Tamworth Regional Council cancels country music festival cavalcade for second year in a row

Tamworth Regional Council general manager Paul Bennett confirmed the cavalcade would not go ahead for the second year in a row, following recommendations from police.

The parade, which saw thousands of people line the main street to get up-close and personal with their favourite country artists, has been deemed an opportunity to cause "significant damage" and "loss of life".

"We don't have bollards installed in the main street that are adequate to protect pedestrians and the large number of people lining the streets," Mr Bennett said at a council meeting on Tuesday.

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"At the request of the police, and until we can come up with a risk management plan that mitigates the risk to pedestrian traffic, we decided we would not proceed with the cavalcade."

Council cancelled the event for the first time this year, opting to replace the parade with a 'static' community celebration.

At the time, festival founder Max Ellis told the Leader it was a "sad moment" to lose the tradition.

Mr Bennett said despite council cancelling the parade in 2023, it didn't mean it would be cancelled "forever".

"It does mean that there would have to be significant work and rethink about how we actually deliver the cavalcade," he said.

"Potentially not using as many large vehicles that can cause damage, that's something we will be working on into the future."

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