Regional Development Australia |Regional Development Australia - Final Report This Hume Region Passenger & Freight Rail Review Final Report (“Report”): 1. has been prepared by

Regional Development AustraliaHume Region Passenger & Freight Rail ReviewFinal Report26 August 2011

GHD |Regional Development Australia - Final Report

This Hume Region Passenger & Freight Rail Review Final Report (“Report”):

1. has been prepared by GHD Pty Ltd for Regional Development Australia - Hume;

2. may only be used and relied on by Regional Development Australia - Hume;

3. must not be copied to, used by, or relied on by any person other than RegionalDevelopment Australia - Hume without the prior written consent of GHD;

4. may only be used for the purpose of addressing the RDA Hume Brief (and must notbe used for any other purpose).

GHD and its servants, employees and officers otherwise expressly disclaim responsibility toany person other than Regional Development Australia - Hume arising from or in connectionwith this Report.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, all implied warranties and conditions in relation tothe services provided by GHD and the Report are excluded unless they are expressly statedto apply in this Report.

The services undertaken by GHD in connection with preparing this Report were limited tothose specifically detailed in the Brief.

The opinions, conclusions and any recommendations in this Report are based onassumptions made by GHD when undertaking services and preparing the Report inaccordance with the Brief.

Subject to the paragraphs in this section of the Report, the opinions, conclusions and anyrecommendations in this Report are based on conditions encountered and informationreviewed at the time of preparation.

GHD | Regional Development Australia - Final Report

Executive SummaryGHD has been engaged by the Regional Development Australia - Hume (RDAHume) to undertake a pre-feasibility study to identify the optimal outcomes for bothpassenger and freight rail in the Hume Region of Victoria.

The Hume Region is located in north east Victoria and contains a total of twelvelocal government areas. It is geographically diverse and includes the majorregional centres of Wodonga, Wangaratta, Shepparton and Seymour.

Passenger Rail ServicePassenger rail services are a particular focus of this study and are fully discussedin Section 2.

Passenger rail in the Hume region consists of two rail lines which extend as asingle corridor from Melbourne to Mangalore where the corridor splits to continue toShepparton on one line (the Goulburn Valley line) and to Wangaratta andWodonga on the North East line.

A comparative analysis of population, employment, the current passenger railservice characteristics and trends in train patronage have been completed for theHume region along with a comparison with similar regional centres in Victoria,Traralgon, Geelong, Bendigo and Ballarat.

The analysis shows that the number and scheduling of passenger rail servicesalong the Shepparton and Albury/Wodonga lines are currently inadequate to meetcommunity needs for a link to Melbourne. The number of services provided totownships along the Shepparton and Albury/Wodonga lines is disproportionatelylow when similarities in population and the distance from Melbourne are taken intoaccount.

Freight Rail Service

Freight rail services were also a particular focus of this study and are fullydiscussed in Section 3.

Rail freight in the Hume region travels on the same lines as the passenger servicesto Shepparton and to Albury/Wodonga along with three branch lines off theGoulburn Valley Line which terminate in southern NSW. The freight network withinAustralia is a complex system due to the rail track gauge variations. Until veryrecently Victoria has had a predominantly broad gauge rail “network” which createdinefficiencies for interstate and intrastate rail freight movements and also reducedthe number of operators. Prices have therefore been unnecessarily high for railfreight. The ongoing presence of broad gauge tracks in the Goulburn Valleycontinues to propagate those inefficiencies and barriers to entry for the railindustry.

The freight services within the Hume region are limited. For example, the numberof services along the Shepparton Line has decreased from two services a day tothree services a week over the last few decades. The decline of freight rail servicesin the Hume region has also resulted in rail becoming inflexible and therefore notthe preferred mode of freight transport. The Hume region is a key generator offreight and with most freight now transported by road there is a significantopportunity to increase the volume transported by rail.


Benefits of RailThe benefits of rail transport for passengers and freight are detailed in Section 6.1.

Increasing the usage of rail within the Hume region has a number of benefits whichinclude:

Safety - Rail is a safer transport mode compared to the road system due todriver fatigue resulting in increased chances of collisions;

Cost of Oil Increasing - Oil is a finite resource and will become moreexpensive; based on average vehicles usage rates it will become moreeconomical to transport by rail instead of by road;

Environmental Impacts - Average vehicle occupancy for passengers and thevolume of goods trucks can carry will cause road vehicles to emit increasinglygreater amounts of greenhouse gases per person km or per tonne km;

Congestion - Traffic volumes on roads are increasing resulting in longer traveltimes. Passenger and freight rail provide greater certainty for the duration of thetrip;

Productivity and Time Savings - Rail services offer passengers theopportunity to use their travel time productively. Also, trains can operate athigher speeds than cars therefore decreasing travel time;

Accessibility - The provision of public transport is fundamental to a coherentand socially inclusive society offering services to those people not equippedwith a car;

Deferment or reduction of expenditure on the road network - Roadupgrades and maintenance would be reduced by a mode shift of passengersand freight to rail;

Recent research by Deloittes Access Economics - “The True Value of Rail”quantifies externalities and the social benefits of rail transport. These areparticularly applicable to the RDA Hume Region.

Issues from a paucity of rail servicesThe issues from a paucity of rail services are detailed in Section 6.2 andsummarised below.

A paucity of passenger rail servicescreates the following issues:

Constraints on regional growth;

Increased dependence on privatecars;

Reduction of productivity;

Decrease in the number/variety ofspecialist services provided in thetown;

Education growth limitations;

Fruit picking and multi-culturalmigration difficulties; and

Tourism limitations.

While minimal freight rail servicescreate the following issues:

More road maintenance due to anincreased number of trucks;

Social and security issues intowns from large vehiclestravelling through the town;

Road safety;

Traffic congestion in regionaltowns and in Melbourne; and

Lack of choice for industry tochoose a mode of transport.


Investment Requirements/RecommendationsThe key recommendations and investment requirements from this report aredetailed in Section 7 and summarised below.

The key recommendations are detailed in Section 7 and summarised in the tablebelow.

Key Recommendations

Recommendations Justification of Recommendations

Gauge Standardisation ofthe Shepparton (GoulburnValley) Line

There is a paucity of freight operators on broadgauge and therefore the cost competiveness ofefficient rail transport cannot be tested against roadtransport.

The broad gauge line increases travel time for railfreight from Shepparton to Sydney/Brisbane due tothe need to travel to Melbourne to change gauges.

The Hume region has two gauge types andtherefore gauge standardising the Shepparton linewould allow for efficiencies in the region.

Gauge standardisation on the Goulburn Valleycorridor would relieve congestion on the North Eastcorridor with trains able to travel direct toShepparton.

Increase passenger railservices along theShepparton andAlbury/Wodonga Lines

There is a disparity between passenger railservices in the Hume region and other majorregional centres in Victoria. The analysis shows thatthe number of services to Shepparton and toAlbury/Wodonga is disproportionately low comparedto regional centres of similar population andproximity to Melbourne’s CBD. In particular,Shepparton shares similar demographics, populationand commuter travel characteristics with Traralgonbut receives less than one fifth of the number ofservices.

Track upgrades along theShepparton andAlbury/Wodonga Lines toachieve parity withRegional Fast Rail (RFR)standards (i.e. Class 1track)

Currently the tracks are maintained for lowerlevels of transport (particularly the track toShepparton). This results in lower train speeds andan uncomfortable journey.

Track upgrades would allow faster and newertrains to operate on these tracks.

Additional passenger railrolling stock

To increase the number of passenger servicesmore rolling stock is required.

More rolling stock provides greater flexibility fortimetabling.



Additional freight rail rollingstock

More rolling stock allows for an increase in thefrequency of the services.

Investigate opportunitiesfor a container terminal inthe Shepparton Region

A container terminal in the Goulburn Valley areawould reduce the complexities of the logistics chain,reduce the turnaround time for containers andprovide flexibility.

Develop the GV LogisticsCentre (incorporating acontainer terminal)

The Goulburn Valley Logistics Centre wouldprovide opportunities for efficiencies in freightmovements to/from the region as multiple industrieswould be located on the one site.

This centre would allow for the industry to growand accommodate future forecasted growthvolumes.

