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The Central Coast is a peri-urban region lying on the
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
in eastern
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
. The region is situated north of
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
, and is filled with
subtropical The subtropical zones or subtropics are geographical zone, geographical and Köppen climate classification, climate zones immediately to the Northern Hemisphere, north and Southern Hemisphere, south of the tropics. Geographically part of the Ge ...
national parks, forests and also encompasses the major coastal waterways of Brisbane Water, Tuggerah Lakes and southern Lake Macquarie. The region's hinterland, which has fertile valleys, rural farmland and wineries, and also includes the Watagan Mountains. The Central Coast is known for its regional coastal towns like Terrigal, The Entrance, Ettalong Beach, Budgewoi and Bateau Bay with resorts and holiday parks, which feature many expansive beaches and lagoons with surfing and coastal tracks, as well as scenic views. Gosford is the main commercial hub and gateway. The Central Coast includes major localities, villages and towns such as Gosford, Wyong, Terrigal, Woy Woy and The Entrance. The area is the third-largest urban area in New South Wales and the ninth-largest urban area in Australia. Geographically, the Central Coast is generally considered to include the region bounded by the
Hawkesbury River The Hawkesbury River, or Hawkesbury-Nepean River (Dharug language, Dharug: Dyarubbin) is a river located northwest of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The Hawkesbury River and its associated main tributary, the Nepean River, almost encircle ...
in the south, the Watagan Mountains in the west and Lake Macquarie, lying on the
Sydney basin The Sydney Basin is an Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia, interim Australian bioregion and is both a structural entity and a depositional area, now preserved on the east coast of New South Wales, Australia and with some of its ...
.


History

The region has been inhabited for thousands of years by Aboriginal people. The local Kuringgai people were the first Aboriginal people to come in contact with British settlers. An Aboriginal man from the region named Bungaree became one of the most prominent people of the early settlement of New South Wales. He was one of the first Aboriginal people to learn English and befriended the early governors Phillip, King and Macquarie. He accompanied explorer
Matthew Flinders Captain (Royal Navy), Captain Matthew Flinders (16 March 1774 – 19 July 1814) was a British Royal Navy officer, navigator and cartographer who led the first littoral zone, inshore circumnavigate, circumnavigation of mainland Australia, then ...
in circumnavigating Australia. Macquarie later declared Bungaree "The King of the Broken Bay Tribes". In addition to Kuringgai-speaking people (referred to as the "Pittwater tribes" and "Broken Bay tribes" by early colonists), Awabakal lived around Lake Macquarie, and Darkinyung people lived inland, to the west of the Mooney Mooney Creek. The Kuringgai (Guriŋgai), Awaba and Darkinyung languages are related to each other, but are distinct from the Dharrug and Sydney languages that were spoken south of the Central Coast. Post-settlement disease, disruption and
war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...
greatly reduced the numbers of Aboriginal people. In 1811, the
Governor of New South Wales The governor of New South Wales is the representative of the monarch, King Charles III, in the state of New South Wales. In an analogous way to the governor-general of Australia, Governor-General of Australia at the national level, the governor ...
,
Lachlan Macquarie Major-general (United Kingdom), Major General Lachlan Macquarie, Companion of the Order of the Bath, CB (; ; 31 January 1762 – 1 July 1824) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator from Scotland. Macquarie served as the fifth Gove ...
, gave the first
land grant A land grant is a gift of real estate—land or its use privileges—made by a government or other authority as an incentive, means of enabling works, or as a reward for services to an individual, especially in return for military service. Grants ...
in the region to William Nash, a former marine of the
First Fleet The First Fleet were eleven British ships which transported a group of settlers to mainland Australia, marking the beginning of the History of Australia (1788–1850), European colonisation of Australia. It consisted of two Royal Navy vessel ...
. No further grants were made in the area until 1821.


