 Connected and Automated Vehicles Plan; and

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> National Land Transport Technology Action Plan 2020 – 2023 (Transport and Infrastructure Council). The NSW Government is committed to preparing for the emergence of CAVs and will work with the Federal Government and other jurisdictions to develop standards and road rules to support the new technology. Recommended improvements should focus on performing ongoing actions that would help to prepare for technology that has not yet been adopted. NEJO and other stakeholders should support technology trials, collaborate with industry partners and advocate for policy and legislative changes that encourages innovative solutions. The outcomes and benefits of future technologies are not always known, therefore it is important that planning policy is adapted to enable investigation and adoption of flexible initiatives.

10.6.2 Recommended improvements Recommended improvements are: > Advocate for and provide ongoing support to the NSW government in trialling technological solutions such as Smart Motorways, ITS, CAVs and EVs. > Investigate new technologies that can be used to better manage existing infrastructure. > Identify gaps in current freight data and information, and develop and investigate new data capture and sharing methods to provide a greater evidence base for new technology. > Advocate for policy and legislative changes that do not hamper innovation or the investigation of new technology. > Work with the Future Transport Digital Accelerator to collaborate with industry and technology partners to develop products and digital solutions to improve the freight network. > Coordinate efforts with the National Land Transport Technology Action Plan, developed by the Transport and Infrastructure Council of Australia. > Coordinate efforts with the NSW Government’s Heavy Vehicle Access Policy Framework.

10.7 Reduce the disruptions and delays to road users from planned and unplanned road closures

10.7.1 Strategy focus areas

Road construction and maintenance costs There is a trade-off between high-cost capital works and low maintenance costs versus lesser quality with higher maintenance. A greater understanding of the whole of life cost is required and there is already an extensive body of research on this subject. Budgets are always a critical factor and there is often pressure to adopt a low cost up front option with inevitable results. From a road user perspective, this means more frequent lane closures or speed reductions. Most of the time this is a minor inconvenience, however, this can be exacerbated when combined with other factors such as peak harvest season, livestock sales days, bushfires/ flooding or unavailability of other roads.

Planned road closures Planned road closures are relatively easy to manage and program. Road works are managed and at worst queued single-lane operation provides only a minor inconvenience to most road users. All roads need maintenance no matter how well built or the quality of the materials used.

Unplanned closures consist of numerous types: Natural causes such as bush fires, flooding, washouts, and rockfalls smoke hazard, high winds, ice and snow hazard can be of short or long duration. The pervasiveness of bushfires of 2019/ 2020 show how long one natural disaster can last. The abundance of native forest, national parks and thousands of square kilometres from Tenterfield through Glen Innes and Armidale to Uralla but particularly to the east of the New England Highway mean this is hardly a one-off event, nor is it easily managed, controlled and mitigated. On the flatter western areas in the Moree Plains LGA/ Gwydir LGAs, some roads can be closed for months due to the slow dissipation rates. In the hilly areas, flash flooding is quite common but normally of short duration. Authorities are responsible for declaring when the road is safe to use again.

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Infrastructure failures are rarely a cause of delay. Bridges and culverts are built to codes, however there are sometimes difficult curves and grades in more remote hilly areas. The remoteness of these locations means it usually takes a long time for recovery crews to access the site and fix the situation. There is also the issue of equipment availability – a rock slide might require heavy earth-moving equipment whereas a truck rollover might need a crane. In general, roads are designed to a high standard but no matter how well designed, human error plays a significant role in many accidents. Random traffic related incidents are often a cause for delay. This is notable when a fatality or multiple vehicle accident occurs. A jack-knifed semi-trailer or an overturned truck can easily block both lanes of a road and it may take hours for a recovery crew to reopen the roads. Strategies to reduce delays occurs at several levels. > Pre-emptive – before an event:

- Management of controllable factors. These include best practice or fit-for-purpose infrastructure standards, design, construction, materials and maintenance.

- Optimised whole of life costs which factor in the economic costs of future disruptions to motorists for maintenance rather than pure cash outlays associated with simple infrastructure provision.

