What infrastructure upgrades are planned at Freycinet National Park?
The Freycinet National Park tourism infrastructure upgrades focus on improving visitor access, safety and experience in the short to medium term.
Planned works include:
New and upgraded facilities and amenities
Improvements to visitor service areas.
Upgrades to existing car parks, development of additional spaces and traffic management measures.
New signage, wayfinding and visitor information
Enhanced interpretation and vistor experiences
New and upgraded shared-use tracks, pathways and connections to support sustainable access.
Investigations into systems to improve management of car parks for high-demand areas, including the Wineglass Bay car park, supported by real time messaging to visitors around availability of car parks.
What are the expected timelines
Planning, investigations and design work are now commencing. Some lower-complexity works are expected to be delivered by December 2026. The full program of upgrades is expected to be completed by 2029.
What funding has been allocated to support these works?
The Tasmanian Government has confirmed that $8.9 million remains allocated to the Freycinet Visitor Gateway Project that will fund the delivery of the proposed works within the Park.
What has happened to the Federal or Grant funding that was allocated to the Visitor Gateway Project?
The Tasmanian Government is working with the Australian Government in relation to the existing allocation of funding to the Freycinet Visitor Gateway Project through the National Tourism Icons Program.
What data has informed this scope of works?
The new approach has been informed by updated visitor data, research and visitation projections, as well as preliminary investigations into existing infrastructure and capacity.
Visitor growth is occurring at a lower rate than projected in the Freycinet Master Plan 2019 with a review of visitor numbers confirming that annual visitation has not recovered to pre-COVID-19 levels. Peak visitation is largely concentrated during summer, Easter and some long weekends. Current visitation levels do not support delivery of a Visitor Gateway and shuttle service in the short to medium term.
These upgrades focus on addressing current visitor needs while supporting future planning to respond to changes in demand.
Will there be opportunities for local businesses to be involved?
Yes. The planned works will be procured through standard Tasmanian Government tender processes, creating opportunities for businesses in the region to participate in the delivery of the project.
What are the plans for a Visitor Gateway outside the national park?
A Visitor Gateway to deliver a new arrival point outside of the Freycinet National Park remains a sound future option. The project will be reconsidered when visitor demand and growth support its delivery. PWS will continue to monitor visitor numbers and trends to inform future decisions.
When delivered, the Visitor Gateway is proposed to be located on the site previously identified through detailed environmental and planning investigations and would be subject to statutory and planning approvals processing and would include further public consultation.
Will a shuttle service still be delivered?
A shuttle service remains a future option but is not proposed in the short to medium term. Any future shuttle service will be informed by visitation levels and demand and may be introduced in stages and with a reduced route.
There was a proposal to implement paid or car park booking systems to restrict visitor numbers. Is that going to be considered?
Investigations into systems to manage the capacity of high use car parks will also explore options to utilise booking or paid parking systems for consideration as part of future management of visitation numbers.
Will visitor numbers to the park be restricted?
Restricting visitor numbers to the Park during peak season requires careful consideration with any measures implemented needing to be applied to both locals and visitors. This could have an impact on the ability of the local community and Tasmanians to enjoy this iconic location and, therefore, would need to be carefully considered and involve consultation with the community and stakeholders.
Parks will be investigating and developing further strategies going forward to manage visitation levels which is expected to include a range of initiatives.
How can I stay up to date as the project progresses?
We will continue to keep community and stakeholders informed about the scope and timing of works. Regular project updates will be provided as planning is progressed and key milestones are achieved and will be available via the project webpage below.
Where required, future works will be subject to relevant statutory and planning approval processes and this will include opportunities for public consultation.
What other works are underway at Freycinet National Park?