Geography

The region is a network of towns that have been linked in recent years by expanding suburban development. The main urban cluster of the region surrounds the northern shore of Brisbane Water and includes the Coast's largest population centre, Gosford, stretching east to the retail centre of Erina. Other major commercial "centres" on the Coast are Wyong, Tuggerah, Lakehaven, The Entrance, Terrigal, Bateau Bay and Woy Woy. On 2 December 2005, the Central Coast was officially recognised as a stand-alone region rather than an extension of
Greater Sydney Greater Sydney is the most populous metropolitan area in Australia and Oceania. Located in the state of New South Wales, it encompasses the City of Sydney (the state capital), its neighbouring local government areas and surrounding regions. I ...
or the Hunter Valley, a few years after the Central Coast got its definition, it officially got recognised to be part of Regional NSW instead of Greater Sydney by the NSW Government.


Climate

The Central Coast has a
humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...
(
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
: Cfa), with warm humid summers and mild winters. Rainfall is spread fairly evenly throughout the year, but is slightly more frequent during autumn. Winter is the driest time, with often minimal to no rain.


Population

The
Australian Bureau of Statistics The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) is an List of Australian Government entities, Australian Government agency that collects and analyses statistics on economic, population, Natural environment, environmental, and social issues to advi ...
publishes population census data and regular population estimates on the Central Coast under a Significant Urban Area. In 2021, the estimated population of this region was 343,180, with population forecasts projecting it will grow by more than 20 per cent to 415,050 by 2035. The median age was 43, with an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population of 4.9%. The main countries of birth were Australia (78.9%), United Kingdom (4.6%), and New Zealand (1.7%). ABS currently includes the Central Coast region population wholly within
Greater Sydney Greater Sydney is the most populous metropolitan area in Australia and Oceania. Located in the state of New South Wales, it encompasses the City of Sydney (the state capital), its neighbouring local government areas and surrounding regions. I ...
which results in Greater Sydney's population being larger than that of Greater Melbourne, however the NSW government definition for the Central Coast region it has its own regional population definition as a stand alone region.


Education

The Central Coast has two campuses of the University of Newcastle located at Ourimbah and Gosford Hospital. There are three campuses of the Hunter Institute of TAFE located at Gosford, Wyong and Ourimbah along with multiple private colleges. The Central Coast has a large number of primary and secondary school institutions.


Culture


Media


Television

The Central Coast has four broadcast translators across the region, located at Bouddi (between Killcare & MacMasters Beach), Gosford and Wyong ( Forresters Beach), and Mount Sugarloaf (Newcastle). Due to the Central Coast being split between the Sydney (metro) and Northern NSW (regional) licence areas, these translators carry stations from both areas. In total eight television stations service the Central Coast: * ABC New South Wales ( ABN) * SBS New South Wales ( SBS) * Seven Sydney (
ATN ATN is the Sydney Flagship (broadcasting), flagship television station of the Seven Network in Australia. The licence, issued to a company named Amalgamated Television Services, a subsidiary of Fairfax Media, John Fairfax & Sons, was one of the ...
) *
Nine 9 (nine) is the natural number following and preceding . Evolution of the Hindu–Arabic digit Circa 300 BC, as part of the Brahmi numerals, various Indians wrote a digit 9 similar in shape to the modern closing question mark without the bot ...
Sydney ( TCN) * 10 Sydney ( TEN) * Seven Northern NSW ( NEN) *
Nine 9 (nine) is the natural number following and preceding . Evolution of the Hindu–Arabic digit Circa 300 BC, as part of the Brahmi numerals, various Indians wrote a digit 9 similar in shape to the modern closing question mark without the bot ...
Northern NSW ( NBN) * 10 Northern NSW ( NRN) –
Network 10 Network 10 (commonly known as the 10 Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Paramount Global's UK & Australia division and is one of the five national free-to-a ...
affiliate Each station broadcasts a primary channel and several multichannels. Of the three main networks, NBN produces a bulletin containing local, national and international news screening every night at 6:00pm on the
Nine Network Nine Network (stylised 9Network, and commonly known as Channel Nine or simply Nine) is an Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by parent company Nine Entertainment and is one of the five main free-to-air television ...
. Both
WIN Television WIN Television is an Australian television broadcasting, Australian television network owned and operated by WIN Corporation that is based in Wollongong, New South Wales. WIN commenced transmissions on 18 March 1962 as a single television stat ...
and the
Seven Network Seven Network (stylised 7Network, and commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is an Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, ...
produce short local updates to fulfill local content quotas.
Foxtel NXE Australia Pty Ltd, trading as the Foxtel Group, is an Australian pay television company that operates cable television, direct-broadcast satellite, direct broadcast satellite television, and IPTV streaming services. It was formed in April ...
is also available via satellite.