- Where councils lack the financial, physical and logistical resources to provide fit for purpose safe infrastructure, consideration should be given to transferring responsibility for this infrastructure to TfNSW.

- Prevention, mitigation or containment of uncontrollable events such as flooding and bushfires. - Interventions to convert uncontrollable event to controllable. For example, a flood levy could prevent inundation therefore eliminating the event. > During and after an event:

- Periodic review of standards and other controllable factors. - Rapid response to accidents/ incidents to restore the infrastructure to a safe operating condition. - Contain or control the event, such as fight a bush fire. - Seek external resources for assistance. The eastern LGAs basically lie astride New England Highway. There is considerable mountain terrain and extensive forests so the major challenges relate to dealing with fires, flash flooding, landslips and similar issues. The western parts of NEJO are on much flatter ground and more prone to prolonged periods of inundation so there are different issues to manage. Ponding water also accelerates potholing and other pavement damage. Infrastructure improvements can be tailored to the problems they are attempting to address.

10.7.2 Recommended improvements Recommended improvements are: > Fire prevention or containment measures:

- Where possible mowed verges to 1.5 metres; - Clear high trees adjacent to highways so they don’t fall on roads or vehicles. > Flooding or inundation:

- Improve drainage and run off where possible; - Install pumps to dissipate flood waters to rivers or dams; and - Bridge inspections to check integrity after a flood event. > Other:

- Landslips and Rockfalls – rock wall protection with mesh or similar. Alternatively, natural solutions such as selected vegetation might provide similar protection. Installation of verges or safety barriers where possible will also help in reducing lane closures and delays.

- Improved drainage to prevent ponding and washouts through more culverts.

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- For snow/ ice and low visibility conditions, signposted advisory boards and dynamic roadside alerts. - Fencing or increased vigilance to prevent livestock straying on the road. Typically motorists slow down when there are signposted warnings. But there is often no livestock which may cause driver frustration. Modern alternatives to fixed signage might increase safety for all parties and reduce delays. Collisions with livestock can result in considerable damage to people and property. Widespread “long paddock” grazing is difficult to control and collisions can occur with animals staying onto the carriageway. After a delay there is often a temptation for motorists to make up time leading to a greater risk of driver related errors further down the road.

10.8 Prioritisation of improvements

10.8.1 Identification of projects and programs NEJOs has a priority to develop local road networks for more efficient connections: > Internally within individual LGAs and within NEJO itself. > Externally with the outside world primarily by improving interfaces with the AusLink, state and regional roads. With regard to external linkages, NEJO may be in a position to lobby for improvements to the AusLink, state and regional roads but these roads are not its primary responsibility. In a simplistic sense, the AusLink, state and regional roads are generally better funded, built and maintained to a higher standard than local roads and they normally carry much higher traffic volumes. The internal NEJO network can make connections to these major roads problematic because of different standards, which reduces seamlessness for heavy vehicle movements. This adds extra cost, complexity and time to the logistics chain and this may be a source of competitive disadvantage compared with other areas with uniform standards. The fixed rail network routes are often in a position to offer competition to state and regional roads but offer little relief to the local roads which serve rail hubs and terminals. Quite often there is a very heavy freight load hubbing off these rail hubs particularly in the grain growing areas which are mainly served by local roads.

Overarching strategies/principles > Strategies – transfer of high cost roads to a higher tier of government. > Upgrades for PBS or HML vehicles pavement strengthening, curve easing. > Town bypasses to minimise interaction of through travelling HV and intra town movements. > Uniform standards – PBS in the west, B-doubles in the east. > Safety – level crossings – line of sight overtaking opportunities. The list of projects can be categorised by present ownership and control of the assets. From a whole of NEJO perspective, state roads usually cross LGA boundaries and although upgrade programs acutely impact LGAs, there is little an individual LGA can do to influence upgrade programs however as a group, there may be some influence. Alternatively local road programs are best internalised within LGAs. Table 10-1 sets out issue categories and the problems which must be addressed. The background data was collected and presented in the Stage 3 report based on input from the NEJO members.

