The State Government has announced a contract has been awarded to reopen the Great Western Highway at Victoria Pass. Construction will begin in July, with the highway expected to remain closed for at least another 12 months while repairs are carried out. The successful contractor will oversee the delivery of a new, more durable Mitchells…

With the H5N1 bird flu recently discovered in Western Australia, the New South Wales Government is increasing surveillance and boosting biosecurity capacity. In the event a case is detected in NSW, a State Coordination Centre has been established at the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development’s Orange Agricultural Institute to coordinate surveillance operations. Also…

Local police have located an 18-year-old girl who went missing in Bathurst on the weekend, after deploying the Geo Targeting SMS System on Saturday night. The teenager was last seen walking west in bushland in Kelso at 3:30pm, with the text message sent out to the public about seven hours later. Last night, New South…

Thousands of local followers of the ‘Bathurst Our Town’ Facebook group have been left searching for new places to ask and answer questions, after the moderators of the page decided to switch it to read-only mode last week. It comes after Facebook introduced anonymous posting, with moderators saying they were increasingly forced to deal with…

It’s National Refugee Week and financial literacy advocates are raising awareness of the challenges new arrivals face. The Central West is home to a growing migrant and refugee community, but living in a regional area can pose unique difficulties. Also on today’s Podcast New Years Eve fireworks will return to Bathurst at the end of…

It’s been 100 days since the Great Western Highway was first closed at Victoria Pass between Mount Victoria and Little Hartley, disrupting travel and impacting motorists, residents, and businesses. Also on todays podcast: Orange City Council invites the community to provide feedback on its draft Disability Inclusion Action Plan. And a simple idea aimed at…

Avian enthusiasts are set to head to Mount Panorama to have a sticky beak at the Bathurst Regional Avicultural Society’s annual Bird Show.  Also on today’s podcast: The Member for Bathurst is advocating for local farmers, as they report a rise in the number of feral pigs on their properties amid ongoing dry conditions. And…