Radio

The Central Coast has a number of local radio stations. The three large commercial stations are Triple M Central Coast, Star 104.5, Hit101.3 Central Coast, all being part of national networks. The
ABC Local Radio ABC Local Radio is a network of publicly owned radio stations in Australia, operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. ABC Local Radio stations broadcast across the continent using terrestrial transmitters and satellites. Its programm ...
station, ABC Central Coast broadcasts on 92.5 FM that operates a locally produced breakfast show from 6am to 9am weekdays from its studio in Gosford. A 24-hour Country music station TodayCountry94one is based in Gosford and broadcasts online and in syndication across the country. It also has a Christian radio station Rhema FM on 94.9 MHz. As at January 2021, The Central Coast has a locally based internet Radio Station providing locals with a radio station being broadcast by local presenters from their place of business/home. In most locations on the Central Coast, Sydney and Newcastle radio stations can be received at reasonable levels particularly on the AM band.


Print

The Central Coast is not serviced by its own daily print newspaper though has three weekly local newspapers as well as a fortnightly paper and several popular monthly newsletters. A series of locally owned local papers have grown in popularity over time. '' Central Coast Community News'' services the Central Gosford region and the ''Coast Community Chronicle'' services the northern part of the region and the ''Pelican Post'' services the postcodes of 2256 and 2257. All are published by a local independent publishing house '' Central Coast Newspapers'' bucking the trend in declining newspaper sales. ''The Peninsula News'' run by a community association services the southern part of the region centred around the Woy Woy area with a fortnightly paper. Previously the major print publication of the region was the weekly '' Central Coast Express Advocate'', published by
News Limited News Corp Australia is an Australian media conglomerate and wholly owned subsidiary of News Corp. The group's interests span newspaper and magazine publishing, Internet, market research, DVD and film distribution, and film and television pr ...
's News Local, though that ceased printing in 2019. It is now purely a subscription-based online service.


Theatre

The area has four operating theatres. Laycock Street Community Theatre, opened in 1988 located in
Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...
next to Gosford, has a proscenium arch configuration and seats 396 patrons. The venue also contains a multi-purpose 100 capacity studio space suitable for cabaret performances, solo acts, events, conferences, meetings, other small performance acts. Across its long history of presenting performances on the Central Coast it has supported original work by locals as well as performances by some of Australia's leading theatre companies and commercial producers. The nearby local amateur theatre group, the Gosford Musical Society, currently contribute 5 musicals a year including two specifically for young performers. The Peninsula Theatre at Woy Woy features a 122-seat raked auditorium, 49m2 stage area and professional standard staging, lighting and sound capabilities. Local performing arts society Woy Woy Little Theatre uses The Peninsula Theatre as their key presenting venue for over 50 performances per year. The largest theatre on the Central Coast is The Art House, Wyong, which opened in May 2016 and replaced the old Wyong Memorial Hall which was used mainly by Wyong Musical Theatre Company and Wyong Drama Group. The Art House is a multipurpose venue with a 500-seat proscenium arch theatre with a 12m x 9m stage and automated fly tower as well as a 285m2 studio space with retractable tiered seating for 130 people and AV link to the main theatre. The Art House also features a 500m2 space suited to functions and events, as well as an exhibition wall ideal for visual art and photography displays. The opening of this venue saw a sudden growth in arts companies producing theatre in the region including Endless Night Theatre Company, Nate Butler's Studio, Salt House Theatre Company, and the regions only youth theatre body, Jopuka Productions. In late 2018, the Elderslee Foundation purchased a large building along the Tuggerah Strait close to Wyong which has subsequently been renovated and repurposed into a community facility, including office facilities, hot desks, training rooms, a commercial kitchen and art exhibition space for use by the community and the Red Tree Theatre, a small adaptable space for forums, seminars, concerts, theatre rehearsals and productions. The Red Tree Theatre features a 144-seat ranked auditorium equipped with professional standard lighting and sound.