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Table 10-1 Categorisation of issues # Issue category 1 Bridge constraints 2 Crash cluster 3 Distance between main road and rail below minimum threshold for trucks 4 Drainage / flooding Issues 5 Expensive maintenance 6 Insufficient sight distance 7 Lack of alternative routes / connectivity 8 Lack of heavy vehicle rest areas 9 Lack of overtaking opportunities 10 Lack of heavy vehicle access 11 Narrow travel lanes 12 Road rehabilitation required 13 Unsafe road user interaction 14 Unsealed road sections

Table 10-2 below summarises the perceived defects for each state road and how they manifest themselves in each LGA. Generally there are recurrent themes indicating the same problems regularly recur.

Table 10-2 Summary of state road issues and their impact on LGAs State Roads Armidale Glen Inverell Moree Narrabri Tenterfield Uralla Regional Innes Shire Plains Shire Shire Shire Severn Shire New England Highway 2, 6, 8, 2, 7, 9, 13 2, 9, 6 2, 13 11 Grafton Road 2, 8 Thunderbolts Way 8 11, 12, 13 Gwydir Highway 2, 7, 9, 13 2, 7, 13 9, 13

Mount Lindesay Highway Bruxner Highway 12 5, 13 1, 2, 11, 13 Carnarvon Highway 2 Newell Highway 2, 7, 13 2, 7, 13 Kamilaroi Highway 2, 4, 8

This section covers the potential program for local roads. The first table (Table 10-3) represents a master list by LGA and road within the LGA. In many cases some roads require multiple issues being addressed. The NSW Assurance process makes it difficult for low traffic density roads to satisfy economic criteria. Many programs are run on a campaign basis such as addressing road safety and parcelling of various sub projects may improve chances of securing funding. Table 10-4 to Table 10-15 bundle potential interventions into logical parcels one to address each deficiency individually. A whole of NEJO approach might attempt to cover each item entirely, alternatively LGAs might undertake particular projects or combinations of projects unilaterally. Some programs such as road safety are much larger than others and some roads feature more prominently than others. Based on the feedback received from councils, the bridges program mainly impacts only two

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LGAs – Armidale and Narrabri. There are of course bridges in all LGAs however feedback indicates many of these are of a standard which will support expected trucks sizes into the future. Road safety initiatives are most heavily concentrated in urban areas and often there is an overlap with the issues involving the interaction of heavy and light vehicles. It may be that addressing the latter may avoid some of the road safety initiative. Not all programs are infrastructure based. Table 10-7 shows roads that have become too expensive for councils to maintain to a satisfactory standard or that place and undue burden on LGA funds. One solution is to transfer these roads back to the state government and there is now a task force appointed to advise on this program.

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Table 10-3 Master list of roads by LGA and issue to be addressed as part of the improvements program Road LGA 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Baldersleigh Road Armidale Y

Barney Street Armidale Y

Ben Lomond Road Armidale Y

Booloominbah Drive Armidale Y

Boorolong Road Armidale

Brown Street Armidale Y

Bundarra Road Armidale Y

Butler Street Armidale Y

Canambe Street Armidale Y

Castledoyle Road Armidale Y

Dangar Street Armidale Y

Donnelly Street Armidale Y

Dumaresq Street Armidale Y

Elm Avenue Armidale Y

Erskine Street Armidale Y

Falconer Street Armidale Y

Faulkner Street Armidale Y

Grafton Road Armidale Y

Guyra Road Armidale Y

Kempsey Road Armidale Y Y Y Y Y

Kentucky Street Armidale Y

Lambs Avenue Armidale Y

Madgwick Drive Armidale Y

Malpas Street Armidale Y

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Road LGA 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Markham Street Armidale Y

