Highway upgrades and better public transport are among priorities for candidates

The Western Advocate this week approached candidates to ask them about their plans for transport, including major roads, rail and public transport options, should they be elected.

Mr Toole, who represents the Nationals, was the only one to point to clear funding commitments that would benefit the Bathurst electorate when it comes to major roads.

He said a NSW Liberal and Nationals government would be committed to the $4.5 billion upgrade to the Great Western Highway, one of two key roads linking Bathurst and the surrounds to Sydney.

The upgrade has been in the news this week after NSW Opposition leader Chris Minns said Labor, if elected, would redirect $1.1 billion that had been allocated in the state budget for the proposed Great Western Highway tunnel.

Mr Toole - who provided answers to the Advocate's questions about transport earlier in the week, before Mr Minns' announcement about Labor's plans for the $1.1 billion in tunnel funding - pointed to progress on the overall highway upgrade.

"Contracts for major works to begin in Medlow Bath and Little Hartley have been signed, which will transform and improve local, tourist and freight travel between Sydney and the Central West," Mr Toole said.

"A $73 million investment is continuing the delivery of widening of the road from Kelso to Raglan.

"We will invest a further $18.5 million for safety upgrades at Kirkconnell. We are committed to doing further safety upgrades, overtaking lanes between Bathurst and Lithgow."

Kay Nankervis from the Greens, who was the only other candidate to provide responses to the Advocate's questions, was not as eager to spend more money on roads.

She said the Greens query the recent road funding announcements from Mr Toole, when calls for pay increases for nurses, paramedics, other health workers and teachers are "falling on deaf ears".

"That said, any major road networks and construction going forward must be part of an integrated plan to connect all centres in the seat of Bathurst with each other, with Sydney and, most strategically, with the airport under construction at Badgerys Creek," she said.

"How can the lives of Bathurst people be improved with the operation of that airport, what do we know about the routes it will cover and the aviation role it will play, if any, for regional people, and how is road and rail transport being built to enable the second airport at the foot of the mountains to serve the bush?"

Road travel to Sydney continues to be a major concern for Bathurst people.

Just last week, both the Great Western Highway and Bells Line of Road were closed in both directions due to accidents, and in recent years road and rail access to Sydney has been severed due to natural disasters.

Ms Nankervis said the Greens' climate policies, if adopted, could reduce these instances.

"We have climate change policies aimed at preventing the kinds of weather events responsible for road slips and catastrophic fires," she said.

"As for traffic accidents, the less volume of cars and big trucks on the road the better to minimise those sorts of events."

READ MORE: Bathurst election candidates address the issue of roads in the region

Meanwhile, Mr Toole said the investments in both the Great Western Highway and Bells Line of Road should also lead to less traffic disruption in the event of accidents.

"The upgrades to the Great Western Highway will expand the road to two lanes, decreasing the need to cut off travellers when an accident occurs," he said.

"The Bells Line of Road will receive upgrades worth $100 million to construct more overtaking lanes and safety upgrades."

But transport is about more than just smooth travel for cars.

Public transport options need to be considered, and Ms Nankervis, if elected, said she would be pushing for improvements to and greater use of public transport in the electorate.

"We, the Greens, say all ground-based public transport should be free - to encourage people to leave their cars at home. This policy also would make public transport more affordable for those people in Bathurst who already use it the most: pensioners, students, people on low incomes and people with disabilities which prevent them from driving," she said.

"Encouraging more people to use public transport rather than private cars has obvious environmental advantages, too. Free, frequent and reliable public transport would take pressure off families, cut congestion and transform how we move around in our state.

"In Bathurst itself, we would campaign to encourage more local people to use the public transport already on offer, including buses. We would back free bus services throughout the seat of Bathurst linking villages and cities as well as providing regular services within major regional centres."

Ms Nankervis did not say how free public transport could be funded by the government.

The Greens also want a moratorium on private toll roads linking the bush to Sydney, which would cut costs on people in the regions needing to go to capital cities by car, and Ms Nankervis said the party also wants to remove barriers that stop people "walking, wheeling or cycling" to their destinations.

"We will introduce requirements for quality paths to connect urban spaces, including kerbs, ramps and platforms, enabling everyone to move through our public spaces safely, including pedestrians, bicyclists, and those with wheeled mobility aids and families with prams," she said.

Regarding public transport, Mr Toole pointed to initiatives introduced by the current government to improve the options in Bathurst.

"The NSW Liberal and Nationals Government have added more than 622 bus services in Bathurst," he said.

"We are also investing in real-time tracking on bus services so passengers spend less time waiting at the bus stop and more time at their destination. We are committed to trialling contactless payments starting in Bathurst."

He also mentioned the NSW Regional Seniors and Regional Apprentice and Trainee Transport cards, which he said are making travel more accessible and affordable for eligible people.

Independent candidate for the Bathurst electorate, Martin Ticehurst, was also approached by the Western Advocate to respond to questions about transport, but was unable to provide responses due to work commitments.

Labor candidate Cameron Shaw did not provide responses to the questions prior to publication.

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