The Heritage Council of NSW have recommended that the Manilla Railway Viaduct and Underbridge be listed on the NSW Heritage register in a major win for the Manilla community who have been fighting to preserve their rail history.

Member for Tamworth and Shadow Minister for the Arts and Heritage Kevin Anderson MP said the recommendation was deserved, given the significance of the 500-metre-long structure.

“The Manilla Viaduct is an iconic piece of our rail history and the community have been fighting to ensure its preservation for some time and to repurpose the viaduct to become an iconic walkway around the city,” Mr Anderson said.

“Thanks to the hard work of a committed group of locals, the NSW Heritage Council have made a recommendation to list the viaduct on the NSW Heritage Register, which would afford it further protections under law.

“This is an outstanding result, and I hope the Minister for Heritage adopts the recommendation.

The State Heritage Register Committee wrote in their recommendation that the viaduct “satisfied more than one of the approved criteria for determining whether an item is of State heritage significance, being criteria (a), (b), (c), and (f).”

“It is significant that the Heritage Council of NSW have recognised the viaducts significance in terms of its rarity, its significance to the state’s history, and it’s technical achievement,” Mr Anderson added.

“This gives merit to what we have been saying for some time – the Manilla Viaduct is an iconic part of our state’s rail history and deserves to be preserved.

“I’m hoping the Minister to adopts the recommendation of the Heritage Council of NSW and gives the community confidence that their Viaduct will be preserved.”