The Australasian Railway Association (ARA) congratulates Asciano’s rail division Pacific National on the launch on 27 February 2015 of two new $30 million Rail Mounted Gantry Cranes at the Chullora Sydney Freight Terminal, doubling the yearly capacity from 300,000 to 600,000 Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) and increasing the overall efficiency of the movement of freight in Sydney.
Chief Executive Officer of the ARA, Bryan Nye OAM, said that the increased capacity will help meet growing freight demands in New South Wales, in particular freight moving in and out of Port Botany.
“Short haul rail utilisation between the New South Wales ports and intermodal terminals is the single most important issue for rail freight in this state and Pacific National should be recognised accordingly for the positive contribution this initiative will make towards improving interstate road and rail operations,” said Mr Nye.
“It has been estimated that this initiative will remove up to 100,000 truck journeys from roads between Port Botany and Sydney’s west each year, which will not only dramatically decrease congestion on roads but will also create a safer, less emissions intensive alternative by moving more freight on rail.
“An increase in capacity at the freight terminal will allow for a more reliable and productive rail service extending from Port Botany in eastern Sydney right through to Chullora in the west, helping primary industries, such as mining and agriculture, have a greater ability to move their goods on rail reliably and competitively,” he said.
Moving at a faster and larger capacity, the two new cranes and associated infrastructure will allow a new 650-metre port shuttle rail service with 90 TEU capacity to run three times a day, six days a week between Port Botany and the Sydney Freight Terminal.
“I congratulate Pacific National for continuing to strive towards world’s best practice in rail freight industry and the NSW Government for its vision in supporting this initiative and future initiatives to move more freight on to rail,” Mr Nye concluded.
(Source: ARA)
