NSW Government says March is the month for work to start on Great Western Highway duplication near Lithgow

The government has announced the civil and electrical construction company Ertech has been awarded the contract for work on a new interchange at Coxs River Road at Little Hartley, near Lithgow.

The work at Little Hartley and a 1.2-kilometre duplication of the road at Medlow Bath - which is also set to begin next month - will be the first visible signs of progress of the NSW Government's mammoth highway project.

Member for Bathurst Paul Toole said, from March, work will start "to duplicate 2.4 kilometres of existing highway at Little Hartley to create a four-lane divided carriageway".

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The government says the new interchange will mean motorists can safely travel over the new highway, and work will also include realigning parts of the existing highway to create a local service road, and upgrades to the intersections with Browns Gap Road and Baaners Lane (which are both on the Lithgow side of Little Hartley).

Mr Toole said the upgrades "will reduce highway traffic through the historic township of Little Hartley", making the area "more pleasant for locals and visitors alike".

Early work at Coxs River Road began in September last year with the relocation of overhead powerlines and underground communication assets.

Meanwhile, the future of the central section of the highway upgrade from Little Hartley to Blackheath - where the NSW Government is proposing twin 11km tunnels - remains in doubt as the NSW Government continues to seek Federal Government funding.

Nonetheless, an environmental impact statement for the tunnels is accepting submissions from the public and the Central NSW Joint Organisation - a collection of councils that includes Bathurst Regional - is encouraging people to have their say.

"A safe, swift and secure link between Sydney and Central NSW remains a priority for our communities," Central NSW Joint Organisation chair (and Cabonne Council mayor) Kevin Beatty said.

"The safety, time and productivity benefits are so important for our visitors, our freight and for us as we travel to and from Sydney."

Cr Beatty said the highway is vulnerable to closure - whether through car crashes or extreme weather - because it is only one lane in each direction in sections and there is a lack of alternative routes.

"Realisation of a safe, swift and secure link between Sydney and Central NSW is a very big opportunity and the mayors of the region are keen to ensure that we support it every step of the way," he said.

The highway upgrade has not been without critics, however: the National Trust was unhappy with the public consultation offered for the Lithgow to Little Hartley plans and the Medlow Bath Action Group has previously warned that the highway duplication through its village "will turn the town centre into a ... freight corridor wedged between the Hydro Majestic Hotel and the train station, both heritage listed".

Meanwhile, Federal Government funding for the overall east and west sections of the highway upgrade was delayed in last year's budget, leading to a public stoush between the Commonwealth and NSW.

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