Develop Intermodal RailTerminals at the GVLogistics Centre and atLOGIC Wodonga

There is significant potential for efficient railmovements from the intermodal terminal.

The logistics centres are the ideal and logicallocations for intermodal terminals as theconcentration of industries will provide efficiencies inrail movements and container handling.

Increase the freightnetwork to allow privatesidings/spur lines toconnect to the mainnetwork.

Reduces the need for trucks to complete the ‘lastkm of the journey’ therefore reducing the number ofcontainer lifts.

Cargo Sprinter services could operate in thisenvironment allowing for ‘short haul’ rail trips to be aviable alternative for freight movements.

Introduce a ‘businesscarriage’ on all trains withinthe Hume region. Thesetrains would provide therequired facilities forpassengers to performeffective work - i.e.internet connection, tablesand comfortable seating

Increases potential patronage by providing ameans for passengers to effectively utilise traveltime for work or leisure.

Increases overall productivity of the region throughbusiness people using time more productively.

Increases the potential for greater interaction withbusinesses based in Melbourne.

High interest and demand from the communityduring stakeholder consultation.


Table of Contents1. Introduction ......................................................................................................... 1

1.1 Project background ...................................................................................... 1

1.2 Project Objectives........................................................................................ 5

2. Passenger Rail ...................................................................................................... 6

2.1 Introduction ................................................................................................. 6

2.2 About the data ............................................................................................. 6

2.3 Population characteristics and demographic .............................................. 12

2.4 Rail service characteristics ........................................................................ 16

2.5 Regional Fast Rail (RFR) Services ............................................................ 25

2.6 The case for passenger rail ....................................................................... 27

2.7 Future Passenger Rail ............................................................................... 30

3. Freight Rail .......................................................................................................... 32

3.1 Rail Freight Network .................................................................................. 32

3.2 Current Freight Terminals .......................................................................... 34

3.3 Logistics Chain .......................................................................................... 36

3.4 Government policy, projections and recent studies..................................... 37

3.5 Current Freight Services ............................................................................ 45

3.6 Future Freight Rail ..................................................................................... 46

3.7 The Case for Freight Rail ........................................................................... 47

4. Hume Passenger and Freight Rail Infrastructure Issues ....................................... 49

4.1 Rail Track Conditions................................................................................. 49

4.2 Train Paths ................................................................................................ 50

4.3 Locomotives, Carriages and Wagons ......................................................... 52

5. Stakeholder Consultation..................................................................................... 53

5.1 Stakeholder Consultation Process ............................................................. 53

5.2 Passenger Services ................................................................................... 57

5.3 Freight Services ........................................................................................ 62

6. Service Improvements for People and Business .................................................. 65

6.1 Benefits of rail............................................................................................ 65

6.2 Issues due to poor Rail services ................................................................ 67

6.3 Investment requirements to increase the demand for rail andnumber of services .................................................................................... 71

7. Recommendations .............................................................................................. 76

8. References .......................................................................................................... 78


Table IndexTable 1 Road distance & travel time between regional centres and

Melbourne ................................................................................................... 7

Table 2: SSDs used to assess characteristics of key regional centres .............................. 8

Table 3: Past population growth (ABS 2009) and projected populationgrowth (DPCD 2008; DoP NSW 2010) ....................................................... 13

Table 4: Estimate of unemployment (%) in 2009 (ABS 2009) ......................................... 15

Table 5: Projected percentage population growth between 2006 – 2026for LGAs in the Hume region (DPCD 2008, DoP NSW 2010) ..................... 31

Table 6: Stakeholders Consulted Regarding Shepparton (GoulburnValley) Line Passenger Service ................................................................. 54

Table 7: Stakeholders Consulted Regarding Shepparton (GoulburnValley) Line Freight Service ....................................................................... 55

Table 8: Stakeholders Consulted Regarding Albury/Wodonga (NorthEast) line Passenger Service ..................................................................... 56

Table 9: Stakeholders Consulted Regarding Albury/Wodonga (NorthEast) Line Freight Service .......................................................................... 57

Table 10: Key Recommendations .................................................................................. 76

Figure IndexFigure 1: The Hume Region ............................................................................................ 1

Figure 2: The Hume Region and the existing Rail Network .............................................. 3

Figure 3: Statistical Subdivisions for Comparative Analysis ............................................ 10

Figure 4 : Estimated resident population in 2009 (ABS 2009)......................................... 12

Figure 5: Estimated Resident Population in 2026 (DPCD 2008; DoP NSW2010) ......................................................................................................... 13

Figure 6: Age profiles in 2009 (ABS 2009) ..................................................................... 14

Figure 7: Distribution of motor vehicle ownership in 2006 (ABS 2006) ............................ 14

Figure 8: Net business entries between 2004 and 2007 (ABS 2009) .............................. 15

Figure 9: Total trips to & from Melbourne on Weekdays (V/Line 2010a;Country Link 2010) .................................................................................... 17

Figure 10: Number of peak hour rail services to and from Melbourne(V/Line 2010; Country Link 2010) ............................................................... 18

Figure 11: Number of peak hour rail services to and from the Regions(V/Line 2010; Country Link 2010) ............................................................... 19

Figure 12: Average seat capacity and use (per train) for morning services(V/Line 2011a; V/Line 2011b) .................................................................... 20


Figure 13: Average seat capacity and use (per train) for evening services(V/Line 2011a; V/Line 2011b) .................................................................... 20

Figure 14: Population size by town map (DoT 2009) overlayed on V/Linepassenger rail network map (V/Line 2010a) ............................................... 22

Figure 15: Estimated travel time between Melbourne CBD and keyregional centres by rail (V/Line 2010a; Country Link 2010) ......................... 23

Figure 16: Annual train patronage for 2009 - 2010 (V/Line 2010b; V/Line2009; V/Line 2006; V/Line 2011a) .............................................................. 24

Figure 17: Trend in train patronage between 2004 and 2010 (V/Line2010a; V/Line 2011a) ................................................................................ 26

Figure 18: Projected population growth in the Hume region (DPCD 2008,DoP NSW 2010) ........................................................................................ 30

Figure 19: Hume Freight Rail Network and Intermodal Terminals ................................... 33

Figure 20 : Port of Melbourne Logistics Chain Movements (Source: Portof Melbourne and Dynon Rail Terminals – 2009 ContainerLogistics Chain Study) ............................................................................... 37

AppendicesAppendix A Comparative Analysis

Appendix B Detailed Logistics Chain

Appendix C Stakeholder Consultation Questionnaires

Appendix D Stakeholder List

GHD |Regional Development Australia - Final Report | 1

1. Introduction1.1 Project background

1.1.1 The Hume Region

To assist in building the Region, GHD has been engaged by Regional Development Australia –Hume (RDA Hume) to undertake a pre-feasibility study to identify the optimal outcomes for bothpassenger and freight rail in the Hume Region of Victoria.

RDA is a partnership between the Commonwealth, State and Territory and local governments tosupport the growth and development of Australia's regional areas. RDA consists of a nationalnetwork of 55 communities who work with their communities to find ways to deal with theeconomic, social and environmental issues affecting them. There are five regional RDAcommunities in Victoria, one of which supports the Hume region, the focus of this study.

The Hume Region (illustrated in Figure 1) is located in north east Victoria and extends over40,000 square kilometres from the northern boundary of greater Melbourne in the south to theVictorian border in the north. To the west of the Hume region is the Loddon Mallee region whichincludes Bendigo, and to the east is the Gippsland region.

Figure 1: The Hume Region

The Hume region contains a total of twelve local government areas. It is geographically diverseas it includes Victoria’s alpine areas, farming communities and the major regional centres ofWodonga, Wangaratta, Shepparton and Seymour.

2 | GHD | Regional Development Australia - Final Report

1.1.2 Rail in the Hume Region

1.1.2.1 Passenger Rail

Rail services in the Hume Region include both passenger and freight rail. Passenger railconsists of two rail lines which extend as a single corridor from Melbourne to Mangalore (northof Seymour) where the corridor splits and continues north to Shepparton and north east throughWangaratta to Wodonga. Figure 2 shows the location of passenger and freight rail lines in theHume region.

