Just outside the flood-affected town of Condobolin, the rail line that helps connect Sydney to Perth is suspended mid-air.
The hanging track is warped, dropping and rising like a carnival ride. The ballast beneath has been washed away, testament to the power of the floods that have devastated the central west.
“I wouldn’t be game to drive a train over it anytime soon,” says a local wheat and canola farmer, Graham McDonald.
Running parallel to the track is Henry Parkes Way, the main road connecting the region’s farmers with the hubs of Parkes and Forbes.
Potholes and damage pockmark the bitumen. Cars have to slow to a crawl to navigate parts of the 100km/h road, and many of the dirt roads that connect it to properties to the north and south are either closed entirely or extensively damaged.
The situation is replicated all over the south-east of the country, particularly in New South Wales and Victoria, where flooding and heavy rains have caused immense damage to infrastructure critical to rural Australia.
In NSW alone, the government estimates a staggering 10,000 kilometres of road have been affected by flood and rain damage, an early estimate only expected to worsen.
Many of the state’s roads are still underwater, making it difficult for crews to properly assess the damage.
The state government is warning of a “mammoth task” ahead to repair damaged roads and reconnect the state’s road network. Even with the deployment of 200 extra staff and heavy machinery to support existing council crews, the government is warning repairs to roads will take “many months”.
The rail network is similarly affected.
The Australian Rail Track Corporation said it is still conducting aerial surveys to get a proper understanding of the damage.
“ARTC track inspections and repairs can only commence once water levels in the rail corridor recede significantly, and the duration of repairs will be dependent on the damage sustained,” a spokesperson said. “It’s too early to determine the cost of the repairs.”
What started out as a sinkhole…
— VICSES News (@vicsesnews) November 15, 2022
Today’s reminder to take care when driving through flood-impacted areas. Never enter floodwater - you never know what’s lurking beneath.
🎥 Gooramadda Road, Rutherglen, courtesy of Indigo Shire Council pic.twitter.com/Xta0ZY3ZRJ
The Broken Hill line servicing the western parts of the state is expected to remain closed until at least the end of the year.
For farmer Peter Wiggins, just outside Condobolin, the damage to the Broken Hill line and local roads undermines his ability to move goods from his properties.
The damage has left some of the most productive areas of the state inaccessible to harvesting machinery – just as they prepare for harvest time in coming weeks.
Farmers who are able to harvest are, in many cases, unable to move grain off their farm and are now attempting to work out how to store large volumes on their properties until roads are repaired.
“It’s going to cause nothing but chaos,” Wiggins says. “And there’ll be more trucks on the road, more damage to the road.”
The National Farmers Federation has warned rebuilding road and rail infrastructure to reconnect farms to their customers will take “months, years, and many billions of dollars”.
NFF chief executive, Tony Mahar, said the damage was “catastrophic” and required repairs “of a magnitude we have not seen before”.
“At the moment we don’t have confidence that the government is aware of the scale of the massive crisis farmers and regional communities are facing,” Mahar said. “We’ve seen the absolute obliteration of so many arterial roads and rail lines across the country.”
The problem will also be felt in the cities. The damage has compromised supply chains that cities rely on.
Australia Post has warned of two-week delays to deliveries due to the damage to major rail links – including the Sydney-to-Perth corridor, which includes the damaged Broken Hill line – and the associated freight backlogs.
The Australian Logistics Council says supply chain disruptions can lead to shortages of goods, commodities and equipment, and that the damage to road and rail can cause the overloading of ports and other infrastructure.
The longer trips forced by damaged roads increases fuel usage, costs, and emissions, and causes accidents and blockages.
“This flows on to a wide range of products and services which all push up the cost of living,” a council spokesperson said.
Rail freight is particularly vulnerable to severe weather, forcing rail freight to shift to the road when lines are damaged.
“Significant weather events in Australia are bringing to light the lack of redundancy in the infrastructure as well as the importance of an interconnected network of modes to better handle overflows from disruptions,” the spokesperson said.
Damage leaves vast repair bills
Since 14 September, a staggering 75 local government areas have been declared disaster zones due to flooding and heavy rain. The number grows larger still when counting the floods in August and June.
Many of those councils are now grappling with enormous road repair bills.
Dubbo regional council alone has warned rain and flooding has caused a $40m blowout to its road and maintenance budget, according to the Daily Liberal.
The state government has boosted its contribution to the road budget, including $50m announced in October to help regional and rural councils fix potholes. It also announced earlier this month it would fast-track an additional $30m in emergency road repair funding for councils.
Moulamein-Barham Road starting to break up.
— Jeremy Morton 🌾🐑🚜🐂 (@Jeremy_Morton_) November 20, 2022
Just had to get into town to pick up prescription medication 💊 @Mark_Butler_MP @BradHazzard @sussanley @helendalton22 @AlboMP pic.twitter.com/hmNhS0Olyc
But the assistance, in the words of Cessnock local mayor, Jay Suvaal, is a “literal drop in the pothole”.
Earlier this month, Local Government NSW estimated successive floods and torrential rain events had caused a staggering $2.5bn in road damage.
The body has declared a statewide roads emergency – something supported unanimously by NSW mayors and councillors.
LGNSW president Cr Darriea Turley said the damage had caused a collapse of the local and regional road network. She said the dire situation would wreak havoc on harvest time and on Christmas travel.
“In the coming weeks, close to $4bn worth of crops will need to be harvested and transported, yet harvesting machinery is unable to access some of the most productive regions in our state,” Turley said.
“The wider rural communities supporting Australia’s food bowl are on their knees, waiting for the network to be repaired.”
“Meanwhile, families travelling during the upcoming summer holidays will find their trips to visit family and friends severely disrupted unless councils get the support we need to rebuild the road network.
Turley is calling for $1.1bn in extra funding for a program to fix local roads and country bridges and new funding to give councils plant machinery and skilled workers.
“NSW communities are facing an unprecedented disaster which requires an unprecedented response,” Turley said.
Mahar says the problem can only be solved by a response coordinated across federal, state and local government, which is driven by the commonwealth. He says the government has indicated it recognises the need for a sustained response.
“That’s certainly the message we’ve been given and it will be important this continues to be backed up with funding,” he said.
“We can’t just be lumped with decimated roads once the water recedes and the news cameras leave town.”
