The Commonwealth Walkway

The walkways will complement the Just Another Day in WA tourism campaign by encouraging visitors with limited time in the city to enjoy a walking and learning experience which focuses attention on our heritage and historical links, including Aboriginal heritage.

Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, has given the Outdoor Trust permission for use of her personal cypher to assist in creating walkways throughout the Commonwealth. Each Aboriginal, heritage, historical or significant site chosen will be marked permanently with a large, in-ground bronze marker which displays the Queen’s personal EIIR Royal Cypher. The aim of the Outdoor Trust is to create 100 walkways across 71 Commonwealth countries bringing together 10,000 of the most significant highlights of the Commonwealth and to get people, especially young people less than 25 years, actively walking. The current number of completed walkways is around thirty across the Commonwealth of Nations.

‘Planning for Western Australia’s Commonwealth Walkways is well underway,’ said Hon. Barry House MLC, Chair of the Western Australian committee overseeing the project. ‘When the final route is endorsed by local authorities and The Palace it may include locations within the City of Perth, with some encompassing local Aboriginal stories and language; make linkages across the river to South Perth and guide, through the use of technology and maps, visitors and walkers to the entrance of Kings Park, where they can enjoy the many existing walking opportunities throughout Perth’s premier park which includes the Western Australian Botanic Gardens. It will also be possible to connect, for longer or subsequent walks, with those trails already established in the cities of Perth and Fremantle.’

The walkways will get added global exposure through their linking in perpetuity with the organisation for the Queen’s Baton Relay which precedes the Commonwealth Games in the city of Gold Coast where that city’s walkway has been completed. The Queen’s Baton Relay (QBR) is a Games tradition that celebrates the Commonwealth’s diversity, inspires community pride and excites people about the world-class festival of sports and culture to come. The QBR is an important element in the lead up to the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games (GC2018) to be staged from 4-15 April 2018.

The Commonwealth Games Australia WA Division (CGAWA) is proud to be working with the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games Corporation (GOLDOC) in the planning and delivery of the QBR in WA. CGAWA sits on the WA State Working Group for QBR, which has been regularly meeting for the past year to identify key engagement opportunities across WA for when the Queen’s Baton visits in 2018. Following the walkway event at 10am on Friday, 3 March 2017 in Kings Park, on Sunday 5 March the Australian Celebration Communities will be announced and the Community Batonbearer Nomination Program opens.

 For more information about the Queen’s Baton journey please go to https://www.gc2018.com/qbr#

An Interpretative Panel of the finalised route will later be installed at the beginning, or at a prominent place on the walkway and mobile telephone Applications, plus maps, will support updates of historical and heritage information at each site. The text of each Application will include information about the site and its origins and any connection with the Commonwealth as relevant. The National Trust of Western Australia is working with the Outdoor Trust UK to bring walkways to our state and has set up an Appeal which has already received funding from local philanthropy of over $50,000.

For further information contact:
Mr David Forster
Hon. Secretary
Commonwealth Walkways Western Australia Steering Committee
e: Trailswest2020@gmail.com
t: 04034 60332