The Shepparton passenger line is a broad gauge track between Melbourne and Shepparton.The line is a double track to Seymour and then a single track with crossing loops to Shepparton.There are currently three return passenger rail services operating daily between Melbourne andShepparton. This service is operated by V/Line.

The Seymour to Albury/Wodonga (via Wangaratta) broad gauge line has recently beenconverted from broad gauge to standard gauge, and, with the existing Australian Rail TrackCorporation (ARTC) standard gauge track, now comprises a double track standard gauge linebetween Seymour and Albury. This line now includes a rail bypass of Wodonga. The gaugeconversion allows the towns along the Seymour to Albury/Wodonga (via Wangaratta) line toaccess both V/Line intrastate services and the interstate Country Link services (which havealways operated on the ARTC standard gauge line) and provides the potential for an increasednumber of passenger services to this region of Victoria.

Since the gauge conversion works commenced in 2008 buses have replaced the three returndaily services between Seymour and Wodonga that were available prior to the commencementof the track upgrade. The gauge conversion works were completed in June 2011 with theintrastate V/Line passenger rail service being partially reintroduced on 26 June 2011. At thetime this report was completed (August 2011), one daily return V/Line service was running withan additional two daily return V/Line services to be introduced by November 2011. In addition tothe intrastate service, The Country Link XPT interstate service operates with an additional tworeturn services a day between Melbourne and Sydney.

Further discussion on passenger rail in the Hume Region is in Section 2 of this report.

180 Lonsdale Street Melbourne VIC 3000 Australia T 61 3 8687 8000 F 61 3 8687 8111 E [email protected] W www.ghd.com

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1.1.2.2 Freight Rail

Rail freight in the Hume region travels on the same lines as the passenger services toShepparton and Albury/Wodonga. There are three branch lines off the main tracks whichterminate at Tocumwal, Deniliquin and Oaklands all of which are located in NSW.

The lines to Albury/Wodonga and the branch line from Benalla to Oaklands in NSW are now allstandard gauge lines. This enhances the freight carrying ability of these lines due to improvedconnectivity to the National Rail Network and more readily available access to rolling stock andRail Freight Operators.

The Melbourne to Albury/Wodonga standard gauge lines - now under ARTC control - continueinto NSW as the main freight path to Sydney and Brisbane.

On the Seymour to Shepparton broad gauge line there are two branch lines off the main trackswhich terminate at Tocumwal and Deniliquin, both located in NSW. A branch line to Dookie(near Shepparton) remains part of the regional network for grain traffic but is not currently inuse. Historically there were additional broad gauge branch lines - the Rushworth line, Picolaline and Cobram line which were used for freight movements. These lines are no longer in use.

Figure 2 shows the location of freight and passenger rail lines in the Hume Region.

The broad gauge freight line to Tocumwal NSW is an extension of the Melbourne to Sheppartonline which terminates at the Tocumwal freight terminal.

The broad gauge freight line terminating in Deniliquin NSW branches off from the Sheppartonline at Toolamba, travels west outside of the Hume region to Echuca, then runs north toDeniliquin.

The Oaklands standard gauge freight line branches off the Wodonga line at Benalla andextends in a northerly direction to Oaklands in NSW.

Further discussion on freight rail in the Hume Region is in Section 3 of this report

1.1.3 Project Drivers

Within the Hume Region neither passenger nor freight rail services are being utilised to their fullcapacity to meet the demands of both passengers and businesses in the region. TheMelbourne to Shepparton and the Melbourne to Wodonga passenger rail services are viewedby both businesses and residents as being inadequate in terms of frequency to meet therequirements of the current population in the Hume Region. Additionally, both rail corridorshave shown population growth trends during the past decade and demands for public transporthave increased as a result. Given the distance from Melbourne, increased demands for publictransport are believed to be best served by rail as the safest and most environmentallysustainable mode of transport.

Over the past decade, other major regional centres in Victoria which include Geelong, Ballarat,Bendigo and Traralgon have received significant rail upgrades (track, signals, level crossings)that have resulted in a greater number of services, faster travel times and a more reliableservice. Based on current populations, rail services on both passenger lines in the HumeRegion can be shown to be significantly under-serviced on a per capita basis. While theAlbury/Wodonga track has now been upgraded and fully converted to standard gauge, theShepparton rail line as well as the associated signals and level crossings across the HumeRegion have not undergone the necessary upgrades to maintain a more efficient and higherfrequency of rail usage.

Historically, a significant proportion of freight out of the Hume Region was transported by rail.However, over the past few decades, the rail freight task has progressively been transferred toroad due to the cost and convenience of point to point delivery. As a result, the number and


capacity of scheduled freight rail services in the Hume Region have decreased considerably.This represents an opportunity for growth on rail and a reason to encourage the trips to transferback to rail once the rail service starts to improve.

1.2 Project Objectives

The project objectives are:

To obtain a demographic comparison of the Hume Region in comparison to other majorregional centres in Victoria in order to understand the demands for passenger rail on bothHume rail corridors;

To obtain information on whether the Hume region, and in particular its major centres,receives equitable rail services on a per capita basis compared with other Victorian regionsand their major centres;

To develop an understanding of the factors behind the decreasing rail share of the overallfreight task in the Hume region; and

To demonstrate a social and business case rather than a technical case for increasedinvestment in, and use of, rail for both passenger and freight tasks in the Hume region.

These project objectives will be achieved by:

A comparative study on demographics and rail service characteristics between the Humeregion and other major regional centres in Victoria (Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo andTraralgon) to assess levels of passenger rail demands and services;

A study of freight rail to identify the existing demands and current inadequacies of the currentfreight rail setup in the Hume region;

Stakeholder consultation for both passenger and freight rail to identify community andbusiness demands for both passenger and freight rail services; and

A high level review of future improvements required for rail in the Hume region.

Note that this study is focused only on rail transport. While we do recognise that other modes oftransport (i.e. road and aviation) will assist in meeting both passenger and freight transportdemands for the Hume region, GHD was engaged by RDA to investigate only rail services.


2. Passenger Rail2.1 Introduction

This section presents a comparative analysis of population, employment, the current passengerrail service characteristics and trends in train patronage for key regional centres serviced bypassenger rail within the Hume Region and a number of comparable regional centres acrossVictoria. The geographies selected for the comparative analysis and data sources consulted areexplained further in Section 2.2.

2.2 About the data

2.2.1 The key regional centres for comparison

The regional centres chosen for this comparative analysis are as follows:

Key regional centres within the Hume region:

- Seymour (rail service characteristics only)1;

- Wangaratta (rail service characteristics only)2;

- Shepparton; and

- Wodonga.

Regional centres for comparison:

- Geelong;

- Ballarat;

- Bendigo; and

- Traralgon.

These regional centres have been selected as each represents the location of a key regionalrailway station and are of comparable accessibility and remoteness (see Table 1).

1 The rail service characteristics of Seymour have been included in this analysis in the absence of relevant data beyondSeymour station and, where data was available, to understand the difference in service provision beyond Seymour.2 Population and business characteristics have been assessed only for key regional centres within the Hume region witha terminating railway station (i.e. Shepparton and Albury-Wodonga). The population and business characteristics ofWangaratta have not been assessed since the statistical geographies used for this analysis (Statistical Subdivisions) donot provide a comparable geography for the purpose of assessing the areas serviced by the railway station at thislocation. The Wangaratta Statistical Subdivision covers significant land area, of which some areas would be serviced byother railway stations along the Albury-Wodonga railway line.


Table 1 Road distance & travel time between regional centres andMelbourne3

Regional centre Distance (km) Estimated car travel time (hours)Geelong 75 1Seymour 112 1Ballarat 115 1.5Bendigo 153 2Traralgon 164 2Shepparton 190 2.5Wangaratta 252 3Wodonga 321 3.5Albury 327 3.5

With the exception of Geelong, each of these regional centres is defined as being an innerregional area on the basis of the Accessibility/Remoteness Index of Australia4. The centre ofShepparton in particular, can be compared to the towns of Bendigo and Traralgon which are alllocated 2 to 2.5 hours driving time from Melbourne’s CBD.

2.2.2 About the analysis geographies

For each regional centre selected, population and employment characteristics within Australiahave been compared on the basis of Statistical Subdivisions (SSDs). SSDs provide a consistentgeographical unit to compare population and employment characteristics between the regionalcentres under consideration, and allow the corresponding geographies serviced by passengerrail to be considered.

