The NSW Farmers' Association and the Country Women's Association of NSW have initiated legal action against the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) over its handling of the inland rail project. The groups have engaged law firm Holding Redlich to seek answers on hydrology modelling for the route, particularly between Narromine and Narrabri.
Danica Leys, CEO of the CWA of NSW, said the escalation was necessary after numerous unanswered questions from members. 'The ARTC needs to understand these are people asking very legitimate and very reasonable questions that stand to have their whole businesses incredibly disrupted and in some cases, made completely unviable,' she said.
The $10 billion, 1700-kilometre project aims to connect freight trains from Melbourne to Brisbane in under 24 hours. Construction of the Parkes to Narromine section is expected to be completed in late 2020, with the entire project scheduled for 2025. The project has been divided into 13 distinct sections.
ARTC CEO Richard Wankmuller stated that productive engagement with farmers has been ongoing since early 2018, including over 100 farmers in recent months. However, Adrian Lyons, chair of the NSW Farmers Inland Rail Taskforce, refuted this, calling for independent hydrological studies and better incorporation of local knowledge.
Ms Leys expressed hope to avoid court but did not rule it out. 'I don't think anyone including landholders want to end up in court, but if it comes down to it, it's something we'd explore,' she said.
