Waking up in Geelong

The state government might be in the middle of spending billions of dollars removing level crossings around Melbourne, but this recent project at the Port of Melbourne has slipped under the radar – the creation of the first brand new level crossing in 30 years. 🎉

This new level crossing is located on ‘Intermodal Way‘ – a new public road connecting Dock Link Road and Mullaly Close, replacing Coode Road between Dock Link Road and Phillipps Road.

And the railway track crossing Intermodal Way leads into the new Coode Road Rail Terminal.

The new terminal is part of the ‘Port Rail Transformation Project‘ which will enable port shuttle trains to run to Altona, Somerton and Lyndhurst.

With new rail infrastructure including:

• A new Coode Road rail terminal interfacing with the Swanson Dock East International Container Terminal. The rail terminal will include two new rail sidings each that can handle 600 metre long trains.
• A new road to facilitate the uninterrupted movement of containers. The new road will provide a continued East/West connection within the Swanson Dock Precinct without trucks needing to exit to Footscray Road replacing the section of Coode Road which will be closed for the construction of the above rail terminal.
• Modifications to the Swanson precinct common user sidings to accommodate 600 metre long trains.
• A new track linking the Swanson and Appleton lead tracks to allow additional flexibility for trains to move within the port precinct.

Funding for the project was made available way back in the 2014-15 State Budget as the ‘Metropolitan Intermodal System’, but work on the two track dual gauge intermodal terminal didn’t start until 2021.

Works on the new rail terminal are still ongoing, with flashing lights and boom barriers yet to be installed at the new level crossing.

So will port shuttle trains be running soon? The Victorian Auditor-General’s Office has been tracking the delays.

The shuttle network is not proceeding according to its original timetable. Service start dates across the 3 sites are delayed by 17.6 months on average, although construction at Altona is nearly complete.

The shuttle network program has not achieved the original contract milestones and the department has amended and extended contract dates for Altona 6 times and Somerton 14 times.

The department’s recent advice to government confirms that the shuttle network is unlikely to deliver the expected volume of metropolitan container freight by rail unless the government approves further interventions and investments.

And is worried about the viability of services.

• Pricing, access and operating arrangements at the new on-dock rail terminal at the port are uncertain because the future operator has not yet published its rates.
• Trucks are estimated to have a significant competitive advantage over rail per metropolitan container, based on current pricing and port-precinct operating models.
• The new on-dock terminal, in its initial operating phase, will not operate on weekends and only during the daylight hours of 6 am to 6 pm. This is unlikely to align with available rail paths to the port, especially from Dandenong South, as well as the shuttle network operators’ operational needs.
• No freight train paths for Somerton or Dandenong South can be allocated until a rail operator is appointed for these sites. This will need to happen closer to when they are ready to start services.

Fingers crossed the new services are more successful than previous port shuttle train attempts.

Footnote: Melbourne’s previous newest level crossing?

Back in 2017 I looked at when did Melbourne stop building new level crossings – and the previous newest crossing was around the corner at Dock Link Road, opened in the 1990s as part of an upgrade to the Melbourne Freight Terminal.

But in April 2023 the Level Crossing Removal Authority added an even newer pedestrian level crossing – outside Diamond Creek College on the Hurstbridge line, as part of the Hurstbridge Line Duplication project.

Footnote: dual gauge track and common rail transfers

Sidings at the Port of Melbourne are laid with three-rail ‘dual gauge’ track so that both broad and standard gauge trains can access the freight terminals.

But the new triangle connection between the Appleton Dock and Swanston Dock sidings introduces a new problem – the ‘common’ rail shared between the broad and standard trains needs to switch sides.

So the solution is a complicated device called a ‘common rail transfer’ switch, which moves the wheels of standard gauge trains from one side of the track to the other.

Australia’s mess of rail gauges is the gift that keeps on giving!

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