Golden opportunity

The Hunter Economic Infrastructure Plan has identified several projects needed to enhance the freight corridor from the west to Newcastle, while The Golden Highway Strategic Corridor Report, developed by Regional Development Australia (RDA) Hunter and RDA Orana, identified the need for improvements to the Golden Highway to allow super B-double trucks easy access to the Port of Newcastle.

RDA Hunter chief executive Todd Williams said overall, the Port of Newcastle was only operating at about 50 per cent capacity while Australia's fastest growing regional airport, also at Newcastle, was at only 30pc capacity.

He said a lot of produce came from the Hunter region and through the Hunter from the west of the State.

The key problem, he said, was the busy roads which had several "choke points".

"In the Hunter we have key international gateways operating at limited capacity," Mr Williams said.

He said a lot of trucks used the Golden Highway coming in from the west, but rather than head into Newcastle, continued on to Sydney.

Ideally, he said if upgrades were made to the Golden Highway, this would allow super B-doubles to come from western NSW to use the Golden Highway, continue along the new Hunter Expressway and access the Port of Newcastle, enhancing productivity and efficiency in the distribution of goods, and creating more jobs for the Hunter.

There was a need for more overtaking lanes and the capacity for super B-doubles on the Golden Highway.

The projects identified in the Hunter Economic Infrastructure Plan included the upgrade of the Golden Highway through Denman, or a Denman bypass, an upgrade on the New England Highway from Belford to the Golden Highway, and bypasses of the New England Highway around both Singleton and Muswellbrook.

"All of the suggested projects in the Hunter infrastructure plan are not new," he said.

But, he said, the plan helped place them together in the overall context of improving productivity.

"It is really about making the case for an integrated connectivity," he said.

"There has been a positive response from industry and government.

Deputy Premier and Minister for Regional Infrastructure and Services Andrew Stoner said the strategic corridor report into the Golden Highway demonstrated "just the type of research that needed to be undertaken to have a chance at obtaining funding when there are many competing infrastructure needs across the State and nation".