They came from all parts of the Northern Rivers this morning to the old Lismore Railway Station for the official opening of the Lismore to Bentley section of the Northern Rivers Rail Trail.

Federal Member for Page Kevin Hogan, Mayor of Lismore Steve Krieg, Mayor of Ballina Sharon Cadwallader, Mayor of Richmond Valley Robert Musto, Councillors Andrew Bing, Electra Jensen, Andrew Gordon, Gianpiero Battista, Harper Dalton-Earls and Virginia Waters and the General Managers from Lismore, Rous County Council and Byron Shire Council. Plus people had cycled in from Casino to enjoy the festivities.

The 16-kilometre Lismore to Bentley section was funded by the Commonwealth to the tune of $10.8 million, which brought the 29-kilometre Lismore to Casino total to around $17 million.

Cameron Arnold OAM Vice President of the Northern Rivers Rail Trail Association, said the journey to get to this point started in 2011/2012.

"All the things that Steve (Mayor Krieg) just talked about, we envisaged, back in the day, all the things about the businesses that can be created, the jobs that could be created, the community spirit that could be created. We're now witnessing here today," Cameron told the crowd.

Earlier, Mayor Krieg referred to the impact that the Rail Trail will have on South Lismore businesses. He mentioned that Bowen's Pies and Southside Bakery both opened at 7am for today's opening and that Southside Chempro Chemist was open if anyone needed some dencorub after the long ride to Bentley or for those tackling the Casino return leg.

"These are all the things that have the flow-on effect," Mayor Krieg said, "People look at Council and go, why are you building that? Why are you wasting money here when we've got potholes in our road?

"I'll tell you why we do it. It is to support the small businesses. It's to support the people that put our young people through jobs and apprenticeships and traineeships. It's to support the people that have actually taken a risk on Lismore, like Two Mates Brewery and Norco, which is just down the road here. All of these people commit their lives, their savings, their knowledge into rebuilding a regional centre, and it is our responsibility as a council to support them, and I couldn't be more proud to stand here today."

Two Mates Brewing now has a side entrance from the Rail Trail and there were a lot of people enjoying a cold beer and a bit to eat after their ride.

Co-owner Grant Smith was happy with the turnout.

"Absolutely. We've been preparing for this a long time: the rail trail and the expectation of that comes with the possibilities. I think with community engagement and tourism, it's a welcome thing for us here in our business.

"And I think that's the thing that keeps us all here. I think what keeps us going is the potential that sits there around reactivating this area specifically, but Lismore as a whole, as well. People get to see stuff, you know? We get to share this great place, and then the community get to share it as well. So, I mean, we've always promoted this place as a community hub. That's what it is, a space where people come to play and stay."

Some of the community criticism has surrounded the ongoing maintenance costs. Cameron Arnold stated the three points that NR's Rail Trail wanted to deliver when they began the project.

"We've always stuck with those three key things. The first one, this will be significant when the whole thing is done. So we're not going to stop until the whole 132 kilometres is complete.

"The second thing was it had to stay in public hands. This asset had to remain in public hands for the community to make the most out of it. And we achieved that.

"And the third thing was that we didn't want it to be a burden on the community. We didn't want it to be a burden on ratepayers, it has to pay its own way. So, everything that we do has to actually contribute to the maintenance, to the development and to the sustainability of the trail. And we've always stuck with that, and we will until the whole thing's done."

As for the future of the Northern Rivers Rail Trail, Mayor Krieg referred to not only the Lismore to Booyong section but the Booyong to Byron Bay section too.

"We've got plans in place. We've already got a funding deed at both levels of Parliament, I believe, with Byron Bay for $45 million to continue the rail line here and to start the Byron section."

Perhaps the biggest news was about a bridge linking the rail trail to the CBD.

"I probably shouldn't mention this publicly, but we've already identified a site to create a bridge to link the CBD with the rail trail. We want to embrace the river. We want to spend a million dollars. We want to spend a million dollars for our river regeneration along that section. Let's make Lismore an iconic place to come and visit."

Someone from the crowd yelled out, "Let's swim in the river."

"That would be beautiful, wouldn't it? We'll bring the fences down, but they're all the things that we want to see happen in Lismore. I would love to see paddle boats that you can go and hire. You can paddle along there on the river and then jump on your bike and ride to Casino.

"Who knows what the future holds, but Lismore has got a broad picture through infrastructure and assets like this."

Federal Member for Page Kevin Hogan congratulated everyone involved in the creation of this new leg and said this was one of the proudest projects he has helped facilitate, along with a lot of other people.

"This will be a national tourism icon that will be world-famous when it is complete.

"Why do we think it will be world-famous? Because we all know people. You know people, I know people who will say, I'm going to Spain to do a walk, or they go into some country to do some experiential theme walk or ride. What we know that we have here is when we have finished this and completed this, we are a world-famous area anyway, but a rail trail from Casino to Murwillumbah will be a worldwide attraction.

"The modelling that has been done on this will bring a whole new tourist base to this region and a whole new source of economic activity to this region, which is really, really exciting."

As for the Rail Trail itself, Mick, Terri and Debbie are regular cyclists, and they loved the new section.

"It's fabulous, and the gravel bike helps. I really like it, because you don't have to struggle with traffic and potholes.

"We went over to the new bridge near Bentley. The good thing is lots of side roads. You can go off with your gravel bike, and so you can do detours off it as far as you like.

"We have done the Bentley to Casino section, but I haven't done the whole way up as a social rider yet."

Cycling Without Age was offering free trishaw rides to the elderly and disabled today.

Cycling Without Age is a registered charity with chapters worldwide. They started in Europe and are operated by volunteers.

The volunteers get together, organise a chapter, raise funds, and then around maybe three or four or more days a week on sections of a Rail Trail.

Raymond Richards and Greg Malone said the charity would love to open a regular stall at the Lismore railway station but needs volunteers to do that.

"We offer free trishaw rides to people with disabilities and older Australians. Tracy McDonough has been the driving force behind the Burringbar chapter. If people want to volunteer for a Lismore chapter, they can get in touch with Tracy through the Cycling Without Age Facebook page.

Generally, Cycling Without Age runs Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, which is a quieter time than weekends.

"As you probably know, the other rail trail is hugely popular, from Murwillumbah to Crabbes Creek. It's always busy, and weekends are very busy. So you don't really want tri-shaws on the track when it's super busy. It's very safety conscious. We run two trishaws, and there's a scout that goes in front, and we carry defibrillators and a first aid kit," Raymond explained.

"We're all trained in health and safety, so it's very carefully set up. The volunteers go through a training program ride."

It was only day one for the Lismore to Casino section of the Northern Rivers Rail Trail, but if that is an indication of the activity that will occur across the Christmas/New Year and school holiday period, then there is a lot to be positive about.