Early works are underway on Inland Rail’s Condamine floodplain studies, and community representatives will be briefed this week about upcoming investigations.
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The contractors engaged to progress the work will attend Inland Rail Community Consultative Committee meetings in Pittsworth and Millmerran to share more about the studies.
Inland Rail Programme CEO Peter Winder said the project team will be working closely with the community and landowners to obtain local knowledge on historical flood events and flood impacts.
“It is anticipated that workshops will be arranged to assist in gathering this information and further details will be circulated soon,” he said.
“We are focused on building the best possible rail line and the community’s input is critical in shaping the design of Inland Rail.”
Mr Winder said the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) was delivering on its commitment to prioritise the assessment of engineering and technical options for crossing the Condamine floodplain.
“This means the floodplain studies are starting sooner than originally scheduled, which enables earlier engagement with the community, and the expected delivery of preliminary engineering solutions in the middle of this year,” he said.
“We have been listening to the people of the Darling Downs and acknowledge their concerns about a new rail line crossing the floodplain, which is why we have expedited the timing of these investigations.
“It is not unusual for rail lines to be built across flood plains, but we appreciate people need confidence in the design and the methodologies that inform the design.”
Mr Winder said ARTC is also committed to ongoing consultation with landowners and local communities, building on previous community engagement carried out along the study area.
“This week ARTC released a report about the Inland Rail community meetings it convened late last year across the Darling Downs region.
“The report, available via the Inland Rail website, summarises the issues that were raised across the fourteen public meetings and the information provided by ARTC.”
The Community Consultative Committee (CCC) Meetings being held this week are:
- Inner Darling Downs CCC meets on 6 March 2018 at Pittsworth Function Centre, 42 Hume Street, Pittsworth from 6pm to 8pm
- Southern Downs CCC meets on 7 March 2018 at Bigambul Meeting Room, 553 Turallin Road, Millmerran, from 6pm to 8pm.
For more information about the Inland Rail Programme, please contact the team on 1800 732 761, or visit the website www.inlandrail.com.au.