Sport

Central Coast Mariners represent the Central Coast in the
A-League A-League Men, also known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional soccer league in Australia and New Zealand and the highest level of the Australian soccer league system. Established in 2004 as the A-League by the ...
. The Mariners have been A-League premiers twice ( 2007–08 and 2011–12), and were A-League champions in
2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...
as well as in 2023 and again in 2024. The Mariners play out of Central Coast Stadium at Gosford, the largest stadium on the Central Coast with a capacity of 20,059. The Wyong Roos currently play in the Intrust Super Premiership at Morry Breen Oval in Kanwal. They are the feeder team of the
Sydney Roosters Eastern Suburbs District Rugby League Football Club, known as the Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs (Sydney), Eastern Suburbs. The club competes in the National Rugby Lea ...
National Rugby League The National Rugby League (also known as the NRL Telstra Premiership for sponsorship reasons) is a professional rugby league competition in Oceania which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria (state), Victoria, the Austral ...
team, who have developed an agreement to play one regular season fixture per year at Central Coast Stadium for five years, starting in
2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...
. The
South Sydney Rabbitohs The South Sydney District Rugby League Football Club, also known as the South Sydney Rabbitohs, is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Sydney suburb of Maroubra, New South Wales, Maroubra that competes in the Nat ...
also play regular games. The Central Coast Rhinos played in the
Australian Ice Hockey League The Australian Ice Hockey League (AIHL) is Australia's top-level men's ice hockey league. Established in 2000, the AIHL is sanctioned by Ice Hockey Australia (a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation). The AIHL is a Semi-professional ...
from 2006 to 2008 and the Australian International Ice Hockey Cup from 2009 to 2012. They played out of Erina Ice Arena at Erina Fair, which is the Central Coast's only
ice rink An ice rink (or ice skating rink) is a frozen body of water or an artificial sheet of ice where people can ice skate or play winter sports. Ice rinks are also used for exhibitions, contests and ice shows. The growth and increasing popularity of ...
. The Erina Ice Arena has been closed since the 19th of August 2019 for renovations and is looking to reopen on the 2nd of January 2021. Other teams include the Central Coast Crusaders – the elite senior basketball program of the Central Coast region and the Central Coast Centurions – the Central Coast's junior rugby league representative team who compete in the S.G. Ball Cup and the
Harold Matthews Cup The NSWRL Harold Matthews Cup is a junior rugby league competition played in New South Wales between teams made up of players aged under 17. The competition is administered by the New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL). The competition is made up ...
. Several attempts have been made to have teams enter other national competitions. The most notable of these was the attempt to enter the Central Coast Bears as the 16th team into the NRL. This attempt was financed by a consortium led by
John Singleton John Daniel Singleton (January 6, 1968 April 28, 2019) was an American director, screenwriter, and producer. He made his feature film debut writing and directing '' Boyz n the Hood'' (1991), for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for ...
, but the Gold Coast Titans were ultimately successful. The Northern Eagles, a merger of NRL clubs
Manly Sea Eagles The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Sydney's Northern Beaches. They compete in the National Rugby League (NRL). The Manly club debuted in the 1947 New South Wales Rugby Football League seaso ...
and
North Sydney Bears The North Sydney Bears are an Australian rugby league football club based in Cammeray on Sydney's North Shore (Sydney), North Shore. The club currently competes in the NSW Cup, having exited the National Rugby League following the 1999 NRL s ...
began their tenure playing half of their games at Gosford; however, within three years the team was solely playing back at Brookvale. South Sydney were also unsuccessfully approached to play out of Gosford, despite the few games that are played on the Central Coast attracting large crowds. The Central Coast Storm rugby league team play in a number of NSWRL lower grade competitions, and the Central Coast Waves rugby union team plays in the Shute Shield. The Central Coast Rays rugby union club who competed in the ill-fated Australian Rugby Championship's only season late in 2007, called Central Coast Stadium home. The Central Coast has numerous sporting ovals, golf courses, skate parks, tennis courts and swimming pools that are open to the public and one target shooting facility. Attempts are underway to build a series of bicycle paths. A velodrome is also open to the public at West Gosford. National parks on the Central Coast have a large range of walking paths and mountain bike trails. Water sports like sailing, rowing and water skiing are popular activities on the Central Coast lakes. Attempts are being made to attract pro golf tournaments to Magenta Shores (a new resort north of The Entrance). In 2011, the frigate was scuttled off North Avoca Beach as an artificial reef.


