THE Bathurst Regional Council has pieced together a $70 million wish list of prospective improvements to the Mount Panorama Circuit, which is being presented to the federal government.

At the top of the list are the previously discussed safety upgrades, including lights at flag marshal points, additional animal fencing, and a full circuit re-pave.

Those top-level items have previously been knocked back via the Regional Precincts and Partnerships Program, while Motorsport Australia has been enlisted to assist in the funding fight.

At the lower end of the scale are items such as more permanent grandstand seating, plus a refresh of the pit complex, including the corporate suites.

“To be transparent, this list has no ceiling, so we’ve created everything we wish we could have into one big list, with a weighting system that prioritises safety over potentially functionality, or aesthetics, or crowd experience,” said Deputy Mayor Ben Fry to the Western Advocate.

“Definitely, crowd experience and tourism-centric projects are further down the list, and we’ll be approaching the relevant ministers for those as well at a later date, but safety has always been prioritised in compiling this list.

“Ratepayer funds do well in operating the motor racing events from council’s responsibilities, maintaining the circuit and upgrading it incrementally, but we really need taxpayer money to come back to the city in order to make those big investments, big-ticket items that will mean racing stays in Bathurst for decades and decades to come.

“We have met recently with Motorsport Australia as another important partner in the motor sport industry and, importantly, a regulator, about the operations of our circuit, and they are singing from the same hymn book.

“They totally understand that, as a local council operating Australia’s most famous circuit, we’re not in a position to fully fund a lot of those infrastructural changes that we need to see, especially around safety, and Motorsport Australia are the most concerned with safety in their operation and want to see every circuit around Australia be as safe as humanly possible.”

The next full circuit event at Mount Panorama is the Repco Bathurst 1000 from October 8-11.

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