Marsh Street Armidale Y

Miller Street Armidale Y

Moore Street Armidale Y

Nowlands Road Armidale Y

Nowlands Road Armidale Y

Old Armidale Road Armidale Y Y Y

Old Inverell Road Armidale Y

Ollera Street Armidale Y

Platform Road Armidale Y

Rockvale Road Armidale Y

Rusden Street Armidale Y

Tenterden Road Armidale Y

Trevenna Road Armidale Y

Uralla Road Armidale Y

Bald Nob Road Glen Innes Y

Coronation Avenue Glen Innes Y

Grafton Street Glen Innes Y

Grey Street Glen Innes Y Y

Lang Street Glen Innes Y

Strathbogie Road Glen Innes Eagle Hawk Feedlot Glen Innes Y

Ashford Bonshaw Road Inverell

Ashford Road Inverell Y Y Y

Bingara Road Inverell Y

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Road LGA 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Bundarra Road Inverell Y

Byron Street Inverell Y

Copeton Dam Road Inverell Y

Delungra Road Inverell Y

Emmaville Road Inverell Y

Evans Street Inverell Y

Graman Road Inverell Y

Guyra Road Inverell Y

Howell Road Inverell Y Y Y

Kings Plains Road Inverell

Lawrence Street Inverell Y

North Star Road Inverell Y

Nullamanna Road Inverell Y

Rifle Range Road Inverell Y

Ross Street Inverell Y

Tarwoona Road Inverell Y

Thunderbolts Way Inverell Y

Vivian Street Inverell Y

Warialda Road Inverell Y

Yetman Road Inverell Y

Whyalla Beef Feedlot (QLD) Inverell Y

Bindara Beef Feedlot Inverell Y

Feedlot near Tingha Inverell Y

Alice Street Moree Y

Anne Street Moree Y

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Road LGA 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Arunga Street Moree Y

Balo Street Moree Y

Boston Street Moree Y

Bulluss Drive Moree Y

Bulluss Drive & SR261 Bullus Moree Y Drive (RR7785)

Caloona Road (SR25) Moree Y

Edward Street Moree Y

Frome Street Moree Y

Heber Street Moree Y

Moloney Road (SR13) Moree Y

Tapscott Road (SR243) Moree Y

Telleraga Road (SR6) Moree Y

Terry Hie Hie (SR101) Moree Y

Bald Hill Road (SR09) Narrabri Y Y

Couradda Road (SR07) Narrabri Y

Culgoora Road Narrabri Y

Doreen Lane (SR46) Narrabri Y

Harparary Road (SR11) Narrabri Y

Homestead Road (SR55) Narrabri Y

Jacks Creek Road Narrabri Y

Killarney Gap Road Narrabri Y

Maitland Street Narrabri Y

Middle Route Road (SR47) Narrabri Y

Millie Road (SR01) Narrabri Y Y

Pilliga Road Narrabri Y Y Y

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Road LGA 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Spring Plains Road (SR04) Narrabri Y Y

Waiwera Lane (SR107) Narrabri Y

Yarrie Lake Road (SR29) Narrabri Y Y

Mount Lindesay Road Tenterfield Y Y

Sunnyside Platform Road Tenterfield Y

Amosfield Road Tenterfield Y Y

Old Ballandean Road Tenterfield Y

Tooloom Road Tenterfield Y

Rouse Street Tenterfield Y

Cowper Street Tenterfield Y

Kingstown Road Uralla Y

Uralla Road Uralla Y

Thunderbolts Way - Torryburn Uralla Y Road

Kingstown Road - Torryburn Uralla Y Road

Uralla - Kingstown Road Uralla Y

Bundarra Road Uralla Y

Bridge Street Uralla Y Y

Tullimba Feedlot Uralla Y

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Table 10-4 Bridge improvement program candidates Road LGA Baldersleigh Road Armidale Castledoyle Road Armidale Old Armidale Road Armidale Tenterden Road Armidale Bald Hill Road (SR09) Narrabri Spring Plains Road (SR04) Narrabri

