Light at the end of rail trail tunnel?

The iconic tunnel at Tunnel is part of the proposed new Rail Trail from Scottsdale to Lilydale, which has been the subject of a new business case, released by the council for a 28-day public submission process.

July 24 2024

By Rachel Williams

A grand opening in February 2026 has been earmarked for the Scottsdale to Lilydale section of the North East Rail Trail, which the Dorset Council plans to pursue despite a significant increase in construction costs and risks with funding.

And, those opposed to the development are vowing to continue the fight against it, 10 years since the concept was first mooted.

Commissioner Andrew Wardlaw agreed to General Manager John Marik’s recommendation at Monday’s Council meeting, to continue planning for the controversial project, which has risen in costs to $4.28m.

A new round of public consultation will take place on a revised business case over the next 28 days.

The new modelling was requested by Commissioner Wardlaw when he was appointed, following the suspension of elected councillors by the Minister for Local Government last August.

Initially, the project was set to cost $2.94m for a trail from Scottsdale to Launceston but a compromise was later made for the Lilydale to Launceston section to be retained for heritage rail enthusiasts.

It will now cost $4.28 million for an unsealed trail from Scottsdale to Lilydale, with an extra $1.6m in maintenances over a decade, the business case states.

Council was given a Federal Government grant of $1.47 million in 2015 for the project and that needs to be spent before March 1, 2026. But Council needs to find an extra $2.8m to fund a budgeted financial shortfall if the project is to proceed.

“I think it is a robust business case ... but there are a few barriers including how we are going to fund the shortfall because I am pretty confident ratepayers won’t want to,” Commissioner Wardlaw said.

Mr Marik said Council had identified potential funding opportunities and revenue streams to supplement the project shortfall and support operational/maintenance costs of the trail, with a view to progressing negotiations.

“Rightly or wrongly, the project has been adopted by Council and is part of our Priority Projects and …it’s our job as staff to deliver the project,” Mr Marik said.

He said the project had a “genuine potential to have a transformative impact on the North-East region, opening up considerable economic and social investment opportunities for the community by providing the longest rail trail in Tasmania”. 

Despite increased costs, Mr Marik said the business case was “stronger than ever” with estimates of a $30m injection into the region by trail users during its first decade of operation.

“The revised business case estimates $42.21m of total benefits being generated by the project into the regional economy of Dorset and City of Launceston over 10 years,” he said.

The report outlines an increase in opportunities for employment through increased demand on service industries such as bike hire, visitor-stay accommodation, hospitality enterprises, and shuttle operations, with an estimated creation of 25 jobs.

“Fundamentally the project will provide significant infrastructure and connect our smaller outlying communities via access to an off-road trail for walking, cycling, or running,” he said.

It was revealed many costs in the previous budget had been assumed but a more thorough investigation has led to the increased budget, with lighting infrastructure in the iconic 700m tunnel at Tunnel and increased support work for bridges among the added costs.

The new budget does not allow for the cost recovery of steel, which the Council may get approval from the Minister to salvage and sell once removed.

“We’ve taken a worse-case scenario that we won’t get the approval,” Mr Marik said.

During Public Question Time, Bridport’s Jeff Jennings queried how the report concluded figures of 21,469 total users a year, growing to around 39,500 users by year 10, “because they seemed quite high”.

Mr Marik said the business case was prepared by highly respected consultants TRC Tourism.

“Whether its 100 per cent, 75 per cent or 50 per cent right, it’s still really positive,” Mr Marik said.

Wendy McLennan asked whether council would look at “any other value proposition” and whether there was better use for the money in the community rather than recreation.

“Who is pushing this? Seventy per cent of people didn’t want it in the last review,” she said. 

Opponent Paul Cabalzar, from Turners Marsh said he had already spent tens of thousands on his quest for passenger train revival  – with court appeals and the purchase of three trains, including two from Burnie City Council when Commissioner Wardlaw was General Manager there – a fact that was later added as a declaration of interest by the Commissioner.

Mr Cabalzar said he, other train enthusiasts and many farmers along the line were ready to fight the proposal again.

The railway has not been in use for passenger trains since 1978.