An SSD is a standard geographical unit defined under the Australian Standard GeographicalClassification. SSDs consist of one or more Statistical Local Areas (SLAs) and are defined associally and economically homogeneous regions characterised by identifiable links betweeninhabitants5.

The SSDs used for this comparative analysis are detailed in Table 2 and illustrated in Figure 3.

Note that all statistics within this report refer to the analysis regions (refer to Table 2) rather thanthe names of the corresponding SSDs analysed.

3 These figures have been sourced through Google maps estimates. The travel times have been approximated to thenearest half hour.4 ABS 2010, Australian Standard Geographical Classification 1261.0, Chapter 8, pp 375 ABS 2010, Australian Standard Geographical Classification 1261.0, Chapter 2, pp 12


Table 2: SSDs used to assess characteristics of key regional centres

Regional centre Corresponding SSD(s) analysed Analysis region name

Shepparton Greater Shepparton City Part A

Overall catchment of Shepparton(*see note below)

Shepparton

Wodonga Wodonga

Albury (*see note below)

Wodonga (population characteristics)

Albury-Wodonga (rail servicecharacteristics)

Geelong Greater Geelong City Geelong

Ballarat Ballarat City Ballarat

Bendigo Greater Bendigo City Part A Bendigo

Traralgon La Trobe Valley Traralgon

*In addition to the SSDs listed above, the overall catchment of Shepparton (comprising theSLAs of Moira West, Moira East and Greater Shepparton Part B) and the SSD of Albury (NSW)have been considered in this analysis. These additional geographies have been included inrecognition of the service provided to these areas by the Shepparton and Albury railway stationsas a means of access to regional townships and Melbourne. Both the Shepparton and Alburyrailway stations represent the termination of the V/Line passenger rail network (Albury is also astation on the CountryLink network) and are linked to adjacent geographies via coachconnections. The geographies immediately adjacent and north of the Shepparton SSD (i.e.overall catchment of Shepparton) and both the Wodonga and Albury SSDs are therefore servedby the Shepparton and Albury railway stations.

It is noted that a number of townships in NSW (e.g. Berrigan, Griffith, Tocumwal, Barooga,Mulwala) are also served by the Shepparton and Albury and/or Wodonga railway stations (viacoach connections). However, they have not been considered in this data analysis in order tomake sure that consistent and comparable statistical geographies of similar accessibility,remoteness and statistical composition are selected for comparison. As a result, this analysiscan be considered to represent a conservative estimate of the population served by theShepparton and Albury and/or Wodonga railway stations. That is, extending the analysisregions for Shepparton to include the relevant NSW SSDs or SLAs would not allow for anequivalent comparison with the comparison analysis regions. The extended geographies wouldnot be equivalent because:

The population of the Shepparton analysis region would be spread across a vastly greaterland area, more than three times the area of the comparison analysis regions;

The additional NSW townships are located at a far greater distance from the relevant regionalrailway stations compared with townships considered as part of the comparison analysisregions; and

A few similar townships that have not been included as part of this analysis are served by keyregional railway stations relevant to the comparison analysis regions(e.g. Ballarat stationserves residents of Wedderburn and Tarnagulla via coach connections).

Geographies adjacent to SSDs for the regional centres of Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo andTraralgon have not been included as part of this analysis since passenger rail services extendbeyond these centres to Warrnambool, Ararat, Swan Hill and Echuca, and Bairnsdale


respectively. Geographies immediately adjacent to these key regional centres along the railwayline are considered to be served by other railway stations beyond the stations of Geelong,Ballarat, Bendigo and Traralgon.

180 Lonsdale Street Melbourne VIC 3000 Australia T 61 3 8687 8000 F 61 3 8687 8111 E [email protected] W www.ghd.com

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Shepparton railcatchment area

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GreaterSheppartonCity Part A

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Ballarat City

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AlburyEchuca

Ararat

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G:\31\27462\GIS\Maps\Working\3127462_002_SSDs.mxd© 2011. Whilst every care has been taken to prepare this map, GHD (and DATA CUSTODIAN) make no representations or warranties about its accuracy, reliability, completeness or suitability for any particular purpose and cannot accept liability and responsibility of any kind (whether in contract, tort or otherwise) for any expenses, losses, damages and/or costs (including indirect or consequential damage) which are or may be incurred by any party as a result of the map being inaccurate, incomplete or unsuitable in any way and for any reason.

LEGEND0 20 40 60 8010

KilometersMap Projection: Lambert Conformal Conic

Horizontal Datum: GDA 1994Grid: GDA 1994 VICGRID94

Regional Development VictoriaRDA Hume Region

Figure 3

Job NumberRevision 0

31-27462

26 Aug 2011

Statistical Subdivisions forComparative Analysiso Date

Data source: DSE, VicMap, 2011; Vline, 2011; ABS, 2011. Created by:splaird

Paper Size A3Vline Passenger and freight servicesVline Freight servicesState boundaryHume region boundary

Shepparton rail catchment areaAlburyBallarat CityGreater Bendigo City Part A

Greater Geelong City Part AGreater Shepparton City Part ALa Trobe ValleyWodongaSSD

!( Major Regional Rail Stations%, Minor Regional Rail Stations

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2.2.3 Key assumptions and considerations

Some areas within the overall Shepparton catchment considered as part of this analysis may becloser to other railway stations (e.g. Moira West to Echuca Station and Moira East to stationsalong the Wodonga/Albury line). It is assumed that Shepparton is the key station for all of theseareas for the purposes of this analysis because:

There are only 2 passenger rail services which run between Melbourne and Echuca onweekdays compared to 6 services between Melbourne and Shepparton; and

There is a number of interconnecting bus services from Shepparton Station to towns in theseareas.

As shown in Figure 2, the Shepparton, Traralgon, Ballarat and Geelong analysis regions areeach served by a number of additional railway stations (n, number = 2) at which all servicesmake a stop and some terminate. For Shepparton and Traralgon, it is noted that:

The majority (85%) of the combined population of the Shepparton analysis region residewithin two northern SLAs (Statistical Local Areas) of the overall Shepparton catchment(Moira West and Moira East) and the Shepparton SSD which are all served by theShepparton railway station; and

The majority (60%) of the Traralgon analysis region’s population resides within the Latrobe -Traralgon SLA where the Traralgon railway station is located.

The implications of these additional railway stations are discussed further within the analysis.

2.2.4 Data sources consulted

The main data sources consulted as part of this analysis are:

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), Census 2006 (ABS 2006);

ABS, National Regional Profiles (NRP) 2005 – 2009 (ABS 2009);

Department of Planning and Community Development (DPCD), Population Projections(DPCD 2008);

Department of Planning NSW (DoP NSW), NSW SLA Population Projections (DoP NSW2010);

Country Link timetables (Country Link 2010);

V/Line annual reports (V/Line 2010b, V/Line 2009, V/Line 2006), timetables (V/Line 2010a),performance data (V/Line 2011b) and data provided by V/Line staff (V/Line 2011a); and

Victoria Department of Transport (DoT) Regional Transport Atlas (DoT 2009).

Details of the data sources and the data used from each source can be found in Appendix A.


2.3 Population characteristics and demographic

This section presents an analysis of the current population, past population growth, projectedpopulation, age profiles, motor vehicle ownership and employment trends for the chosenanalysis geographies.

2.3.1 Current and projected population

Figure 4 presents the estimated resident population of each analysis region and the number ofmajor railway stations (at which some services terminate and all services stop) and minorrailway stations (at which all services stop) within each analysis region (refer to Figure 3 forstation locations with respect to the analysis geographies).

Figure 4 : Estimated resident population in 2009 (ABS 2009)

As shown in Figure 4, the resident populations served by the Shepparton station (including theoverall Shepparton catchment) and Albury Station (including both Albury and Wodonga SSDs)are comparable to the populations served by Ballarat, Bendigo and Traralgon. The Traralgonand Shepparton analysis regions are particularly alike with similar resident populations servedby the same number of major (n=1) and minor (n=2) railway stations. Bendigo andAlbury/Wodonga are also alike with similar resident populations served by 1 major railwaystation (and 1 minor station in the case of Wodonga).

