Dubbo Regional Council has no "legislative or regulatory powers" to prevent the River Street bridge from going ahead, according to a new report.
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The New Dubbo Bridge Project, also known as the River Street bridge, was one of the items on the agenda at Thursday night's council meeting.
One of the recommendations of the report, written by council's director infrastructure Steven Colliver, says council acknowledges the project will go ahead.
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However, councillor Josh Black, who admitted he had not been a fan of the bridge from the start, also wants a ring road to be pursued.
He moved an amendment to the recommended motion on Thursday night for council to recognise the significant community demand for a western bypass distributor road, that could be used as a heavy freight road. He also wants council to seek $150,000 government funding to develop a business case for the bypass.
Cr Black said it seemed "everyone else gets a bypass but Dubbo".
He said the business case would help council start planning for the future.
Councillor Vicki Etheridge also spoke in support of the bypass.
"Just because we're getting the river street bridge doesn't mean we should give up on fighting for the bypass," she said.
"This bypass is critical for our growth and development in the future. I agree very wholeheartedly we need to keep the pressure on [the government], especially with elections coming up."
...it is logical for council's strategy to recognise the new bridge...
- Council's director infrastructure Steven Colliver
The River Street bridge was first announced in 2015, however the alignment wasn't confirmed until 2017.
In September 2019, council stated it was opposed to the bridge's construction. The councillors at the time started the process to try and stop the bridge, based on feedback from the community. However, in his report, Mr Colliver is calling for that attitude to change.
"Given the bridge is being delivered by the NSW government irrespective of the resolution of council, council has the opportunity to obtain greater community benefits from this investment.
"It is logical for council's strategy to recognise the new bridge and its proposed alignment."
Mr Colliver said there were numerous benefits the project would bring to the Dubbo community, such as improved connectivity and upgrades to existing council infrastructure like the Whylandra and Thompson Street intersection.
Mr Colliver's recommendations also call for council to continue to seek improvements in infrastructure and roads directly impacted by the River Street bridge, and for the organisation to work with Transport for NSW to obtain grant funding for a shared pathway across the Macquarie River, north of the Serisier Bridge.
The project is currently valued at $201.9 million. It covers the cost of the bridge and the associated road an reconstruction works.
The tender for the construction is expected to be advertised in April.