Narromine to Narrabri

The Narromine to Narrabri section of the Inland Rail project consists of approximately 306 km of new single track rail line. It is the longest project within Inland Rail, and includes:

• a new single track standard gauge railway with crossing loops
• bridges over rivers, watercourses, floodplains and roads
• level crossings and road realignments
• new rail connections and possible future connections with existing rail lines
• ancillary infrastructure to support the operation of the proposal
• ancillary work and facilities to support the construction of the proposal, including borrow pits, construction compounds and temporary workforce accommodation.

The Minister for Planning and Public Spaces has declared the proposal as critical state significant infrastructure.

The construction and operation of the track is crucial to delivering fast and reliable freight rail service between Melbourne and Brisbane.

View the approval

Consultation and feedback

The Environmental Impact Statement, including investigations and field studies was on public exhibition from 8 December 2020 until 7 February 2021.

The department welcomed feedback from the community, government agencies and other stakeholders during public exhibition. Your feedback helped us better understand the opinions and concerns of the community, which informed our assessment of the project.

The project responded to submissions received in a Response to Submissions Report and prepared a Preferred Infrastructure Report.

The Minister for Planning approved the Narromine to Narrabri project in February 2023.

What happens next

The Commonwealth Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water has the Narromine to Narrabri project to be a controlled action under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. The project is currently being assessed by the federal government.