While Geelong’s population is significantly larger, it is noted that the analysis region is served by2 major railway stations (Geelong and Marshall), 1 minor railway station (North Geelong) and anadditional station (not shown in the above Figure) where some services terminate but not allservices make a stop (South Geelong). As a result, this resident population is served by fourrailway stations; the implications of this are discussed further in the analysis of rail servicecharacteristics.

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Comparison analysis regions Hume analysis regions

Pop

ulat

ion

(num

ber o

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Albury

OverallSheppartoncatchmentSSD

Number minorrailway stations inregion

Number majorrailway sations inregion


Table 3: Past population growth (ABS 2009) and projected population growth(DPCD 2008; DoP NSW 2010)

Analysis region Past populationgrowth (% between2004 and 2009)

Projected populationgrown (% between2006 and 2026)

Comparisonanalysisregions

Geelong 7% 29%Ballarat 10% 34%Bendigo 9% 40%Traralgon 7% 9%

Humeanalysisregions

Shepparton 7% 25%Overall Shepparton catchment 6% 13%Wodonga 5% 24%Albury 7% 12%

As shown in Table 3, the population growth between 2004 and 2009 has also been similaracross the different analysis regions. Shepparton has shown the same percentage growth asTraralgon, an analysis region of similar distance from the Melbourne CBD (as noted previouslyin Table 1). Albury and Wodonga have also shown similar levels of growth to Traralgon andShepparton despite being located further from the Melbourne CBD.

Table 3 also shows that the projected population growth varies significantly from past trends.Ballarat and Bendigo are projected to experience a higher percentage growth when comparedto other analysis regions (34% and 40% respectively). Although past trends show that theTraralgon and Shepparton SSDs have experienced similar levels of growth, future growthpredictions suggest that the Shepparton SSD will experience 2.5 times the percentage growth ofTraralgon. As shown in Figure 5 below, railway services to the Shepparton analysis region willtherefore be required to cater for a proportionately larger population in 2026 (1.25 times that ofTraralgon) than in the past (1.14 times that of Traralgon).

Figure 5: Estimated Resident Population in 2026 (DPCD 2008; DoP NSW 2010)

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Overall Sheppartoncatchment

SSD


2.3.2 Demographic comparison

Age and motor vehicle ownership data shows that the analysis regions can be considered to beof comparable demographic:

The distribution of persons by age is similar across all analysis regions (Figure 6); and

The distribution of dwellings by the number of motor vehicles owned is similar across allanalysis regions compared (Figure 7).

Figure 6: Age profiles in 2009 (ABS 2009)

Figure 7: Distribution of motor vehicle ownership in 2006 (ABS 2006)

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0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Geelong

Ballarat

Bendigo

Traralgon

Shepparton


Wodonga

Albury

% of persons in age group

0 - 9

10 - 19

20 - 29

30 - 39

40 - 49

50 - 69

70 +

Com

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Geelong

Ballarat

Bendigo

Traralgon

Shepparton


Wodonga

Albury

% of dwellings

Not stated

None

1 vehicle

2 vehicles

3 vehicles

4 or morevehicles

Com

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regi

ons

Hum

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gion

s


2.3.3 Trends in employment

As shown in Table 4, the percentage estimate of unemployment is similar across the majority ofanalysis regions compared. Note that the percentage estimates of unemployment for the overallShepparton catchment and Albury are lower than for the other areas.

Table 4: Estimate of unemployment (%) in 2009 (ABS 2009)

Analysis region Estimate ofUnemployment (%)

Comparisonanalysisregions

Geelong 6%Ballarat 8%Bendigo 6%Traralgon 6%

Humeanalysisregions

Shepparton 6%Overall Shepparton catchment 4%Wodonga 6%Albury 4%

Figure 8 also shows that the net change in the number of businesses between 2004 and 2007within the Shepparton and Albury/Wodonga analysis regions has been higher than that ofBendigo and Traralgon and comparable to that of Geelong Ballarat. The net business entry rateis an indication of the comparable level of employment opportunity between the Geelong,Ballarat, and Shepparton and Albury/Wodonga geographies.6

Figure 8: Net business entries between 2004 and 2007 (ABS 2009)

6 Net business entry rates are generally used as a proxy for employment opportunity trends. Positive employmenteffects of net business entry rates has been found by a number of studies related to business dynamics including: VanStel, A & Diephuis, B 2004

879 94

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SSD



2.3.4 A comparable demographic and population

The analysis regions assessed have been found to be of comparable demographic with similarage profiles, motor vehicle ownership per dwelling and unemployment rates (refer to Figure 6,Figure 7 and Table 4). The analysis also suggests that employment opportunity in Sheppartonand Albury/Wodonga is likely to be similar to that of Geelong and Ballarat (refer to Figure 8).

The Hume analysis regions of Shepparton and Albury/Wodonga were found to havecomparable populations to Bendigo, Ballarat and Traralgon, both now (refer to Figure 4) andinto the future (refer to Figure 5).

In particular, the Shepparton analysis region was found to be similar to Traralgon; both analysisregions service similar populations with 1 major railway station (i.e. Shepparton station andTraralgon station respectively) and 2 minor railway stations (i.e. Mooroopna and Murchisonstations in the Shepparton analysis region, and Morwell and Moe stations in the Traralgonanalysis region). The Albury/Wodonga analysis region was also found to be similar to Bendigowith similar populations serviced by one major railway station and one minor station (refer toFigure 4).

Future growth predictions (refer to Table 3 and Figure 5) suggest that the Shepparton analysisregion will experience a significant percentage growth in the next 20 years (2006 – 2026)resulting in the Shepparton railway station servicing a larger population in comparison toTraralgon (approximately 1.25 the population of Traralgon).

2.4 Rail service characteristics

This section presents an analysis of the number of rail services, train travel time, punctuality,reliability, capacity and train patronage for key regional railway stations in each analysis regionas well as in the key regional centres of Seymour and Wangaratta.

This section also considers the connecting coach services that operate between:

Melbourne and Ballarat; and

Seymour and Shepparton, Wangaratta or Albury/Wodonga (including services operating inplace of V/Line services that were terminated to undertake the North East RevitalisationProject).

2.4.1 Availability of train services and usage

At the time this report was completed, V/Line services to Albury/Wodonga beyond Seymour hadbeen partially re-introduced following their termination in 2008 due to continuing works (gaugeconversion etc.) on the North East Rail Revitalisation Project7. In addition to the Country Linkrail services, 2 daily V/Line services recommenced on Sunday the 26th of June. An additional 4daily V/Line services will be introduced by November 20118.This analysis considers the CountryLink rail services that currently service Albury-Wodonga and makes comment on the additionalservices that recommenced and will be introduced once V/Line services resume.

The analysis of V/Line train services is on the basis of V/Line timetables effective in October2011 and considers each leg of a journey (i.e. a return service is counted as 2 services).

7 The project commenced in late 2008 and includes the replacement of wooden sleepers with concrete sleepers,construction of a new rail bypass around Wodonga CBD, building new platforms and converting the rail line from broadgauge to standard gauge.8Victorian Government 2011


Figure 9: Total trips to & from Melbourne on Weekdays (V/Line 2010a;Country Link 2010)

As shown in Figure 9, the number of rail services to and from the Shepparton, Wangaratta andAlbury/Wodonga stations are significantly lower than the number of services to and from allother regional stations analysed. Despite Shepparton’s comparable population, number ofrailway stations and demographic to Traralgon, Traralgon receives approximately 5 times thenumber of services. Similarly, Bendigo receives approximately 9 times the number of servicesreceived by Albury/Wodonga despite a comparable population and demographic. In additionthere are more than 6 times the number of services to Seymour than to Shepparton andAlbury/Wodonga.

This is still the case when connecting coach services are taken into consideration9 and whenadditional services to Albury/Wodonga are considered once V/Line fully resumes operations.The Albury/Wodonga line will receive six additional services (a total of 5 return services) and willlose an equivalent number of coach services once the V/Line trains come back online10.