Infrastructure


Health

The Central Coast has two large public hospitals with
emergency department An emergency department (ED), also known as an accident and emergency department (A&E), emergency room (ER), emergency ward (EW) or casualty department, is a medical treatment facility specializing in emergency medicine, the Acute (medicine), ...
s. The Gosford Hospital is the largest hospital in the region that is located near the Gosford CBD with 460 beds, Wyong Hospital is the second largest hospital of the Central Coast which has 274 beds, it is located at Hamlyn Terrace that is approximately north of the Wyong town centre, along the Pacific Highway with 274 beds. Additionally, there is a small public hospital in Woy Woy and a Health Care Centre at Long Jetty. The largest private hospital on the Central Coast is Gosford Private Hospital located at North Gosford. Brisbane Waters Private in Woy Woy, Tuggerah Lakes Private at Kanwal and Berkeley Vale Private are also major healthcare providers. The region has 21 aged care facilities. New South Wales Ambulance has seven ambulance stations on the Central Coast located at Bateau Bay, Doyalson, Ettalong, Point Clare, Terrigal, Toukley and Wyong.


Telecommunications

The Central Coast falls in the fixed phone 43xx xxxx region and is classified Regional 1 for billing with the exception of northern suburbs Gwandalan and Summerland Point, which fall in the fixed phone region for Newcastle and Lower Hunter 49xx xxxx. Fixed-line telephone service is universally available. 3G, 4G and 5G mobile network services are available from
Optus Singtel Optus Pty Limited is an Australian Telecommunications in Australia, telecommunications company headquartered in Macquarie Park, a suburb in the Northern Sydney region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is a wholly owned subsidiar ...
,
Telstra Telstra Group Limited is an Australian telecommunications company that builds and operates telecommunications networks and markets related products and services. It is a member of the S&P/ASX 20 stock index, and is Australia's largest telecomm ...
and
Vodafone Vodafone Group Public Limited Company () is a British Multinational company, multinational telecommunications company. Its registered office and global headquarters are in Newbury, Berkshire, England. It predominantly operates Service (economic ...
, though numerous black spots exist due to the topography and remoteness of some parts of the region. Steps to improve coverage areas along the railway have been announced by the Federal Government. ADSL and good quality fixed-wireless broadband services are widely available; however, significant blackspots continue to exist. High speed ADSL2 is available at most exchanges through Telstra. Few other providers exist, leading to an expensive high speed broadband offering for the region. Many areas experience very slow and/or unreliable ADSL connections due to the age and quality of the infrastructure. Fibre optic based broadband services are available in some areas serviced by the National Broadband Network NBN. These include Kincumber, Gosford, East Gosford, West Gosford, Springfield, Berkeley Vale,
Tumbi Umbi Tumbi Umbi is a mostly semi-rural List of Central Coast suburbs, suburb of the Central Coast (New South Wales), Central Coast region of New South Wales, Australia, located northwest of Bateau Bay, New South Wales, Bateau Bay along Wyong Road. It ...
and Long Jetty. In 2011, the region was selected as one of the early roll out regions for the National Broadband Network's fibre to the premise installation which will offer stable speeds of 100/40 Mbit/s down/up load respectively. Two Points Of Interconnect (POI) are located in the region at Gosford and Berkley Vale exchanges. The regional rollout will radiate out from these two super exchanges. Services in areas around the two POI are now available. The rollout of the NBN to the remainder of the region is in question following a change of government in September 2013. Trials of fibre to the node technology are planned for Umina Beach and Woy Woy.


