Dubbo - Surrounds vs Gilgandra

Dubbo - Surrounds and Gilgandra are two rural areas in New South Wales located about 51 km apart. Gilgandra is far more walkable, with 43.8% of homes in a 15-minute-city walkshed and a score of 3.2 (mostly car-dependent), while Dubbo - Surrounds is car-dependent with only 9.5% of homes in such a walkshed. There are also stark differences for First Nations people; typical household income is far higher in Dubbo - Surrounds at $2,074 compared to $1,080 in Gilgandra, while the unemployment rate is far higher in Gilgandra at 15.7% versus 5.6% in Dubbo - Surrounds.

Both areas are very similar in their landscape and the proportion of people who speak a First Nations language, which sits at about 2%. This shared rural character persists even as other gaps remain wide. For example, the typical First Nations resident is noticeably older in Gilgandra at 27, while they are just 21 in Dubbo - Surrounds, where Year 12 completion is also far higher at 34.8% compared to 24.1% in Gilgandra.