Logistical Strategy and Planning

Logistics requires an increasing coordination of transport by road, rail, sea and air. The importance of efficient and seamless logistics is greater than ever before. There has been an increasing level of attention on the need for suitable planning, to ensure that infrastructure and operations for the movement of freight can be managed in the future. A number of indicators suggest supporting the future freight task will pose significant challenges, including:

• Container volumes at Port Botany are anticipated to increase to over three million within 20 years. Significant investment is required to cater for this growth. Sydney Ports is proceeding with development of an additional 60 hectare site with five berths to support the servicing of vessels and container terminal activities.
• The volume of interstate general freight in Australia is forecast to double over the next 20 years.
• Continued growth in population and economic activity also means that increases in freight movements are inevitable.

Sydney Ports is working with industry and the New South Wales (NSW) Government to facilitate continuous improvements to the port freight and logistics network.

Key Drivers for Port Freight and Logistics

Increasing the Role of Rail

A key element in port freight and logistics planning for metropolitan Sydney is maximising the use of rail. The ability of this mode to transport large volumes offers industry an alternate system that has a higher level of efficiency, competitive usage costs and lower air and noise emissions. The volumes transported by rail to and from Port Botany have increased from 123,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) in 1997/98 to 310,000 TEUs in 2007/08, and currently represents 20 per cent of all containers transported to and from the port. These volumes include export products from regional NSW, and port shuttle movements of exports and imports within metropolitan Sydney. The NSW Government and Sydney Ports has a shared objective of achieving a 40 per cent mode share to rail for containers that are transported into and out of Port Botany. Sydney Ports has developed a rail simulation model as a tool to test the suitability of various scenarios in meeting the rail mode share target.

Managing Road Transport Movements

Port freight and logistics planning also requires an acknowledgement that road transport will continue to support the majority of freight movements within metropolitan Sydney. Recent extensions to the motorway network have improved accessibility between Port Botany and key distribution and industrial areas across Sydney. Nevertheless, this infrastructure is shared with commuter vehicles and can experience heavy traffic volumes during peak periods. An increase in the volume of freight will translate into an increase in the number of trucks using the road system. While the future number of port trucks on the road will continue to represent a low proportion (between 1 and 2 per cent) when compared to total traffic, it is important that this growth can be accommodated on existing infrastructure through better traffic and operational management.

Expanding the Intermodal Network

The need to expand the intermodal network within Sydney is an ongoing focus for those involved in port freight and logistics planning. An intermodal terminal is a facility that allows for the loading and unloading of containers and general cargo between road and rail based transport. These facilities are used for container movements to/from the port and between different states. The Sydney metropolitan area comprises a number of intermodal terminals that serve port and interstate movements. Analysis of container movements by the NSW Sea Freight Council indicate that areas in the central-west, south-west and west of metropolitan Sydney account for 70 per cent of full import and 34 per cent of full export container movements. The growth in container volumes and improvements to transport capacity can support the development of additional intermodal terminals.

A plan for a network of additional intermodal terminals in the central-west, south-west and west of metropolitan Sydney has been endorsed by the NSW Government to meet predicted demand. Sydney Ports is developing an Intermodal Logistics Centre at Enfield that provides an intermodal facility to cater for demand generated in central-west Sydney and would form a part of the intermodal network. The facility at Enfield received planning approval in September 2007.

Government Initiatives on Port Freight and Logistics

AusLink

AusLink is the national land transport plan for Australia and includes a funding program for land transport expenditure that covers road, rail and intermodal systems. Sydney Ports Corporation will benefit from AusLink through planned improvements to rail infrastructure and operations on the metropolitan freight network.

Infrastructure Australia

Infrastructure Australia is a national body charged with developing a strategic blueprint for Australia's infrastructure needs. Infrastructure Australia has the primary function of providing advice to government, industry and the community in relation to the following areas:

• Australia's current and future needs and priorities relating to nationally significant infrastructure
• Policy, pricing and regulatory issues that may impact on the utilisation of infrastructure
• Impediments to the efficient utilisation of national infrastructure networks
• Options and reforms, including regulatory reforms, to make the utilisation of national infrastructure networks more efficient
• The needs of users of infrastructure
• Mechanisms for financing investment in infrastructure.

Metropolitan Strategy

The NSW Government released the Metropolitan Strategy in December 2005. The document provides an urban planning framework for metropolitan Sydney for the next 30 years. The transport component of the strategy includes a number of specific objectives related to freight, including:

• Expand Port Botany and preserve Sydney Harbour as a working port.
• Maximise the efficiency of freight transport and increase the proportion transported by rail.
• Develop freight strategies for domestic intermodal freight, movement of construction materials and movement of bulk fuel.
• Develop transport plans to facilitate the relocation of vehicle importation from Glebe Island / White Bay to Port Kembla.
• Facilitate the upgrading of the metropolitan rail freight network.
• Plan for the provision of sufficient freight transport capacity in key corridors.
• Protect corridors and land for freight related activities in the future.
• Reduce noise and air impacts of freight operations.

Port Botany Logistics Taskforce

The NSW Government established the Port Botany Logistics Taskforce in November 2006. The Taskforce facilitates strategic industry input to provide comprehensive advice to government on issues in the land transport logistics chain at Port Botany, including port, stevedoring, road, freight rail, intermodal terminal and container park operations. The Taskforce will also examine planning and regulation issues.

Freight Infrastructure Advisory Board

The NSW Government established the Freight Infrastructure Advisory Board in December 2004 to examine proposals to increase the proportion of containers transported by rail, improvements to transport and logistics, and the establishment of intermodal hubs across Sydney. The report by the Board, including a number of recommendations for consideration by government, was released in October 2005 for industry and public comment.

The NSW Government’s response to the Board’s report was released in May 2007 and broadly endorsed the recommendations. In particular, the NSW Government endorsed plans to:

• Establish new terminals at Enfield and, subject to discussions with the Australian Government, at Moorebank.
• Achieve a target of 40 per cent of freight carried by rail which will reduce the number of truck movements on key arterial roads by approximately one million truck movements per year.
• Reduce truck movements around Port Botany and inner metropolitan Sydney by up to 300 per day.

The Port Freight Logistics Plan

The Port Freight Logistics Plan represents a framework by Sydney Ports for improvements to landside logistics to meet the challenges of managing port activities in light of anticipated demand. The Plan discusses existing port operations, initiatives to maximise the use of rail, and initiatives to minimise the impact of truck movements generated by the port. The plan has been developed with the involvement of industry and government stakeholders. It also fulfils the development consent conditions of the Port Botany Expansion.

The successful implementation of the Port Freight Logistics Plan will require ongoing involvement with a number of industry and government stakeholders. Sydney Ports believes that the matters and issues discussed in the plan will assist in improving port freight logistics to the benefit of the port, industry and the community.