Rail

Fremantle Ports moves about 20% of containers coming into and out of the Fremantle Inner Harbour by rail.

Interesting facts:

• Every day, around 5-7 trains carry about 400-500 containers in and out of the port.
• Some of the trains are up to 700m long - that’s almost three Optus Stadiums!
• Each train carries about 60-100 containers.
• Trains reduce congestion on the roads and a single train can take up to 60 trucks off the road.
• Containers on rail equate to taking over 100,000 truck movements off the road network every year.
• The containers mostly carry agricultural products such as grain and malt, but also carry day-to-day import products.

Increasing the volume of containers moved by rail to and from the Fremantle Inner Harbour is a strategic priority.

Since the North Quay Rail terminal was built in 2006 and extended in 2014 the number of containers on rail and the percentage of containers on rail compared to on road has grown.

Major advantages in using rail are reduced traffic congestion on roads, assisting in reducing environmental and social impacts, and greater fuel efficiency compared to road transport.

Increased use of rail for container freight reduces the rate of growth of port-related truck transport and continues to have strong community support.

There are currently between 6 or 7 trains coming in and out of the port every day. These trains can carry up to 90 twenty-foot containers transporting a range of items, from large amounts of agricultural product such as grain and malt, to our day-to-day import items.

Rail receives financial support from the State Government in recognition of the vital role it plays and the inherent difficulty it has in competing with road transport over short distances.