Upper Murray vs Wagga Wagga - Surrounds

Upper Murray and Wagga Wagga - Surrounds are two regional New South Wales areas with very different layouts. Upper Murray is more walkable, with 50.4% of homes in a 15-minute-city walkshed compared to 23.5% in Wagga Wagga - Surrounds. This includes a much higher share of homes within a 15-minute walk of health services (44.0% vs 17.8%) and schools (54.1% vs 30.5%). In contrast, First Nations outcomes are stronger in Wagga Wagga - Surrounds, where 46.6% of First Nations students finished Year 12, compared to 28.2% in Upper Murray.

Daily life in both places remains mostly car-dependent. While Upper Murray has a walkability score of 3.7 and Wagga Wagga - Surrounds has 2.2, both sit in the same category. This reliance on cars is common across the region. Other differences include First Nations incomes, which are well higher in Wagga Wagga - Surrounds, where typical household income is $2,134 compared to $1,372 in Upper Murray.