Ballarat Intermodal Freight Hub construction has begun, with the $55-million rail freight project now under way beside Ballarat Airport in the city’s north-west.

Ballarat Intermodal Freight Hub Work Begins
Photo: www.theurbandeveloper.com

The hub is forecast to move about 15,000 shipping containers each year to the Port of Melbourne⁠. It will also handle around 300,000 tonnes of grain annually for George Weston Foods, whose flour mill is nearing completion.

Ballarat Intermodal Freight Hub works

Taylor Rail Australia has been selected to deliver the rail line and civil works package. The work covers 3km of new track, drainage works, and the decommissioning of the Ring Road level crossing.

The rail freight hub is expected to be completed this year. It will support Victoria’s freight sector, where volumes are forecast to rise from 440 million tonnes handled in 2020-21 to 900 million tonnes moved annually by 2051.

Construction follows a two-year delay after prolonged planning, procurement, and approval processes, despite funding having been secured earlier.

Funding and Ballarat West Employment Zone

The site forms part of the Ballarat West Employment Zone⁠, known as BWEZ. The zone is a 438ha industrial development on surplus Crown land and is being delivered jointly by local and state governments.

The Victorian Government has invested more than $45 million to unlock commercial land within BWEZ. That investment builds on a $30-million partnership with the City of Ballarat that began in 2015.

Funding for the Ballarat Intermodal Freight Hub is shared by the Victorian and Australian governments, with each contributing $27.75 million.

Victorian ports and freight minister Melissa Horne said shifting more freight onto rail would reduce the number of trucks using state roads, “improving safety, cutting emissions and reducing wear and tear across our network”.

Tenants and freight access

Two lots in the freight hub have already been sold. The sales open access to the broad-gauge Ballarat-Ararat rail line for tenants George Weston Foods and CHS Broadbent.

A separate 2ha site on Liberator Drive is also now on the market.

Federal infrastructure and transport minister Catherine King said the development would “future-proof BWEZ by providing road, rail and future air connectivity all in one precinct”.

“It will be a drawcard for businesses wanting to locate here and for future investment in our city,” King said.

According to the Victorian Freight Plan 2025-30⁠, Victoria’s freight and logistics sector contributes $36 billion to the state economy, equal to about 6 per cent of state GDP. The sector also employs almost 250,000 Victorians.

The government expects construction at the site to support about 100 jobs.

The freight hub is next to the Ballarat-Ararat train line at Mitchell Park. It is on Wadawurrung Country and sits about five minutes by road from Ballarat Airport and the Western Freeway.