ONE major issue facing the truck industry is access to the Perth metropolitan area – something that will be a key discussion point at the Freight Planning Congress this weekend.
Trucks entering the Perth metropolitan area are already subject to considerable restrictions and there are fears that semi trailers could be banned from city streets. Another concern is that industry will be forced to use rail as a transport option, even if it is not the best option. The congress is designed to air all of the arguments surrounding the movement of freight through the metropolitan area. Findings from the congress will be fed into the Freight Network Review that aims to:
p establish a new framework for freight movement in the metropolitan area;
p provide policy and guidelines for
metropolitan freight movements;
p find alternatives for metropolitan freight movements; and
p recommend a freight network plan.
The congress is expected to draw 130 delegates to the Fremantle Passenger Terminal. The delegates have been drawn from various industry groups, the community (both activists and volunteers), and local and state government.
A spokesman for Planning and Infrastructure Minister Alannah MacTiernan said the ideal outcome from the congress would be to identify some common concerns or ideas that could be incorporated into the transport planning process.
“We are hoping for some sort of consensus on transport issues. We’re not going into this with any particular agendas,” he said.
