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A new rail trail? Yass please!

The Yass Rail Trail has received its first pot of funds from the NSW Government, the first step towards making the rail trail a reality.

The $220,000 in funding, provided to Yass Valley Council as part of the Get NSW Active program in 2022/23, will be used to plan and design the old tramway corridor into a publicly accessible rail trail.

The 4.5km would run between Yass Junction railway station and the Yass township in southern New South Wales, approximately 280km southwest of Sydney.

This new funding is yet another victory for the provision of rideable rails trails in New South Wales.

Last month, the Get NSW Active program also designated $770,000 in funding for the Pipitta Rail Trail in Sydney. There has also been significant progress on the Northern Rivers Rail Trail in northern New South Wales, which is expected to open in 2023.

This steady rollout of rail trails coincides with a number of wins at the state level. The new Transport Administration Amendment (Rail Trails) Bill 2022 will cut a lot red tape with building rail trails across the state.

The recently released NSW Government Rail Trails Framework will also guide rail trail planning and development by setting out proposal and approval processes, the criteria for determining the suitability of new rail trails.

The Yass Tramway originally comprised ten stations, and was operational between 1892 and 1988.

For further information about the Pippita Rail Trail, be sure to check out the Rail Trails Australia website.

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