Despite Geelong’s larger population, the analysis region is served by a disproportionatelygreater number of services. As previously discussed, the Geelong services stop at 4 railwaystations (Marshall, South Geelong and North Geelong) within the Geelong analysis region. Ofthe 57 services to Geelong, all stop at North Geelong railway station, 52 continue to SouthGeelong railway station and 28 continue to Marshall railway station. As well as dispersing theresident population across at least 3 railway stations for the majority of services, the region alsoreceives a much larger number of services to cater for these dispersed passengers.

In addition to a disparity in weekday services, there is also significantly less opportunity forweekend travel to Melbourne from Shepparton, Wangaratta and Albury/Wodonga (n=2), and

9 This includes coach services that connect from Seymour to Shepparton/ Wangaratta/ Albury/Wodonga but does notinclude coach services running directly from Melbourne to any of these destinations.10 DoT 2011a

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less opportunity for tourists to visit these key regional centres (n=2) compared to the railwaystations in the comparison analysis regions (between 20 and 34 services in each direction).

Figure 10 presents the number of train services to the key regional centres during the morningpeak and from the regional centres during the evening peak.

Figure 10: Number of peak hour rail services to and from Melbourne (V/Line2010; Country Link 2010)

As shown in Figure 10, there are a greater number of peak hour services on the Geelong,Ballarat, Bendigo, Traralgon and Seymour lines in comparison to the Shepparton andAlbury/Wodonga lines. Shepparton receives no services during the morning peak or eveningpeak and the Albury/Wodonga line receives only one Country Link service during the morningpeak (this is the same service that stops at Wangaratta station).

Note that it is not known whether the number of peak hour services to Wangaratta andAlbury/Wodonga will change once the V/Line trains become operational again.

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Figure 11 presents the number of train services to the key regional centres during the morningpeak and from the regional centres during the evening peak. These services have beenanalysed in recognition of the potential for business journeys, travel to work in the area,journeys by tourists and day trips on weekdays from Melbourne or regional towns to the keyregional centres.

Figure 11: Number of peak hour rail services to and from the Regions (V/Line2010; Country Link 2010)

As shown in Figure 11, there is a small number of services during the morning and eveningpeaks to and from railway stations in the comparison analysis regions. However, there are noservices to and from railway stations in the Hume analysis region beyond Seymour, with theexception of one service which leaves Wangaratta between 4 and 6.30 pm.

While weekday journeys to key regional centres in the Hume region do not necessitate arrivalduring the morning peak or departure during the evening peak travel times, day trips to theselocations are almost impossible given the timetabling of services. The earliest service toShepparton arrives past midday at 12.22 pm and the only option for leaving on the same day isthe 15.55 pm service which leaves only a 3 hour gap for activities in the Shepparton region.Similarly timetabled services are provided for both Wangaratta and Albury/Wodonga. As aresult, there is no potential for day trips to these regions on weekdays.

Figure 12 and Figure 13 (overleaf) show the average seat capacity and seats filled for morningand evening passenger rail services along each line (i.e. average across all stations on the line).Morning services are those arriving in Melbourne before 9 am (Figure 12) and evening servicesare those departing Melbourne between 4 and 6.30 pm (Figure 13).

There is no comparable data for Shepparton since there are no Shepparton services arriving inMelbourne before 9 am or leaving Melbourne between 4 and 6.30 pm. The earliest service fromShepparton to Melbourne in the morning (arriving in Melbourne at 9.28 am) has a seat capacityof 296 seats and 56% of seats are occupied on average. The earliest train from Shepparton toMelbourne in the evening (leaving Shepparton at 18.33 pm) has a seat capacity of 296 seatsand 44% seats are occupied on average.

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Note that services to Wangaratta and Albury/Wodonga cannot be compared as this line has notbeen in operation since 2009 and relevant data was not available at the time of writing thisreport.

Figure 12: Average seat capacity and use (per train) for morning services(V/Line 2011a; V/Line 2011b)

Figure 13: Average seat capacity and use (per train) for evening services(V/Line 2011a; V/Line 2011b)

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Average seats filled per train Total seats available per train

Not applicableNot applicable


As shown in Figure 12 and Figure 13, a smaller proportion of seats are filled for the Seymourand Traralgon services in comparison to the other railway lines.

In comparing the available data for seat capacity and usage for services to Shepparton with theother railway lines, Shepparton has the lowest average percentage of seats filled for journeys inboth directions. This may be a reflection of the timing of the analysed service. As previouslynoted, no Shepparton service arrives in Melbourne before 9 am or departs Melbourne between4 and 6.30 pm (all other railway lines receive these morning and evening peak hour services),therefore not providing the same flexibility for travel or allowing people to arrive in Melbourneand attend a meeting by 9 am. Consequently the train may not be the currently preferred modeof travel between Melbourne and Shepparton.

However, it is acknowledged that the lower proportion of seats filled to the Traralgon, Seymourand Shepparton regions may also be a reflection of the following factors:

The lower number of commuter journeys to Melbourne from these regions. Based on 2006census data, a higher number of work journeys are conducted by rail for the Geelong(n=1,857), Ballarat (n=290) and Bendigo (n=101) analysis regions than for Traralgon (n=70)or Shepparton (n=11);

The more remote location of Traralgon and Shepparton in comparison to other comparisonanalysis regions (within 2.5 hours driving time of Melbourne compared to within 1 or 1.5hours driving time for most other regional centres relevant to each railway line);

The passenger rail services to Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo serve populations that areconcentrated at key regional townships whilst the population served by Shepparton railwaystation is dispersed across a larger region (i.e. across the overall Shepparton catchment) asis the population served by Traralgon railway station); and

The smaller number of significant townships serviced by the Seymour line (betweenMelbourne and Seymour) in comparison to other lines (see Figure 14 overleaf).

The similarities between Traralgon and Shepparton in terms of travel time (by car), populationand demographic may suggest that similar figures for seat usage could be expected forShepparton if more frequent services during peak times were introduced (i.e. increases ofapproximately 12% in the morning and 25% in the afternoon). However, it is noted thatincreases in seats filled are likely to be lower in Shepparton when considering the lower numberof significant townships between Melbourne and Seymour and between Seymour andShepparton (see Figure 14 overleaf); this is already evident when the lower proportion of seatsfilled for Seymour services compared to Traralgon services is considered.

Note that the seat capacity and seats filled have not been assessed for the Country Linkservices that operate between Melbourne and Albury/Wodonga due to the absence ofcomparable data.


Figure 14: Population size by town map (DoT 2009) overlayed on V/Line passenger rail network map (V/Line 2010a)


2.4.2 Train travel time and performance

Figure 15 presents the estimated travel time by rail between the Melbourne CBD andthe regional centres in each analysis region.

Figure 15: Estimated travel time between Melbourne CBD and keyregional centres by rail (V/Line 2010a; Country Link 2010)

Figure 15 shows that the approximate travel time by rail to Shepparton is comparableto the travel time to Traralgon and Bendigo (particularly Traralgon). The travel times toWangaratta and Albury/Wodonga are longer due to their distance from Melbourne.

The average estimated travel time by rail is similar to the average driving time for allthe analysis regions. The travel time by rail is approximately 0.5 hours less than thetravel time by car to Wodonga on the Country Link services. The travel time by rail isapproximately 0.5 hours more than the travel time by car for Geelong and Traralgonwhile the travel time by car is similar to the travel time by train for all other regionalcentres (i.e. Ballarat, Bendigo, Seymour, Shepparton and Wangaratta). Refer toAppendix A for details.

The current performance of the compared rail services11, in terms of train reliabilityand punctuality, is also similar across all the regions analysed on the basis of data forthe month of April 201112. Train reliability, measured as the percentage of servicesthat run, is between 97 - 100% for all lines. Train punctuality, measured as thepercentage of services that run on time13, is strongest for services to Shepparton(93%) with other lines generally fairing between 80 and 90%14. Details of trainperformance for the April 2011 month can be found in Appendix A.

11 There is no current data for Wangaratta or Albury/Wodonga as services haven’t operated since 2009.12 V/Line 2011b13 Running on time is defined as running within 5 minutes and 59 seconds for services to Geelong, Ballarat,Bendigo, Traralgon and Seymour (defined as short distance) and within 10 minutes and 59 seconds forservices to Shepparton (defined as long distance).14 Traralgon is an exception to this with train punctuality at approximately 65% in April 2011.

