- Albury-Wodonga
Albury-Wodonga is the broad settlement incorporating the twin Australian cities of Albury and Wodonga, which are separated geographically by the
Murray River and politically by a state border: Albury on the north of the river is part ofNew South Wales while Wodonga on the south bank is in Victoria.Whilst in many senses the centre operates as one community, it has parallel municipal governments and state government services. Psychologically, the closer proximity of
Melbourne and due to Victorian Television broadcasting in the region, resulting in the predominance ofAustralian rules football on Television and through other media outlets, give Albury close cultural links to Victoria, despite its location in Southern New South Wales.Albury-Wodonga was selected as the primary focus of the federal Whitlam government's scheme to arrest the uncontrolled growth of Australia's large coastal cities (
Sydney and Melbourne in particular) by encouraging decentralisation. Grand plans were made to turn Albury-Wodonga into a major inland city. Some industries were enticed to move there, and a certain amount of population movement resulted. However, the current population of approximately 101,597 residents is far below the 300,000 projected by Whitlam in the 1970s.The industrial employment sector has meant that Albury-Wodonga, unusually for an Australian inland city, is not dependent on agriculture. According to the most recently available figures from the
Australian Bureau of Statistics , the average income of the Albury area is $36K per year, below the $42K average for the state of New South Wales.See also
External links
* [http://www.alburycity.nsw.gov.au Albury City Council]
* [http://www.wodonga.vic.gov.au City of Wodonga Council]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
