Final NSW Section of Inland Rail Corridor Approved

The last 15km section of the Inland Rail project in New South Wales has been greenlit.

The state government approval will allow Phase 2 of the Narrabri to North Star route to proceed.

The approval covers Moree to Camurra North and completes the seven NSW sections of the 1700km Melbourne-to-Brisbane freight corridor.

Phase 2 is expected to create around 150 construction jobs and 50 ongoing roles, according to planning documents, however, detailed costings for this section have not been released.

Phase 1, covering 170km between Narrabri and North Star, is under construction.

The Inland Rail project has been under development for more than a decade and will provide a continuous inland freight route bypassing Sydney.

The Inland Rail project stretches from Melbourne through regional Victoria, inland NSW and Queensland to Brisbane.

The Commonwealth has committed $12 billion to the project, which is one of the biggest infrastructure programs in Australia and is expected to be completed later this decade.

The route is intended to carry longer, double-stacked trains and shift freight off highways, however, critics have questioned projected traffic volumes and regional economic benefits.

▲ An aerial view of the new Wangaratta Station in Victoria, redeveloped as part of the Inland Rail Beveridge-to-Albury section.

Planners predict the full corridor could reduce travel times for freight to under 24 hours for the entire route and improve supply chain efficiency.

Meanwhile, work in Victoria is progressing on the southern section between Beveridge and Albury, with major track and bridge upgrades under way and station improvements at locations including Benalla and Euroa.

In NSW, construction is advancing on the Illabo-to-Stockinbingal section, while upgrades between Albury and Illabo are preparing tracks, bridges, signals and level crossings.

Work on the Queensland sections of Inland Rail remains largely in the planning and approval phase—major track-laying work is yet to get under way.

The segment from the NSW-Queensland border to Gowrie Junction near Toowoomba is undergoing environmental impact assessment, and a revised draft Environmental Impact Statement was this year released for consultation.

Field work, including geotechnical and cultural heritage investigations along the corridor, is continuing in preparation for potential future construction in the state.