0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4

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Estimated travel time (hours within which journey can be made)

within 3.5 hours

within 3 hours

witihn 3.5 hours

within 2.5 hours

witihn 3.5 hours

within 2.5 hours

within 1.5 hours

within 1.5 hours

within 1.5 hours

within 2 hours

24 | GHD |Regional Development Australia - Final Report

2.4.3 Annual train patronage

Figure 16 presents the annual train patronage for the 2009 – 2010 financial year15 andthe annual train patronage normalised by the number of services per day onweekdays (based on October 2010 timetables). Note that patronage data forWangaratta and Albury/Wodonga are not available as V/Line services have not beenin operation since 2009; Country Link (XPT) services have not been analysed in theabsence of comparable data.

Figure 16: Annual train patronage for 2009 - 2010 (V/Line 2010b;V/Line 2009; V/Line 2006; V/Line 2011a)

The above figure shows that annual patronage is significantly higher for thecomparison analysis regions compared to the analysis regions within Hume. Evenwhen the patronage is normalised by the number of services per day on weekdays,figures are between 3 to 8 times higher for railway lines in comparison analysisregions. The patronage for Shepparton is particularly low. Train patronage figures arediscussed in further detail in the following section with reference to track conditionsand upgrades as part of the Regional Fast Rail (RFR) project.

15 Patronage figures for the Shepparton, Wangaratta and Albury/Wodonga services were provided on thebasis of calendar years by V/Line and have been converted to financial year figures on the assumption thatcombining half the patronage for the first year and half the patronage of the second year provides areasonable representation of the patronage for that financial year (i.e. combining figures for July –December 2009 with figures for January 2010 – June 2005 provides the total patronage for the 2009-2010financial year time period)

0.0%

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9.0%

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)

Pat

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Train Patronage (millions) between 2009 - 2010

Patronage normalised by number of services per weekday (%)

N/A


2.5 Regional Fast Rail (RFR) Services

This section contains an analysis of the pre and post positions of the regional centresthat have received the RFR services in comparison to those which have not. Theanalysis considers the impact of RFR services on rail patronage and othercharacteristics of the analysis geographies. The analysis also considers the impact ofthe inferior track conditions along railway lines that did not receive RFR services.

2.5.1 About RFR16

The RFR project involved one of the biggest upgrades of the Victorian regionalnetwork. Track and civil works were completed on the Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong andTraralgon lines to allow more frequent and modern services to be provided alongthese lines. The upgrade included the delivery of 38 new V’Locity trains capable oftravelling 30 km/h faster than previous trains on the same lines, an upgrade of 500 kmof track, upgrade of 170 level crossings and the introduction of a fully computercontrolled signalling system to improve train control and reliability. The project resultedin the introduction of a new V/Line timetable across Victoria which provided more than400 additional services every week into regional centres (including additional peakhour and night time services).

The track and signalling works were completed between September 2000 and August2006 and new services were introduced on the following dates:

Ballarat line – 22 December 2005;

Geelong line – 31 January 2006;

Bendigo line – 22 February 2006; and

Traralgon line – 25 August 2006.

2.5.2 About the track conditions of railway lines without RFRservices

The Seymour, Shepparton and Albury/Wodonga lines were the only V/Line railwaylines considered as part of this analysis that did not receive upgrades as part of theRFR project.

The condition of these lines was significantly inferior to the upgraded RFR lines.However, on completion of ARTC track works, the upgraded Melbourne toAlbury/Wodonga line will be operating as a virtually new line with a track conditionequal to or better than that of the RFR lines. It will have the added advantage of beinga standard gauge line and an integral component of the National Interstate RailNetwork with all the connectivity attributes and increased maintenance funding thatthis implies.

The condition of the track, signalling network and level crossings are classified intoclasses. The line class classification provides an indication of the comfort of thejourney and the speed that trains are able to travel along the line. Discussions withV/Line indicated that the V’Locity trains can only be operated to their potential onClass 1 track due to speed at which they are capable of travelling (160 km/hr).

The rail line between Melbourne and Seymour is classified as Class 2, while the linefrom Seymour to Shepparton is classified as Class 3. This classification indicates thatsignificant investment is required to upgrade the track, signalling and level crossings

16 DoT 2011b


to provide the rail line between Melbourne and Shepparton to be the same standardas other rail lines with RFR.

2.5.3 The impact of RFR

The pre and post RFR positions of the analysis regions for the followingcharacteristics were considered:

Population characteristics - population and population growth rate;

Demographic characteristics - estimate of unemployment, number of registeredmotor vehicles and net business entries; and

Rail characteristics – annual train patronage.

No clear changes in population and demographic characteristics between pre andpost RFR were found for any of the analysis regions17.

Figure 17 presents annual train patronage figures for V/Line services in each analysisregion. Patronage figures represent the number of total alights for services along eachrailway line. All annual figures are on the basis of patronage for each financial year18.Note that the scale of the graph changes between 0 – 0.3 million persons and 0.5 – 4million persons to allow patronage figures for Shepparton, Albury/Wodonga andWangaratta to be visualised. Patronage data is not available past the 2007- 2008financial years for Albury/Wodonga and Wangaratta as V/Line ceased operation dueto the North East Rail Revitalisation Project.

Figure 17: Trend in train patronage between 2004 and 2010 (V/Line2010a; V/Line 2011a)

17It is noted that a detailed analysis of these characteristics with consideration to all of the factors thatimpact population and demographic changes would need to be conducted to fully understand any impactsof RFR. Additional characteristics such as tourism and place of employment would also need to beconsidered.18 Patronage figures for the Shepparton, Wangaratta and Albury/Wodonga services were provided on thebasis of calendar years by V/Line and have been converted to financial year figures on the assumption thatcombining half the patronage for the first year and half the patronage of the second year provides areasonable representation of the patronage for that financial year (e.g. combining figures for July –December 2004 with figures for January 2005 – June 2005 provides the total patronage for the 2004-2005financial year time period)

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Time period

Note: Break in scale


Train patronage data indicates that railway lines which received additional and fasterservices as a result of the RFR project attracted significant increases in patronage. Asshown in Figure 17 annual train patronage has increased by between 1.06 millionpassengers (Traralgon) and 1.83 million passengers (Bendigo) between pre RFR andpost RFR for all railway lines that were part of the RFR project. A steep increase canbe seen immediately post RFR for all these railway lines.

Figure 17 shows that Seymour, Shepparton, Albury/Wodonga and Wangaratta whichdid not receive upgrades as part of RFR have seen modest increases of between 0.23million passengers (Seymour) and 0.03 million passengers (Shepparton) during thesame time period.

It is possible that similar increases to those experienced by railway lines receivingRFR could be experienced for the Seymour, Shepparton and Albury/Wodonga railwaylines if similar improvements to service frequency and speed were made.

2.6 The case for passenger rail

2.6.1 A disparity in the number of rail services

Despite their comparable populations, distance from Melbourne’s CBD anddemographic (refer to Section 2.3), the number of services to Bendigo, Ballarat,Geelong and Traralgon significantly outweigh the number of services to Shepparton. Asshown in Figure 10, the comparison analysis regions are serviced by up to 6 times thenumber of weekday rail services (n=35 to 40) compared with the number of weekdayservices to Shepparton (n=6).

While it is acknowledged that a number of other factors influence the need foradditional services to the comparison analysis regions, the number of services toShepparton appears to be disproportionately low even when these factors areconsidered. The greater number of passenger rail services to the comparison analysisregions is considered to be a result of the following factors:

Both Geelong and Ballarat attract a significant proportion of daily commuterjourneys19;

The key regional centres for Geelong and Ballarat are located within closerproximity (within 1.5 hours) to the Melbourne CBD than Shepparton (within 2.5hours);

The passenger rail services to Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo service populationsthat are concentrated at key regional townships (as shown in Figure 14) whilst thepopulation served by Shepparton is dispersed across a larger region (i.e. acrossthe overall Shepparton catchment); and

The passenger rail services to Traralgon also service a number of significanttownships20 (Warragul and Drouin) along the railway line while the Shepparton linedoes not service any townships of comparable population past Seymour21 (seeFigure 14).

