The campaign for a cycleway between Branxton and Greta has gained momentum, with Cessnock Council set to seek grant-funding opportunities for the project.
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The Branxton-Greta Business Chamber and the RSL sub-branches of each town have joined forces to advocate for the $2.5 million project.
The 4.5-kilometre cycleway would connect the towns via the New England Highway – from one war memorial rotunda to the other –with a Lone Pine tree planted for each of the 287 Branxton and Greta residents who served in World War I, and points of reflection dedicated to each military conflict and peacekeeping mission in which Australia has served.
At last Wednesday’s meeting, Cessnock Council supported a motion by councillor Melanie Dagg to include the cycleway project in its 2017-21 delivery plan and 2017-18 operational plan on the condition that grant funding can be secured for the project.
The council will investigate all avenues of grant funding to ensure the project is at the very least “shovel-ready” by the Armistice Day centenary on November 11, 2018.
Cr Dagg said the project will not only provide an important connection between the towns of Branxton and Greta.
“I think remembering our local brave soldiers is beautiful and poignant, and it will promote healthy living, attract tourism dollars and symbolise the link and connection between our towns,” she said.
Cr Dagg said the cycleway will allow people, particularly children, a safe means of travel.
“At the moment if a child from Greta wants to ride their bike to the pool or Miller Park, they simply can't do it even though they are only a few minutes away,” she said.
“Likewise if someone from Branxton wants to ride their skateboard or scooter to Greta's skatepark.
“It makes sense to allow safe passage and create these links so residents can access their community facilities no matter which end of the highway they live on.”
Cr Dagg said the cycleway has the potential – in decades to come – to link up to the Richmond Vale Rail Trail.
“The success of projects like the Fernleigh Track prove that this is the type of recreational infrastructure that people are now demanding from their councils and governments,” she said.
“Whilst that link is incredibly long term, it makes sense to start thinking about the possibilities now.”
Branxton-Greta Business Chamber president Brett Wild said he was pleased with the council’s support for the project, considering he and many other locals believe the area has been neglected since the opening of the Hunter Expressway.
The cycleway project itself has had a tough road so far, with applications for funding from the 2014 Resources for Regions program and the Hunter Infrastructure Investment Fund in 2015 knocked back.
But Mr Wild said they won’t give up the fight.
“The soldiers who attacked Gallipoli didn’t just give up, and to give up on those who didn’t give up would be a travesty,” he said.
“It’s not just a link to the past, but a bridge to the future.”
The business chamber will establish a trust that will raise money for the cycleway’s construction and its future maintenance.
Mr Wild will kick-start the fundraising campaign by donating 10 percent of the proceeds from a military memorabilia sale at Elderslie this weekend.
He also plans to set up a crowdfunding site.
“We don’t expect council to do all of the heavy lifting,” he said.
“We shouldn’t underestimate people’s willingness to give.”