Figure 10-1 Road safety improvement program candidates(based on crash cluster information) Road LGA Road LGA Road LGA Barney Street Armidale Markham Street Armidale Ross Street Inverell Booloominbah Drive Armidale Marsh Street Armidale Vivian Street Inverell Brown Street Armidale Miller Street Armidale Alice Street Moree Bundarra Road Armidale Moore Street Armidale Anne Street Moree Butler Street Armidale Ollera Street Armidale Arunga Street Moree Canambe Street Armidale Platform Road Armidale Balo Street Moree Dangar Street Armidale Rusden Street Armidale Boston Street Moree Donnelly Street Armidale Trevenna Road Armidale Edward Street Moree Dumaresq Street Armidale Uralla Road Armidale Frome Street Moree Elm Avenue Armidale Coronation Avenue Glen Innes Heber Street Moree Erskine Street Armidale Grafton Street Glen Innes Culgoora Road Narrabri Falconer Street Armidale Grey Street Glen Innes Jacks Creek Road Narrabri Faulkner Street Armidale Lang Street Glen Innes Maitland Street Narrabri Grafton Road Armidale Ashford Road Inverell Pilliga Road Narrabri Guyra Road Armidale Bundarra Road Inverell Rouse Street Tenterfield Kempsey Road Armidale Byron Street Inverell Cowper Street Tenterfield Kentucky Street Armidale Evans Street Inverell Kingstown Road Uralla Lambs Avenue Armidale Howell Road Inverell Bundarra Road Uralla Madgwick Drive Armidale Lawrence Street Inverell Bridge Street Uralla Malpas Street Armidale Rifle Range Road Inverell

Table 10-5 Programs to improve the distance between main road and rail below minimum threshold for trucks Road LGA Old Inverell Road Armidale Bulluss Drive Moree

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Table 10-6 Program to improve drainage and mitigate flooding Road LGA Copeton Dam Road Inverell Howell Road Inverell North Star Road Inverell Doreen Lane (SR46) Narrabri Harparary Road (SR11) Narrabri Millie Road (SR01) Narrabri

Table 10-7 sets out the roads councils have suggested as first cut candidates for transfer to the state government. For councils, they represent an unsustainable burden which diverts resources for its other responsibilities.

Table 10-7 Expensive maintenance roads Road LGA Kempsey Road Armidale Ashford Road Inverell Pilliga Road Narrabri

Sight distance length was only identified as an issue by Narrabri Shire Council. The 2019/ 2020 bushfires noted a related issue, the proximity of vegetation to roads and the prospect of road closure because an adjacent burnt tree has fallen onto the road and obstructed movement.

Table 10-8 Programs to address lack of sight distance Road LGA Yarrie Lake Road (SR29) Narrabri

Table 10-9 Program to address lack of alternative routes Road LGA Tapscott Road (SR243) Moree

Recent programs on the New England Highway and the Newell Highway have substantially addressed this issue. Rest areas are typically needed for long distance travel through and within NEJO.

Table 10-10 Program to address lack of HV rest areas Road LGA Killarney Gap Road Narrabri Pilliga Road Narrabri

Many logistics chains experience the limitations of first mile – last mile deficiencies. This is particularly the case for feedlots which are usually accessed from local and in some cases private roads. There has been substantially growth in the size and number of feedlots in recent years mainly because of their ability to work around climatic extremes such as drought. Most sources agree this trend Is irreversible and although there is a growing free range organic food market, it is only a niche compared to the size of the market and its impact on transport infrastructure and operations.

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Table 10-11 Program to address lack of HV access Road/Area LGA Kempsey Road Armidale Whyalla Beef Feedlot (QLD) Inverell Bindara Beef Feedlot Inverell Feedlot near Tingha Inverell Eagle Hawk Feedlot Glen Innes Bridge Street Uralla Tullimba Feedlot Uralla

Apart from Inverell, the narrow roads problem was restricted to the LGAs along the New England Highway. In part the mountainous terrain can explain the situation, but in other parts a general lack of funds and low density traffic volumes has made expenditure on these roads less of a priority. Most of the roads are secondary routes but they provide important backups in the event of disruption to main roads. If the New England Highway bypass at Armidale is blocked to the south, Old Armidale Road is available. Although these roads are of a lesser standard, they still have to support the normal functions of the heavy duty roads, albeit for a short duration.

