Jill Hall (Shortland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Last Friday was an exciting day for the people of Shortland. Stage 3 of the Fernleigh Track opened. This stage took the Fernleigh Track from Whitebridge to Redhead. There was $850,000 of federal money put in to enable this project to happen. The Fernleigh Track is a very historic track. It is an old railway line from Adamstown to Belmont that was closed in the 1970s. After its closure it lay idle for many years. The rail tracks rusted and a few walkers walked along it, but in effect it had no use whatsoever. The track goes through a very beautiful area and in the past it was a major transport corridor.

Now the people of Newcastle and Lake Macquarie can enjoy this fantastic pathway that goes as far as Redhead. It goes through some of the most beautiful scenery that you could imagine. It is a state-of-the-art bikeway and walkway. People with disabilities are able to walk along this path. This would not have happened without the foresight of a few people back in the 1970s. I remember when I was a Lake Macquarie councillor walking along this very rough rail track. I was there with Richard Face, the then minister for the Hunter, who played an enormous role in getting funding for the Fernleigh Track. He has been involved since the inception in seeing the track developed. I place on record my congratulations and, more appropriately, thanks to Richard.

John Jenkins, Gordon Hughes and Alan Shields were councillors on the Lake Macquarie council at that time. They were the inaugural members of the Fernleigh Track committee. The Fernleigh Track committee has on it people from Newcastle and Lake Macquarie council as well as community representatives. These people have worked tirelessly over the years to see that this fantastic cycleway/walkway is developed. It is a major tourist attraction and it is fast becoming a transport corridor. It would not have happened without the involvement of those people. I remember walking the track back in the mid to late nineties. You could see then what a beautiful environment it was, but you could also see that there needed to be a lot of work done to make it the transport corridor and the walking track it is today. It was through the vision of those that were involved that it actually happened.

Recently, under the national cycleways program, the minister has given $2 million to complete the cycleway. That will take it from Redhead to Belmont. It will be nearly 20 kilometres of cycleway. Contributing to the funds for this have been Newcastle council, Lake Macquarie council, the state government through a number of their departments, and the Australian government. The cycleway will benefit the community enormously, but the special aspect about it is that it is a whole-of-government approach and it has enormous support from the community. The community has been involved in the development of the plan and they have supported it. This Fernleigh Track is something of regional importance, state importance and national importance. It is unique; it is part of our history. I was very pleased to cycle Fernleigh Track after the opening last Friday. I would encourage all members to visit the Shortland electorate and either walk or cycle the Fernleigh Track. It is a wonderful experience.