Council to hold a community meeting to discuss the proposed path

Residents on Campbell Road in Calala and King George V Avenue in Tamworth were notified of the idea for the new pathway via a letter from council.

A Tamworth Regional Council spokesperson said the project was at a "very early stage" and council would hold initial community meetings with "directly affected residents" on Saturday, July 29.

"Council is consulting with nearby residents about the proposed project as they will be most closely affected if it proceeds and deserve to have their opinions heard before council communicates with the wider community," the spokesperson said.

"Out of respect to these residents, council will be waiting until these meetings have occurred before providing further comment on the proposed project."

Many Calala residents have expressed support for the proposal, saying the need to bring the suburb closer to the CBD has been a long-standing issue.

"I think it's a very good step forward and I thank council," Calala resident Jim Booth told the Leader.

The new path would be 3.7 kilometres long and allow pedestrians and cyclists to reach King George V Avenue from Campbell Road.

"I think Campbell Road used to be an operational road link many, many years ago but got closed. When the actual tar version was constructed it was too narrow to be a full road so a bike path is a good start," Mr Booth said.

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If constructed, the council spokesperson said the pedestrian and cycle trail would eventually connect to existing footpaths to create a 14.7 kilometre loop from Calala to Jewry Street Bridge.

Council's previous attempts to connect motorists in Calala to the CBD became the subject of controversy in 2016 and 2020, as residents of King George V Avenue fought to keep vehicle traffic away from its heritage-listed trees.

Despite the new proposal focusing on bikes and pedestrians instead of cars, it has already received push back online.

"Why not just fix up and raise Scotts Road above flood level at 1/4 of the cost, leave King George Ave alone," one resident said on Facebook.

Mr Booth said he understands the avenue residents' concerns and also wants to protect the street's "very beautiful trees," but he also said the growing needs of Calala would require a solution to its travel woes regardless.

"The time will come when Calala Lane can't carry the traffic on it," he said.

Mr Booth used to chair the council's volunteer committee for Calala and said the suburb's fast development had left residents demanding a connection to the CBD for decades.

"I've lived in Calala for more than 22 years and the conversation about a road to the CBD has gone back further than me," he said.

Mr Booth said when he was on the committee another proposal to link Calala Lane to Scotts Road was discussed as a cheaper alternative which would also avoid conflict with residents of King George V Avenue, but that this idea was likely not on the cards.

"You can see Scotts Road from many parts along Calala and it's straight across, but that's entering the national highway and the federal authorities are never too happy about extra connections or roundabouts or all of that," Mr Booth said.

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