Members of the Railtrails Australia Committee, Vince Aitkin and Frank Kinnersley, were assisted by NSW member and Sydney resident Jim Hope in running a stand at the Bicycling Australia Show which was held over the weekend of 22 and 23 October at the Dome in Sydney Showground.
Railtrails Australia knows that a significant number of people who use rail trails are cyclists and we consider our attendance at national cycle shows is a valuable opportunity to present rail trails to show attendees. As there is presently a drought of Rail Trails throughout New South Wales we were delighted to talk with so many people about the vision of RT’s and how valuable they are to the community as recreational, car free and safe places to enjoy healthy recreation. A frequent comment made to us by cyclists over the two days was that they could not understand why there were so few Rail Trails in NSW which they considered the most populated and wealthiest of the Nations States. Many people were amazed at how many Rail Trails were available for community use throughout Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia and Western Australia. Many cyclists told us that they took vacations to Victoria to cycle rail trails particularly the Murray to the Mountains RT (Wangaratta/Bright) and the Gippsland RT’s.
There were some 100 entities who maintained stands etc at the show including a number of Sydney Bicycle User Groups and the Munda Biddi Trail Foundation from Western Australia. Their iconic trail (presently open from Mundaring to Collie ) uses Rail Trails for approx one third of its 370 klm distance and when finished through to Albany will incorporate many more abandoned Rail Lines along its route. We spoke to a tour company who operate cycling tours (among others) on this trail.
We had the opportunity to talk with people who are pushing for various rural Rail Trails throughout southern and central parts of NSW. There are negotiations underway in the Monaro, Goulburn/Crookwell, Bungendore/Captains Flat, Culcairn/Corowa, Riverina, Cowra/Eugowra, Molong/Yeoval and the Tarana/Oberon areas. But in the end it needs people power to push for these projects to be funded and completed. Contact details of groups in these areas are available from Railtrails Australia – just email our Secretary.
For Railtrails Australia the show was a great success. We handed out thousands of brochures and made many people aware of our work and about the availibility of our two guide books covering Rail trails in Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania. We look forward to participating in future Bicycle Shows throughout the Nation.
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Register for news updatesPaul Baker has cycled over 2,400 kilometers since the start of January. The 47-year-old set himself the goal of riding a...
Plans for a rail trail in the NSW regional city of Goulburn are a step closer, after the Goulburn Mulwaree Council voted...
Wellington Shire Council, in conjunction with South Gippsland Shire Council, is constructing 21km of the Great Southern ...
After the recent Rail Trails Australia annual general meeting, attendees were treated to discussion from legendary cycli...
The Queensland Government has just released its third action plan under the 10-year Queensland Cycling Strategy for 2023...
The restoration of the 770m long iconic Snowy River trestle bridge on the East Gippsland Rail Trail has not been immune ...
The plan to link the Great Southern Rail Trail and Bass Coast Rail Trail at Nyora has taken a further step as tenders fo...
The extension of the Mary Valley Rail Trail (MVRT) in south-east Queensland has taken some crucial steps forward in rece...
In 2020 the Adelaide Hills Council was successful in securing $2.6m in funding from the Federal Government to complete s...
An enjoyable morning was had by nearly 350 people who attended the official opening of a new 11k section of the Mary to ...
A motion for supporting a rail trail through Byron Shire was passed by Byron Bay Council — it is a wonderful outco...
An expert study just released affirms the transformative effect a rail trail will have on the Central Victoria. The 9-...
The Batlow Tumut Rail Trail Association has announced that funding has been secured for a feasibility study update, a ke...
The 12 Apostles Trail is scheduled for completion this November. This trail extends the current 38km Camperdown to Tim...
We thoroughly enjoyed cycling the Brisbane Valley Rail Trail recently. Being from Hobart, we appreciated the companies t...
Queensland’s Department of Transport and Main Roads has partnered with Trail Towns to create an episode that winds 161...