{"id":196479,"date":"2017-11-22T17:15:52","date_gmt":"2017-11-22T07:15:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=196479"},"modified":"2020-08-10T14:31:11","modified_gmt":"2020-08-10T04:31:11","slug":"rail-trail-could-extend-to-theebine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2017\/11\/22\/rail-trail-could-extend-to-theebine\/","title":{"rendered":"Rail Trail Could Extend To Theebine"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Gympie Mayor Mick Curran and South Burnett Mayor Keith Campbell at the official opening of the Kilkivan to Kingaroy Rail Trail … if Labor gets re-elected at Saturday’s poll, the party has promised to extend the trail to Theebine<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

November 23, 2017<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Kilkivan-Kingaroy Rail Trail could be extended to Theebine if the Labor Party is re-elected on Saturday.<\/p>\n

On Wednesday, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced a re-elected Palaszczuk Government would commit $14 million over four years to help build walking, cycling and horse-riding trails on disused rail corridors.<\/p>\n

The Kilkivan-Theebine section was identified as one of 16 projects the rail trail program would be interested in funding.<\/strong><\/p>\n

“Rail trails support active, healthy lifestyles, contribute to environmental preservation and management and boost active tourism, especially in our regions,” the Premier said.<\/p>\n

“My government is committed to tourism jobs in regional Queensland and this initiative shows this commitment will continue into a second term.<\/p>\n

“We have an extensive network of disused railway corridors across Queensland and we want to retain them for future transport use.<\/p>\n

“That\u2019s why we would encourage local governments to apply for this funding.”<\/p>\n

Main Roads and Road Safety Minister Mark Bailey said a re-elected Palaszczuk Government would partner with local councils to develop rail trails in their communities.<\/strong><\/p>\n

“Councils will be able to use the funding to plan, design and construct rail trails,” Mr Bailey said.<\/p>\n

“Queensland is enjoying a tourism boom and this program will attract more active tourists and allow them to enjoy our beautiful climate and pristine landscapes.”<\/p>\n

Mr Bailey said the Brisbane Valley Rail Trail (BVRT) was a great example of how a disused rail corridor had been transformed for the community.<\/p>\n

“The Palaszczuk Government has been a strong supporter of the development of the BVRT over many years,” Mr Bailey said.<\/p>\n

“We\u2019ve previously allocated $1.8 million dollars to contribute to the construction of the final section of the trail between Toogoolawah and Moore.<\/p>\n

“When completed, it will stretch about 160km between Yarraman and Wulkuraka in south-east Queensland.<\/p>\n

“The trail is already attracting significant numbers of visitors, events and, importantly, tourism dollars for communities along the route.”<\/p>\n

At the official opening of the Kilkivan-Kingaroy Rail Trail on September 25, Gympie Mayor Mick Curran told southburnett.com.au<\/strong> he was open to the idea of pushing the rail trail to Theebine.<\/p>\n

If the project proceeded, it would expand the existing trail from 88km to more than 140km in length.<\/p>\n