THE NSW Government has received the report it sought on a fast rail plan for the state and is chewing over its contents, according to Member for Bathurst Paul Toole.
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The report looks at four potential routes for fast rail in NSW, one of which is the "western corridor" from Lithgow to Parkes via Bathurst.
Mr Toole has been reluctant to predict the western corridor will be selected for an initial full fast rail investment, but has said previously that the NSW Government will also be looking at how times on existing lines can be improved through infrastructure spending.
"That might mean, because of constraints with freight and passenger trains, putting in more loops on the rail network," Mr Toole said last year.
"It also might mean, where there are bends, we actually straighten the line to reduce some travel times as well."
The fast rail report has come to the NSW Government from rail expert Andrew McNaughton, who was appointed by the government in late 2018 to lead an expert panel in developing a fair rail strategy for the state.
Professor McNaughton led a workshop session in Orange last August which focused on regional transport and economic growth and held one-on-one meetings in Bathurst, Orange and Dubbo with leaders representing organisations across the Central West and Orana.
Mr Toole said the government was now looking over the professor's report.
"It will then go to cabinet to discuss and will be released in the coming months for the public to view," he said.
Mr Toole said the long-term plan was for fast rail, but "sometimes there's other things you can do in the short to medium term to actually prepare for fast rail".
