RDA Illawarra, Illawarra Business Chamber and Wollongong City Council collaborated on the regional response to the Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport References Committee inquiry. The response identifies a range of key issues facing Wollongong as the regional capital and key economic centre for the broader Illawarra region.

The submission also aims to highlight some of the opportunities that the Senate inquiry provides to facilitate the development of a consistent definition around ‘regional capitals/centres’.

RDA Illawarra made a submission in response to The 'Our Cities' Discussion Paper. RDA Illawarra's vision in the submission was for a sustainable region with cities and regional centres that offer higher quality of life, socially, economically, and environmentally, through high levels of employment with a highly skilled, adaptable, productive and inclusive community operating in a diverse, vibrant and growing economy.

The submission highlights a range of challenges and opportunities in the region.

A Working Group was established by RDA Illawarra to gather evidence for a strategic direction on how the Illawarra could be part of a High Speed Rail network between Brisbane and Melbourne.

The Working Group consulted with key organisations in the Illawarra, and with the local community to determine the level of need for, and local support for, the inclusion of the Illawarra in a High Speed Rail network.

RDA Illawarra concluded that a case could be made for the inclusion of the area with two viable opportunities:

• Transit point in the Southern Sydney area, with a Park and Ride facility for Illawarra residents; or
• Upgrade the existing Unanderra - Moss Vale rail link to facilitate a connection to a possible high speed link along the Hume Highway corridor