The Fixing Country Roads program is one of the largest undertakings ever seen across regional NSW and these new projects will mean we have 302 individual upgrades either completed or being delivered.

Restart NSW Fixing Country Roads is helping regional communities by upgrading worn out bridges, sealing often unpassable roads, building and upgrading truck washes and offering alternatives for people needing to travel between freight facilities, regional communities and main state roads.

New projects in the Barwon electorate will include –

MR405 Upgrade - Gonery to Barakee - 20 kilometres of road upgraded and sealed resulting in more than 50 per cent of the Bourke to Wanaaring Road being sealed - $4,600,000

Upgrade Goodooga Rd between Goodooga and Hebel - the provision of all-weather access for heavy freight vehicles by sealing remaining 90.4 kilometres between Kamilaroi Highway - $5,000,000

Curlew Road Upgrade to accommodate road trains - the upgrading of Curlew Road by developing a 7 metre sealed pavement - $1,500,000

Maitland Street Bypass Condobolin - Construction of an auxiliary lane at the intersection of Melrose Rd and Maitland Street along with Upgrading Boona Rd/Maitland Street with Henry Parkes Way for the auxiliary lane - $760,000

Tullibigeal Road Upgrade to accommodate road trains - Develop a 6 metre sealed pavement over a length of 17 kilometres - $910,000

Central to Fixing Country Roads are projects which show the potential to improve freight delivery, journey times and safety outcomes.

These are important benefits for all the community, from producers to tourists, or the local school bus who all share these roads.

NSW Restart Fixing Country Roads is a $543 million program targeted to improve regional interconnectivity and productivity.

I am pleased to announce that new On Demand buses will start rolling out in areas of the state’s Central West during March and April this year as part of a pilot program being run by the NSW Government.

The On Demand pilot run by private operator LiveBetter is one of 10 that will be run across regional and rural NSW. It offers four village to town connections across NSW, including Collarenebri to Narrabri, Tullamore to Dubbo, Portland to Lithgow and Ivanhoe to Hay.

The start dates for these services are:

Each route will be serviced by a dedicated mini bus with the standard fare starting from $7.40 for Portland to Lithgow, $29 for Tullamore to Dubbo, and $35 for Ivanhoe to Hay and Collarenebri to Narrabri services. The Regional Excursion Daily Ticket (RED) will also be available for Pensioner Concession eCard holders, NSW Seniors card holders and War Widower/s card holders (NSW or Victoria).

Customers are able to book a service by calling the LiveBetter Transport team on 1800 580 580.

On Demand Transport is designed to suit the unique needs of customers which is why we’ve worked with LiveBetter to individually tailor this trial to deliver the type of service the Central West needs.

This trial is giving customers more flexibility around how and when they travel, making it easier to connect with important services and leisure activities in larger towns.

The NSW Government has been trialing On Demand public transport pilots across metropolitan Sydney since late 2017 and across rural and regional NSW since November 2018.

We have really seen the community embracing On Demand services and integrating it into their travel patterns.More than 250,000 passenger trips have already been delivered in metropolitan areas and we can’t wait to see these numbers grow across the state as these rural and regional trials commence operations.

Floodplain Management Program: Now Open - March 20, 2019

For more information www.environment.nsw.gov.au/coasts/Floodgrants.htm. 

Local Sports Defibrillator Program: Now Open – May 2019

For more information www.sport.nsw.gov.au/clubs/grants/defibrillator. 

Heritage Near Me Local Heritage Strategic Projects: EOI - Open all year and subject available funding.

More information www.environment.nsw.gov.au/topics/heritage/support-for-local-heritage/heritage-near-me-incentives-program.