Bicycle Network: Regional Routes

Added lustre on Bright trail

25 July 2011. The Murray to Mountains trail has a new extension with a 6km asphalt link out to Wandiligong.

The $580,000 addition provides an attractive new xploration for visitors to Bright, suiting all trail suits all users, riders and hikers included

The trail is additionally expected to improve access for active travel for students at Bright P-12 College.

Improving infrastructure to enable riding is one of the key factors that supports the Ride2School program in helping get kids active and riding to school.

Supportive government bodies can have a big impact by providing facilities that improve access around school areas that make riding a more likely pursuit.

Counting down to the launch of the Murray to Mountains satellite trail

11 August 2009. Construction is well underway on the Wahgunyah to Rutherglen Rail Trail, near Wangaratta and the Murray to Mountains Rail Trail.

The 9km path is expected to be completed in October, in time for summer.

It appears this this new Trail could form part of an extension of the Murray to Mountains Rail Trail, which would eventually bridge the gap between Wangaratta and the Murray River.

Gourmet trail leaves hungry feeling

20 May 2009. The City of Wangaratta has announced a $600,000 trail loop extension of the Murray to Mountains Rail Trail to the Milawa gourmet region, a great idea which appears to have been severely compromised.

The City of Wangaratta will build a 9.3km sealed off-road path from Wangaratta to Oxley.

Trail users will travel from Oxley to Milawa along an older section of existing path that is not being upgraded as part of this project, and from there will be expected to ride the rest of the way to Everton by road.

Riders who had expected the loop to be an "extension" of the Murray to Mountains Trail may feel aggrieved to suddenly find themselves riding on the road.

The on-road section from Milawa to Everton ignores the car-free aspect of Rail Trails that is so important to riders.

A significant factor in the Rail Trails identity and success is their reputation of being car-free. This reputation is threatened if the car-free standard is eroded.

For a Rail Trail widely considered to be the best in Australia, and one of the most well-known and widely used, this project does a disservice to the Trail as a whole and lets down users, residents and the other local Councils who share ownership of the Trail with the City of Wangaratta.

Certainly the new path will help riders and Wangaratta residents access the Milawa Gourmet Region, but it is not a proper trail loop, thus restricting the tourism benefits that could have resulted.

This is a missed opportunity. Riders, and the region, expected better.

Rutherglen to Wahgunyah link funded by State Government

Oct 06 The Minister for State and Regional Development, John Brumby, has announced $500,000 to build a high quality walking and riding trail from Rutherglen to Wahgunyah on the Murray River. This section of Murray to Mountains Rail Trail will provide an additional tourism asset to this established and very popular region. Click here to read the Minister's press release.

Trail extension in Bright

Jun 05 Alpine Shire Council has allocated $20,000 in the 2005/06 budget for a 400m extension on the rail trail.

The trail will be linked to the Bourke St car park to give riders access to town.