Governance

The Central Coast is administered by one
local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a federated state, state, province, division (politica ...
which is the Central Coast Council. It has an estimated population of 348,930 as of June 2022, growing by 1% annually. Politically, the Central Coast Council has administered the area since 12 May 2016, when the Gosford City Council and the Wyong Shire Council merged. In September 2006, the
New South Wales government The Government of New South Wales, also known as the NSW Government, is the executive state government of New South Wales, Australia. The government comprises 11 portfolios, led by a ministerial department and supported by several agencies. Th ...
released a revised long-term plan for the region that saw the Central Coast classified as an urban area, along with
Wollongong Wollongong ( ; Dharawal: ''Woolyungah'') is a city located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The name is believed to originate from the Dharawal language, meaning either 'five islands/clouds', 'ground near water' or 'sound ...
and the
Hunter Region The Hunter Region, also commonly known as the Hunter Valley, Newcastle Region, or simply Hunter, spans the region in northern New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately to north of Sydney. It contains the Hunter River (New Sout ...
, but is not considered a metropolitan area. , Scot MacDonald served as the parliamentary secretary for the Hunter and Central Coast. In November 2015 both Gosford City and Wyong Shire councils controversially voted to merge following a NSW Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal assessment which found the Gosford City and Wyong Shire Councils did not meet the stand-alone operating criteria for the NSW State government's "Fit for the Future" plans for the Local Area Councils within the state. Despite local opposition and concerns over Wyong Shire, in effect, being subsumed within the Gosford City Council, and claims of councillors being bullied into the merger, as part of the process, merging into a single Central Coast Council local government area passed all administrative and legislative requirements and came into effect in 2016. As of mid-2020, the amalgamation process had cost $49 million. The newly amalgamated Central Coast Council held elections in September 2017.


Transport

The Central Coast is serviced by an extensive and burgeoning road system. A combination of bus and rail provide limited
public transport Public transport (also known as public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) are forms of transport available to the general public. It typically uses a fixed schedule, route and charges a fixed fare. There is no rigid definition of whic ...
options for locals. The region also has a number of taxis operated by Central Coast Taxis. Transport has been a constant issue for the region and has been cited as high a priority over the last 20 years in regional plans and priorities by local, state and federal government agencies, with incremental investments largely in road infrastructure.


Roads

; Pacific Motorway (Sydney–Newcastle Freeway) The main access to the Central Coast by road is by the Pacific Motorway that carries the designation National Highway 1. From January 2013 it officially has been renamed as the M1 Pacific Motorway. The freeway provides the most important road link between
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
and the northern areas of New South Wales such as Central Coast,
Hunter Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products ( fur/ hide, bone/tusks, ...
, Mid North Coast and
Northern Rivers Northern Rivers is the most northeasterly Regions of New South Wales, region of the Australian state of New South Wales, located between north of the state capital, Sydney, and encompasses the catchments and fertile valleys of the Clarence Ri ...
. The Pacific Motorway is part of the
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
to
Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
corridor. The Pacific Motorway is approximately 3 lanes wide from the southern end of the Central Coast to as far north as Doyalson. The section between the Tuggerah interchange and Doyalson interchange was widened to 3 lanes in each direction in 2020 and another section between the Kariong interchange and Peats Ridge interchange was also widened to 3 lanes in each direction in 2020. ;Central Coast Highway The roads that link Kariong with Doyalson (Pacific Highway, Dane Drive, Masons Parade, York Street, George Street, The Entrance Road, Oakland Avenue, Coral Street, Wilfred Barrett Drive, Budgewoi Road and Scenic Road) became known as the Central Coast Highway from 9 August 2006. The Central Coast's roads are maintained by the Central Coast Council as well as state roads by the NSW government; however, due to the relatively large geography maintenance issues often arise.


