New Forrestfield rail terminal hub

Fremantle Port’s inner-harbour rail network will now include a terminal hub in the Forrestfield area, after the port authority awarded its rail contract to new provider, Intermodal Link Services, on an interim basis.

The new company is a joint venture between agribusiness co-operative CBH Group, Stevenson Logistics Pty Ltd, and Kewdale-based South Spur Rail Services Pty Ltd. The company won the contract from former provider, Fremantle Link Services, which is backed by transport giants Toll Group and Patrick.

Under the agreement, CBH and Stevenson will manage logistics operations at both the port and Forrestfield terminals, while South Spur Rail will provide the train services.

CBH Group manager supply chain strategies, Rob Voysey, said one advantage of the new group’s proposal was the location of CBH’s four-hectare site in Forrestfield, adjacent to the rail line, which would be used as an open access, multi-user terminal.

“The other thing is, we’ve developed a strategy that looks at task matching, between imports and exports,” he said.

Under the group’s model, Stevenson will manage the port’s import traffic, while CBH will manage exports, creating efficiencies in price and operation, according to Mr Voysey.

However, a trial of the service over the past few months has revealed some teething problems.

“The object was to flood the supply chain, to find the choking points, and there were multiple ones,” Mr Voysey said.

These constraints included track works between Cockburn and the Fremantle passenger terminal, container availability and capacity issues at CBH’s plant, as well as equipment availability and operational activity at North Quay.

Mr Voysey said some measures had already been introduced to address these issues, including the provision of new loading equipment at the Forrestfield site.

“It’s our intention to find these blockages one by one and build the capacity of the system gradually,” he said.

As part of the trial, South Spur Rail Services, which was a provider under the former contract, has worked to improve its rail operation.

According to South Spur Rail Services director James Wilson, the company has increased efficiency on the supply side through direct transfer at Forrestfield, and now uses train stables to strip and reload vehicles, increasing train operating time.

The company has also invested in heavier locomotives to improve capacity, and has introduced some old wagons to its fleet.

Mr Wilson said the use of dual fuels and electric locomotives were also being considered, to reduce carbon emissions.

“As environmental issues come to the fore, there will be a real benefit in using rail,” he said.

Fremantle Ports chief executive officer Kerry Sanderson said Intermodal’s proposal would increase capacity within the rail operation and grow market share.

Currently, just more than 10 per cent of containers delivered to the port are transported by rail, up from 2 per cent in 2002.

The port is aiming to increase this to 30 per cent.

Ms Sanderson said there were some issues with the proposal that needed to be examined, including its economic viability, although she said the trial had been promising.