Council
28 October, 2025
$50 million to be spent on footpaths
Wingecarribee Shire Council has adopted a new plan to guide spending on pedestrian infrastructure over the next decade.
Wingecarribee Shire Council has adopted a new plan to guide spending on pedestrian infrastructure over the next decade.
Council adopted a Pedestrian Access and Mobility Plan (PAMP) for Moss Vale, Bowral and Mittagong at its recent meeting.
The plan will help council identify and justify the most effective allocation of funding for the construction and maintenance of pedestrian infrastructure, delivering the greatest benefit to the community.
It will serve as a strategic guide for council over the next 10 years and according to staff will support the delivery of well-planned, cost-effective pedestrian infrastructure.
It is also expected to improve council’s chances of securing external grant funding for new pathways and other pedestrian connections.
Councillors were told the PAMP had been informed by detailed investigations into existing infrastructure, community demographics, pedestrian safety, priority walking routes and key community demonstrations.
Council also engaged with the community during preparation of the PAMP and received 14 submissions after placing the draft plan on public exhibition.
One submission described the PAMP as “an excellent, forward-thinking and much-needed initiative that promises to deliver wide-ranging social, environmental and economic benefits to the Southern Highlands community”.
By creating more walkable environments, it said the PAMP would foster casual interactions, neighbourly encounters and a greater sense of belonging.
“This is how vibrant, resilient communities are built.”
However, not everyone was as forthcoming with their praise.
One Mittagong resident described it as “fundamentally uninspiring” and said it contained nothing to indicate Wingecarribee Shire Council wanted to position itself as a leader in pedestrian accessibility.
The new plan was developed by Bitzois Consulting and replaces a PAMP dating back almost 25 years.
It identifies literally hundreds of pedestrian-related upgrades across the three towns with a focus on encouraging and increasing localised pedestrian activity.
Those upgrades – including paths, kerb ramps and crossing facilities – come with a total estimated price tag of more than $50 million.
More than 70 ‘higher priority’ projects have been identified in the PAMP with a combined price tag of more than $1 million.
The majority of projects identified as higher priority (53 of 71) are in Mittagong.
Read More: Southern Highlands