Central West and Orana (incl. Dubbo)

Already delivered…

Roads

• Improving the conditions of major highways connecting regional centres and major cities, like the Great Western Highway linking Lithgow and Sydney. We’ve widened the road, improved the road surface and upgraded five main intersections between Hartley Valley and Forty Bends, giving motorists smoother, safer journeys.
• Supporting local councils and giving them funding to repair and upgrade regional roads, like the Railway Street saleyards at Coonamble, where there’s been work on the loading ramps, and a widening and redesign of the alternate access road. This has improved traffic flow around and made local roads safer.
• The Newell Highway upgrade at Trewilga was officially opened to traffic in February 2018. The project has improved the safety of the highway for road users and upgraded the speed from 100km/h to 110km/h. Key features of the project include a new alignment for 3.2 kilometres, widening of the current highway to allow a 1.2 metre wide centreline and width of sealed shoulders, a bus turning area at Baldry Peak Hill Road, a northbound 1.3 kilometre overtaking lane and a truck parking area on the eastern side of the highway.

Delivering on the plan (future)

• The ageing regional rail fleet will be replaced to improve the safety, comfort and reliability for customers who travel from Sydney to regional centres in NSW, as well as Canberra, Melbourne and Brisbane. The new trains will come into service progressively from 2023.
• We know jobs are vital to keeping our regions thriving, so we’rebuilding a new facility to maintain the new Regional Fleet in Dubbo. This will mean long-term skilled jobs for the Dubbo community, including apprenticeships and traineeships.
• We’ve introduced a new weekday Sydney to Lithgow return express service that will improve services for customers who change at Lithgow on their way to and from Sydney. The morning Sydney to Lithgow express service will connect at Lithgow with regional coaches heading to Bathurst and Orange. The return Lithgow to Sydney service will connect with coaches arriving from destinations like Nyngan, Dubbo, Wellington, Molong, Orange, Lucknow and Bathurst.
• The Bathurst Bullet and new weekday Lithgow-Sydney return express service both include a stop at Westmead providing Central West customers with direct access to an important health precinct.
• We’re currently trialling new coach services to give customers better connections between regional towns and cities. These include new services between Bathurst, Organie, Dubbo, Parkes, and Tamworth, Dubbo and Port Macquarie, as well as Bourke and Brewarrina to Dubbo. This is to help regional communities connect to work, medical appointments and shops, as well as with family and friends in surrounding regional areas.