Ray Fairweather, who served on Maitland City Council for 35 years, says the state government should work closely with Hunter Councils to ­provide better transport for the region.

He said plans would be disjointed and unproductive unless all councils in the Hunter worked as a team with the state government.

Mr Fairweather suggested the government should seriously consider forming a transport working group with Hunter Councils and could fund transport studies using mining royalties.

The mayor of Maitland, Cr Peter Blackmore, told the Mercury last week that he wanted to see better rail ­connections between Maitland and Newcastle Airport and with growing towns such as Lochinvar.

In a letter to the Mercury, Mr Fairweather said there should be a rail link between Maitland and the airport.

He also advocated more rail links, including light rail, between Maitland and surrounding towns.

“The plan should include an investigation into the possible use of existing rail infrastructure as a starting point, then the possibility of opening up closed rail infrastructure,” Mr Fairweather said.

“For example, the rail line to Cessnock and the many townships along that line, it also would provide a service to the fast expanding new residential townships like Gillieston Heights and Heddon Greta.”

Mr Fairweather noted there was not a rail link to newly populated areas such as Aberglasslyn, Oakhampton and Farley.

He suggested that light rail could link Paterson and Dungog to Aberglasslyn using the old Oakhampton railway station.

“I envisage Kurri Kurri will be developed as a major commercial and residential area in the future, mainly due to its location near a freeway and the possibility of this giving the nearby Hunter Economic Zone the impetus to proceed at a faster pace,” he said. 

“Light rail would be ideal to service the new town of Huntlee, near Branxton, with a population of 25,000.”