Moving Freight 2019 blueprint outlines plans for SA industry future
Completing the North South Corridor, major rural road upgrades and a new purpose built freight precinct at Adelaide Airport are key planks of a major freight blueprint document unveiled today by SA’s peak freight group.
The South Australian Freight Council (SAFC) has launched Moving Freight 2019, its plan for the state’s future transport and logistics infrastructure and its primary submission into Infrastructure South Australia’s (ISA) 20 Year State Infrastructure Strategy.
FREIGHT PRIORITY
It has called on ISA and the State Government to ensure that freight infrastructure is given prominence.
“South Australia is facing many new challenges as it confronts a changing economic structure and climate; and puts forward an ambitious growth agenda,” SAFC executive officer Evan Knapp says.
“An efficient infrastructure system for the transport and logistics sector will benefit all business through reduced cost structures and every household through reduced costs for consumer goods. Every physical good and most service elements of the economy have a transport cost component.
Read SAFC’s Productivity Commission submission on transport reform, here
“Moving Freight 2019 provides a blueprint for transport infrastructure development in South Australia over the next 20 years, and highlights the key principles and policy issues that should be embraced by ISA in developing the 20 year strategy.
‘‘This includes protecting freight infrastructure assets from encroachment through a ‘key freight corridors and facilities protections strategy, and ensuring the network can perform 24/7, 365 days a year through a ‘network resilience strategy’.
“We also hope that Moving Freight 2019 will be a catalyst for debate on future infrastructure issues – such as how completion of the North South Corridor will change freight movements from Portrush Road to Cross Road – so that potential problems can be addressed before they become a reality,” he says.
KEY NEEDS
In addition to completing the North South Corridor, other priorities for the next five years outlined in Moving Freight 2019 include:
- Eyre Peninsula road upgrades in preparation for the thousands of new truck movements expected in the region after the cessation of grain transport on the EP rail system
- Accelerated maintenance regime to meet the maintenance backlog as well as the need for increased maintenance spending on economic corridors
- Airport East Precinct freight development as air freight cargo facilities will be progressively relocated to airside sites within the Airport East Precinct to facilitate export growth
- Horrocks Highway safety upgrade, especially between Roseworthy and Clare
- Upgrade of Highway 1 Port Wakefield to Port Augusta (PBS4/Triple Road Train capability) – to facilitate the expanded heavy freight needs of growing communities and industries in the Upper Spencer Gulf Region, as well as facilitating the safe expansion of passenger movements to/from the region
- Rail level crossing grade separation program to reduce road congestion and increase safety
- Widening the Outer Harbor shipping channel (underway) to accommodate Post-Panamax vessels calling to Australia
Moving Freight 2019 also sets out comprehensive project priorities for 5–10 years, 10–20 years and ‘subject to demand’ projects that are dependent on freight generating developments coming on stream.
A higher proportion of regional projects have been identified for these time periods, indicating a change in infrastructure investment focus will be required in the final 15 years of the State Infrastructure Strategy.
“The transport and logistics industry underpins every aspect of our state economy – every business requires inputs, and the majority also require our services to deliver products to customers and end consumers,” Knapp says.
“Efficient, effective and safe transport infrastructure is a competitive advantage that as a state we cannot afford to ignore.”
The full document can be found here.