Rail

The western and south-eastern towns and suburbs of the Central Coast are on the Main Northern railway line. The rail line is primarily used to provide mass transport for those that commute to Sydney or Newcastle and as such services are most frequent during peak commuter times (typically one hour before Sydney and Newcastle peak times in the morning and one hour after in the evening due to the distance). Gosford station is the largest and main railway station in the region, which is considered a rest stop for long rail services to
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
,
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area ...
, Tamworth, Armidale, Taree,
Port Macquarie Port Macquarie, sometimes shortened to Port Mac and commonly locally nicknamed Port, is a coastal city on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, north of Sydney, and south of Brisbane, on the Tasman Sea coast at the mouth of the ...
,
Coffs Harbour Coffs Harbour, locally nicknamed Coffs, is a coastal city on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, north of Sydney, and south of Brisbane. It is one of the largest urban centres on the North Coast, with a population of 78,759 a ...
, Grafton,
Casino A casino is a facility for gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shops, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos also host live entertainment, such as stand-up comedy, conce ...
, Gold Coast and
Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
. The line has connections with most bus services as well as taxis. Trains terminate at both Gosford and Wyong stations which are also utilised by long-distance services. Central Coast railway stations on the Northern NSW line are (from south to north): ''North'' * Wyee * Warnervale * Wyong * Tuggerah * Ourimbah * Lisarow * Niagara Park * Narara * Gosford * Point Clare * Tascott * Koolewong * Woy Woy * Wondabyne ''South''


Bus

Bus services in the region are operated by Busways which has depots at Kincumber and Charmhaven, Red Bus CDC NSW and Coastal Liner. All companies serve their own individual areas covering almost all areas of the region and rarely overlapping. Busways operates services using Lake Haven, Tuggerah, Erina Fair and Gosford as central points. In the south services cover as far south as Woy Woy, Umina, Ettalong and Pearl Beach/ Patonga, and also stretch out to Kincumber, Erina, Avoca Beach and Terrigal in the east. Occasional services are conducted to Kariong, then to Mangrove Mountain in the west. Busways' northern services cover from Gosford and north to Tuggerah (through the Narara Valley and Ourimbah), then continue north to Wyong via Tuggerah, which in turn services the northern section of Lake Haven, Charmhaven, Gorokan, Toukley, Noraville, Budgewoi, Buff Point, San Remo, Blue Haven and Gwandalan. Further services also utilise routes which goes as far north as
Swansea Swansea ( ; ) is a coastal City status in the United Kingdom, city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, second-largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of ...
and Charlestown. Red Bus Services operate services mainly between Wyong and The Entrance as well as The Entrance and Gosford, although some services do reach Ourimbah and Wyong Hospital at Hamlyn Terrace. Its services also operate to West Gosford,
Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...
, Holgate, Matcham, Point Frederick and Springfield. Although most services operate to/from Wyong Hospital via Berkeley Vale and Westfield Tuggerah, one service (Route 29) operates from Bay Village to Wyong Hospital via The Entrance, Magenta Shores, Toukley, Gorokan and Lake Haven. Red Bus have around 25 buses that are suitable for wheelchairs. Coastal Liner operate limited route bus services around Westfield Tuggerah, Wyong, Hamlyn Terrace, Woongarrah, Warnervale, Dooralong and Jilliby. Routes 10 (Tuggerah-Wyee via Hue Hue Road and Wyong), 12 (Tuggerah-Jilliby via Dicksons and Mandalong Roads) and 13 (Tuggerah-Dooralong via Jilliby Road) all operate only on weekdays with limited services. Route 11 is the most popular service, linking Lake Haven with Warnervale via Hamlyn Terrace and Woongarah. This service on weekdays occasionally extends to Westfield Tuggerah and Wyong Station via Hue Hue Road. CDC NSW operate services between Cheero Point, Mooney Mooney with the bus line extending to Sydney areas such as Brooklyn and sometimes as far as Hornsby. The bus route is isolated from rest of the Central Coast bus network.


Retail and commercial

The Central Coast is home to Erina Fair, the largest single level shopping mall in the Southern Hemisphere and the largest regional shopping mall in Australia. It provides many of the area's amenities such as restaurants, cinema, fast food and shopping. Another large shopping mall exists to the north, Westfield Tuggerah. Other smaller local shopping malls are located throughout the region, including at Woy Woy, Umina Beach, Kincumber, Gosford, Wyoming, Bateau Bay, Wyong and Lake Haven.


Notes


See also

* Regions of New South Wales


References


External links


Regional Development Australia Central Coast

Love Central Coast – Official Tourism and Destination Website
*
Destination NSW: Central Coast
(Tourism NSW)
Central Coast Council

Central Coast Mariners
{{Regions of New South Wales , state = autocollapse Regions of New South Wales