Table 10-12 Program to address narrow roads – road widening Road LGA Ben Lomond Road Armidale Kempsey Road Armidale Nowlands Road Armidale Old Armidale Road Armidale Delungra Road Inverell Tarwoona Road Inverell Sunnyside Platform Road Tenterfield Amosfield Road Tenterfield Old Ballandean Road Tenterfield Tooloom Road Tenterfield Uralla Road Uralla Thunderbolts Way - Torryburn Road Uralla Kingstown Road - Torryburn Road Uralla Uralla - Kingstown Road Uralla

Several roads were nominated for rehabilitation, particularly in the Inverell LGA.

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Table 10-13 Program to rehabilitate roads Road LGA Kempsey Road Armidale Bald Nob Road Glen Innes Bingara Road Inverell Graman Road Inverell Guyra Road Inverell Thunderbolts Way Inverell Warialda Road Inverell Yetman Road Inverell

Table 10-14 Program to address unsafe roads Road LGA Ashford Road Inverell

A significant number of roads are not fully sealed. As part of an overall pavement sealing and upgrade program, a significant amount of pavement strengthening is required in Moree Plains Shire and Narrabri Shire because of the introduction of PBS vehicles on the main corridors.

Table 10-15 Program to address unsealed roads Road LGA Road LGA Kempsey Road Armidale Telleraga Road (SR6) Moree Nowlands Road Armidale Terry Hie Hie (SR101) Moree Old Armidale Road Armidale Bald Hill Road (SR09) Narrabri Rockvale Road Armidale Couradda Road (SR07) Narrabri Grey Street Glen Innes Homestead Road (SR55) Narrabri Emmaville Road Inverell Middle Route Road (SR47) Narrabri Howell Road Inverell Millie Road (SR01) Narrabri Nullamanna Road Inverell Spring Plains Road (SR04) Narrabri North Star Road Inverell Waiwera Lane (SR107) Narrabri Delungra Road Inverell Yarrie Lake Road (SR29) Narrabri Graman Road Inverell Mount Lindesay Road Tenterfield

Bulluss Drive & SR261 Bullus Drive (RR7785) Moree Caloona Road (SR25) Moree Moloney Road (SR13) Moree

10.8.2 Local roads prioritisation Local road projects have been prioritised using a multi criteria analysis (MCA). The criteria for this analysis are based on whether the local road programs address the seven objectives for the New England road network, as outlined in Section 9.2. A score of 1 was assigned to the program that satisfied each of the seven objectives. The total score for each program was ranked highest to lowest to determine the most critical packages that should be delivered in New England. The programs were ranked as high, medium and low priority depending on its score. The results of the MCA show that the most important package is the unsealed roads package, addressing four of the seven objectives.

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The MCA results for local road packages are shown in Table 10-16. It should be noted that the lack of overtaking lanes is a larger issue for state roads that are longer with higher volumes. They are not needed on local roads. An alternative way of prioritising is by specific road and the issues and constraints they address. This is the equivalent of summarising Table 10-3 and the results are shown in Table 10-17. This does not mean that roads on the original list are not worthy of upgrade, just that they do not address multiple issues.

Table 10-16 Local road project prioritisation by objective Project/ program Objectives Total Priority Score #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6 #7 Unsealed roads 1 1 1 1 4 High Unsafe road user interaction 1 1 1 1 4 High Bridge Program 1 1 1 3 Medium Drainage and flooding 1 1 1 3 Medium Lack of alternative routes 1 1 1 3 Medium Expensive maintenance 1 1 2 Medium Lack of heavy vehicle access 1 1 2 Medium Narrow travel lanes and shoulders 1 1 2 Medium Road rehabilitation 1 1 2 Medium Road Safety Program 1 1 Low Road and rail space constraints 1 1 Low Insufficient sight distance 1 1 Low Lack of heavy vehicle rest areas 1 1 Low

