The State Government has announced two new projects to shift more Victorian freight onto rail.
Major freight hubs in Melbourne’s north and west will be connected to the Port of Melbourne, with a $25.7 million investment that will see more than 70,000 containers moved on rail instead of on local roads.
Ports Minister Luke Donnellan said the Austrak facility, Somerton and SCT Logistics Altona hub, would be connected to the Port Rail Shuttle network.
Mr Donnellan said the investment would also see an additional $45m in private sector funded upgrades.
“These projects will take tens of thousands of trucks off Melbourne’s streets, create hundreds of jobs and increase the competitiveness of Victorian industry,” Mr Donellan said.
”There’s still more to be done, that’s why we’re considering the Port of Melbourne’s proposal to deliver a full ‘ondock solution’, which, on interim advice from Freight Victoria, would reduce rail supply chain costs and meet the expected growth in container volumes at the port.”
M Donnellan said the projects would help maintain the port’s position as the largest volume container port in Australia, create hundreds of jobs and help deliver reduced transport costs.
Mr Donnellan said Freight Victoria was currently assessing a proposal put forward by the Port of Melbourne Ltd which will deliver a ‘full on-dock’ rail solution, by integrating the stevedore and rail terminals at the port.
As a result, funding allocated for port-side improvements would be placed on hold while the government considered the Port of Melbourne proposal to deliver the port side stage of a Port Rail Shuttle Network.
The government also announced it was bringing forward a review into regulating pricing and charges, as well as access to and from the Port, following recently announced increases in stevedore infrastructure charges.
The Victorian and Federal governments had invested $58 million in the Port Rail Shuttle Network Project for initiatives such as providing rail connections which will improve terminal access.
An inland terminal in the south east also remained a key priority for the government, given its critical role in freight.
Options to connect Melbourne’s south-east to the Port Rail Shuttle network were still being investigated.
Andrew Miller
I'm a general reporter with Stock & Land, with a special interest in irrigation issues. I completed my cadetship, with the Age, in 1980. Over my career, I've worked for ABC radio news (Mt Isa, Qld) and at provincial and suburban newspapers.
I'm a general reporter with Stock & Land, with a special interest in irrigation issues. I completed my cadetship, with the Age, in 1980. Over my career, I've worked for ABC radio news (Mt Isa, Qld) and at provincial and suburban newspapers.
