Voice of Byron

BYRON SHIRE Councillor, Paul Spooner, has proven true the old adage, “It ain’t over until the fat lady sings.”

When the recent court case over using Butler Street for the town’s new bypass was won by Council, many Voice of Byron readers thought that would be the end of the matter, despite the proposed bypass route passing through sensitive wetlands.

But Cr Spooner has thrown a spanner in the works.

In a Notice of Motion which has been welcomed by many Byron Bay residents, Cr Spooner says he will move:

1. That Council provide an updated estimate for the full construction costs of the proposed Byron Bay bypass;
2. That Council provide an estimate for the full construction costs of a roadway within the rail
   corridor from Lawson Street to Browning Street Byron Bay; and
3. That Council identify the available sources of funds to construct the Byron Bay bypass.

To support his Notice of Motion, Cr Spooner quotes from a letter received by Tamara Smith MP written on behalf of the NSW Minister for Transport and Infrastructure that stated the following:

“…if Byron Shire Council, the relevant road authority, wishes to propose the construction of a road within a specific section of the rail corridor in the vicinity of Byron Bay, the NSW Government would be happy to consider its proposal in further detail.”

This letter provides confirmation from the NSW Government that the unused rail corridor within Byron Bay could be used as a roadway.

“It would seem both prudent and financially sensible for Council to be fully informed of the relevant costs associated with the two viable options now possible for constructing a bypass around the Byron Bay CBD,” said Cr Spooner.

Cr Spooner’s concerns are in line with another view recently expressed in Voice of Byron by former Byron Shire Councillor Mike Watterson – that Council would be foolish to spend $250,000 on a rail corridor usage study until it is known for certain who will own various tracts of land along the corridor.

Mike drew attention to the new committee formed by the NSW State Government to examine the possibility of selling off railway land throughout the state.

“The NSW Government could negotiate, and may well be negotiating, behind-the-scenes sales of portions of our railway land to private concerns,” says Mike.

“If that happens, as it already has in Victoria, there is no point in wasting Council money on studies and no point in dreaming about the other visions Voice of Byron readers have expressed.”