Table 10-17 MCA Results for individual road addressing constraints Road LGA 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Total Kempsey Road Armidale 1 1 1 1 1 5 Old Armidale Road Armidale 1 1 1 3 Ashford Road Inverell 1 1 1 3 Howell Road Inverell 1 1 1 3 Pilliga Road Narrabri 1 1 1 3 Grey Street Glen Innes 1 1 2 Bald Hill Road (SR09) Narrabri 1 1 2 Millie Road (SR01) Narrabri 1 1 2 Spring Plains Road (SR04) Narrabri 1 1 2 Yarrie Lake Road (SR29) Narrabri 1 1 2 Bridge Street Uralla 1 1 2

10.8.3 State roads prioritisation Upgrades to state roads have been prioritised similar to local roads, using an MCA process. Each state road has been assessed against its issues outlined in Table 10-2, and the objectives that the issues relate to. Similarly to the local road prioritisation, a score of 1 was given to each objective that required addressing on each road. The total score for each state road was ranked highest to lowest to determine the road that

80020022 | 24 November 2020 | Commercial in Confidence 147 New England Road Network Strategy Final Report requires the most critical improvements in New England. The state roads were categorised as high, medium and low priority depending on its score. The results of the MCA revealed that the New England Highway and the Bruxner Highway are the state roads that should receive upgrades first. The results of the MCA are shown in Table 10-18.

Table 10-18 State Road upgrades prioritisation Objective State Road Score Priority #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6 #7 New England 1 1 1 1 1 1 7 High Bruxner Highway 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 7 High Thunderbolts Way 1 1 1 1 1 5 Medium Gwydir Highway 1 1 1 1 1 5 Medium Newell Highway 1 1 1 1 1 5 Medium Kamilaroi Highway 1 1 1 1 4 Medium Grafton Road 1 1 Low Carnarvon Highway 1 1 Low

10.9 Monitoring and review The project cycle normal comprises of the four phases shown in Figure 10-2. The cycle commences with the Planning function and concludes there before commencing an iteration. This section is directed at the third and fourth stages. Section 3.2 discussed some KPIs which could be used to benchmark performance of the project. Performance measures linked to the seven NEJO objectives will help to provide understanding of how well each objective is being progressed. Suggested performance measures and their data sources are listed in Table 10-19.

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Figure 10-2 Four phase project management process

Plan

Imple- Review ment

Monitor

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Table 10-19 Performance measures New England road Performance measures Data source network objective Reduce the number Number of road traffic crashes per year (by TFNSW reported crash statistics of serious injury and mode). fatality crashes. Number of fatal and serious injuries (by vehicle TFNSW reported crash statistics type). Number of casualty crashes (by vehicle type). TFNSW reported crash statistics Vehicle travel speeds in town centres. Radar Number and spacing of heavy vehicle rest Asset review areas. Reduce interaction Proportion of heavy vehicles in town centres. Classified vehicle counts between heavy vehicles and other Proportion of through traffic in the town centres. Origin – Destination survey road users. Proportion of through HV on bypasses. Classified vehicle counts Improve travel times Travel times along key freight routes. Travel time surveys to key freight destinations. Length of delay experienced by freight vehicles. Level of service

Improve local industry Travel distances for freight vehicles. Origin – Destination survey access to intermodal terminals and the Volume and proportion of freight destined for Freight data and forecasts national highway outside of the region. system. Take up of higher capacity trucks TfNSW registration/ABS vehicle census Accommodate Length of network that accommodates different TFNSW heavy vehicle network maps changing vehicle vehicle sizes. sizes, standards and technologies. Satisfaction with road network by freight Stakeholder engagement operators. Take up of higher capacity trucks TfNSW registration/ABS vehicle census Embrace Changes to policy to facilitate electric vehicles. Policy review technologies to reduce operating Number of publicly accessible electric charging Asset review costs and emissions, stations. and improve safety Proportion of charging stations that use Asset review and efficiency. renewable energy. Vehicle operating costs. Economic estimates, Industry bodies Estimate of greenhouse gas emission Economic estimates associated with travel. Freight Rates Survey of freight operators, generators and consumers Reduce the Number of complaints / reported incidents on the Community survey, survey of freight disruptions and road network. operators, delays to road users from planned and Community and stakeholder satisfaction with the Community survey unplanned road road network. closures. Length of time for road closures Maintenance reports Rating from risk assessment of new Design reports. infrastructure.

