A NEW interstate terminal to store and distribute thousands of tons of goods could be built somewhere in Truganina. But exactly where and what is meant by “an intermodal facility” are the latest big infrastructure questions for communities of Melbourne’s west.
Federal Transport Minister Anthony Albanese and state Transport Minister Terry Mulder have announced a $5 million feasibility study for the Western Interstate Freight Terminal.
They said the study would pinpoint the precise location of the mega-freight pitstop Melbourne needs to achieve modern-day freight logistics into and out of the container docks at Williamstown.
“If given the final go-ahead, the project would build an interstate terminal and freight precinct at Truganina in Melbourne’s west as well as a link to the interstate rail freight network,” the ministers said in a statement.
“An intermodal at Truganina would do away with the need for interstate trains and trucks to come into the port precinct.”
Mr Mulder said the terminal should take more than 700,000 trucks a year, or 2000 truck movements a day, off the traffic counts on inner-western suburban streets, and ease congestion around ports.
While a direct line to the new Regional Rail Link freight line has been guaranteed, the next most obvious decision is where to develop the route for an outer-metropolitan ring road to siphon monster B-doubles and prime movers away from the housing estates of Caroline Springs, Taylors Lakes and Rockbank, while giving freight direct links to Tullamarine and Avalon airports and the Hume corridor.
Laverton North-based transport and logistics company Toll said steps towards developing the Truganina terminal were the right choice for governments’ freight infrastructure dollar. But local groups protesting against truck numbers say plans to get freight transport off residential streets should be further advanced.
Maribyrnong Truck Action Group president Samantha McArthur questioned how much impact the hub would have. “They expect it will take 2000 trucks off the inner-west roads a day, but what about the other 18,000 [trucks]?”