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11 Conclusion

The New England Road Network Strategy was developed, on behalf of New England Joint Organisation (NEJO), to determine the transport objectives, strategies and actions to support safe and efficient road transport movements. The strategy will help to support the continued growth and prosperity of the region, with a strong focus on freight transport. The objectives of the New England Road Network Strategy (Road Network Strategy) are: > To prepare a network study (plan and base study) to gain an informed understanding of how vehicles, including freight use the network (additional input to be provided by Transport for NSW). > To identify pinch points within the region and adjoining the identified networks to provide productivity gains to identify industry, business and or the region. This could be a value proposition for the NSW economy and for all levels in the form of business growth and job creation. > Informing council planning schemes and other economic development strategies for the North West Region.” Strategic Context The Strategy is compatible with – and informed by > National Remote and Regional Transport Strategy, Transport and Infrastructure Council National Freight and Supply Chain Strategy, Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Cities and Regional Development > Future Transport Strategy 2056, Transport for NSW > Regional NSW Services and Infrastructure Plan, Transport for NSW > NSW Freight and Ports Plan 2018 – 2023, NSW Government > Road Safety Plan 2021, NSW Government > Building Momentum - State Infrastructure Strategy 2018 – 2038, Infrastructure NSW > New England North West Regional Plan 2036, Department of Planning and Environment > Newell Highway Corridor Strategy, NSW Government > New England Highway Corridor Strategy, NSW Government > Waterfall Way Draft Corridor Strategy > Northern Inland Region of NSW – Freight Study, Peece for RDANI

Vision The New England Road Network moves people, freight and services safely and efficiently, supporting access to centres, economic productivity, both local and regional trips, and a range of vehicles. With a focus on the reliable movement of goods, and safe interaction between road users, the New England Network Road Strategy aims to: > Prioritise safety; > Improve freight efficiency; > Provide capacity for the growing freight task; > Facilitate access to the regional road network; > Integrate the road network with other existing air and rail transportation networks; > Prioritise investment; > Facilitate access to markets; > Support growth in population and economy; and > Embrace adaptability towards emerging technologies. Strategy Objectives

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The seven road network objectives for the New England road network will guide the development and prioritisation of improvement actions and initiatives. > Reduce the number of serious injury and fatality crashes; > Reduce interaction between heavy vehicles and other road users; > Improve travel times to key freight destinations; > Improve local industry access to intermodal terminals, existing airports and the national highway system; > Accommodate changing vehicle sizes, standards and technologies; > Embrace technologies to reduce operating costs and emissions, and improve safety and efficiency; and > Reduce the disruptions and delays to road users from planned and unplanned road closures.

Issues to Address A review of the existing network found the following issues to address to meet the strategic objectives. > Bridge constraints; > Crash cluster; > Distance between main road and rail below minimum threshold for trucks; > Drainage / flooding Issues; > Expensive maintenance on some roads; > Insufficient sight distance causing road safety issues; > Lack of alternative routes / connectivity which is most acutely impacting when a main road is closed; > Lack of heavy vehicle rest areas; > Lack of overtaking opportunities, leading to driver frustration and risk taking behaviour; > Lack of heavy vehicle access; > Narrow travel lanes; > Road rehabilitation required; > Unsafe road user interaction particularly in urban areas; and > Unsealed road sections.

These issues can be addressed: > on a whole of NEJO approach; > by individual councils; > on a road by road basis; > as a series of packages such as a bridge strengthening program; or > as a blend of the above.

The purpose of NEJO is that a united force has greater influence than individual councils therefore it is recommended this approach be taken particularly for bundling packages of work together. A road by road approach is best suited to being developed by individual councils since most local roads are fully contained within LGAs.

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