19 Based on 2006 Census data, the mode share for rail for the journey to work is approximately 3%(n=1,857) for Geelong and 1% (n=290) for Ballarat (not including those who do not go to work, do not reporthow they travel to work and those who work from home).20 Note that the populations of Morwell and Moe are already considered as part of the resident populationserviced by rail in the Traralgon analysis region.21 Note that the township of Mooroopna is already considered as part of the resident population serviced byrail in the Shepparton analysis region and the larger townships of Tallarook and Kilmore East are betweenMelbourne and Seymour and therefore serviced by the additional passenger rail services to Seymour.


However, both the Traralgon and Shepparton analysis regions are serviced by thesame number of stations (1 major railway station and 2 minor railway stations), whichare located within similar proximity to the Melbourne CBD and are the origin of asimilar proportion of commuter journeys22. Despite the 2 additional key townshipsserved by the Traralgon line, the disparity in the number of services to Sheppartoncompared to Traralgon significantly disadvantages the population of Shepparton interms of access to the Melbourne CBD.

In addition, analysis of seat capacity and seats filled figures (refer to Figure 12 andFigure 13) suggests that train use for the Shepparton line would increase if additionalservices were introduced, particularly during peak travel times (arriving in Melbournebefore 9 am and leaving Melbourne between 4 and 6.30 pm). Shepparton has thelowest proportion of average seats filled (56% in the morning and 44% in the evening)compared to other railway lines (70% - 97% in the morning and 69% - 80% in theevening) which is considered to be a reflection of the lack of services during peaktravel times. As shown in Figure 10, Shepparton receives no services during peaktravel times whilst Traralgon receives the same number of peak hour services asBallarat (n=7), despite being the origin of a comparable proportion of journey to worktrips23, of similar population and demographic, and comparable distance fromMelbourne’s CBD to Shepparton. Given the similarities between Traralgon andShepparton, it is possible that additional services to Shepparton during peak traveltimes may act as a catalyst for increased train usage along the Shepparton line (i.e.comparable to the figures for Traralgon).

The comparison analysis regions are also serviced by up to 5 times the number of railservices to Albury/Wodonga (n=4), even when the additional rail services (n=6)introduced when V/Line resumes operation along this line are considered (see Figure9). While the lower number of services is partially a reflection of Albury/Wodonga’smore remote location (approximately 2 hours further driving time from Melbourne’sCBD), the number of services to this region appears to be disproportionately low whenconsidering that only one major railway station (Albury) plus one minor station(Wodonga) services a similar number of residents to Ballarat, Bendigo, Sheppartonand Traralgon. The Albury/Wodonga line also services a significant population atBenalla and Wangaratta both of which are located within comparable driving distancesfrom Melbourne as Traralgon and Bendigo (see Table 1).

There is also little opportunity for day trips on weekdays to Shepparton, Wangarattaand Albury/Wodonga and little opportunity for weekend trips to and from these keyregional centres. None of these centres receive weekday services that allow for morethan a 3 hour stay on one weekday. On weekends, each of these centres receives 2return services per day (see Figure 11) compared to between 10 and 16 returnservices to and from key regional centres in the comparison analysis regions.

2.6.2 The demand for additional services

Annual patronage data for railway lines indicates that the provision of better qualityand more frequent services would be a strong catalyst for increased patronage (seeFigure 16). All railway lines which received track upgrades, faster and more frequentservices as a result of the RFR project were found to experience increases of between1.06 and 1.83 million passengers post RFR. In comparison, railway lines not receiving

22 Based on 2006 Census data, the mode share for rail for the journey to work is approximately 0% (n=11)for Shepparton (not including the overall Shepparton catchment) and 0% (n=70) for Traralgon.23 Based on 2006 Census data, the mode share for the rail journey to work is approximately 0% for Bendigo(n=101), Traralgon (n=70) and Shepparton (n=11), and approximately 1% for Ballarat (n=290).


the same upgrades experienced much smaller increases of between 0.23 and 0.03million passengers post RFR.

2.6.3 Additional benefits of increased rail services

A number of factors that have not been considered as part of this analysis couldenable the Shepparton and Albury/Wodonga regions to capitalise on a range ofopportunities and achieve parity with the comparison analysis regions in a range ofareas if additional passenger rail services were introduced. These factors have notbeen considered as part of this study as impacts cannot be accurately quantified andunderstood without complex economic modelling to determine the impact of individualfactors.

For example, the Moving People report (Bicycle Industry Confederation et al. 2010)notes that ‘public transport also plays an important role in tourism, especially inregional Australia’. Townships in the Hume region would benefit from additionaltourism opportunities as a result of greater access to its regional centres. Cardependency for journeys between Melbourne regional centres may also be reducedas a result of improved access to public transport services: ‘In both urban fringe andregional areas the high level of car dependency means people have little choice but toincur high fuel costs if they wish to maintain lifestyles.’

It is also noted that this analysis has not considered the rail services to intermediatestations between Seymour and the analysis geographies of Shepparton andAlbury/Wodonga in detail.

The resident populations served by the minor railway stations (where all servicesmake a stop) of Benalla, Wangaratta and Nagambie also receive fewer services thanminor railway stations along other rail corridors (i.e. to Traralgon, Geelong, Ballarat orBendigo). Nagambie and Benalla in particular are located at comparable distances toMelbourne’s CBD as some of the railway stations in the comparison analysis regionsand would benefit significantly if a comparable number of services were providedalong these rail corridors.

The analysis has not considered the services to stations along each railway in theabsence of consistent analysis geographies (as noted in Section 2.2) and since adetailed demand analysis considering the potential demand for rail services alongeach railway line is outside the scope of this study.

2.6.4 Conclusions

This analysis shows that the number and scheduling of passenger rail services toShepparton and Albury/Wodonga (via Wangaratta) are currently inadequate to meetthe community needs for a link to Melbourne with scheduling to allow reasonableoptions for daily travel. Services to major regional railway stations in comparisonanalysis regions (outside Hume) far outweigh the number of services to Sheppartonand Albury/Wodonga (via Wangaratta). While a number of factors such as increasedcommuter journeys and populations serviced along the railway line justify the need foradditional services to the comparison analysis regions, the number of services toShepparton and Albury/Wodonga (via Wangaratta) remain disproportionately lowwhen similarities in population and the distance from Melbourne’s CBD areconsidered. The Shepparton analysis in particular is comparable to the Traralgonanalysis region, but is served by a significantly smaller number of passenger railservices, both overall and during peak periods.


The analysis of RFR impacts also suggests that more frequent and appropriatelyscheduled passenger rail services beyond Seymour would result in increasedpatronage along these lines. All railway lines that received upgrades as part of theRFR project experienced significantly higher increases in patronage followingupgrades in comparison to increases in patronage for the Shepparton andAlbury/Wodonga (via Wangaratta) lines. Improvements in service provision to areasbeyond Seymour may be a catalyst for increased journeys by rail.

In addition, improvements to passenger rail services in the Hume region would alsoresult in additional benefits such as greater opportunity for tourism, reduced relianceon car based travel and greater access to public transport for regional centres alongthese railway lines.

2.7 Future Passenger Rail

As discussed in the previous section, this analysis suggests that the currentpassenger rail services to the Hume region townships beyond Seymour areinadequate when compared to other centres’ rail service levels and frequency. Thissection briefly considers the impact of future population growth on passenger railservices.

Figure 18 presents the projected population between 2006 and 2040 for LocalGovernment Areas (LGAs) that represent key regional centres within the Humeregion. The population growth between 2026 and 2040 has been extrapolated on thebasis of the projected growth rate between 2006 and 2026 (persons/year).

Figure 18: Projected population growth in the Hume region (DPCD2008, DoP NSW 2010) 24

24 Note that the population at 2040 has been estimated based on the projected growth rate between 2006and 2026 (persons/year) for each Local Government Area

0

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Mitchell (Seymour)

Albury

Wodonga

Wangaratta

Benalla

Linear (Albury)

Linear (Benalla)

Population growth beyond2026 has been extrapolated


Table 5 details the percentage projected growth for each LGA in Figure 18.

Table 5: Projected percentage population growth between 2006 –2026 for LGAs in the Hume region (DPCD 2008, DoP NSW 2010)

LGA Percentage projectedpopulation growth (%)

Shepparton 21%Albury 13%Mitchell (Seymour) 73%Wodonga 28%Wangaratta 11%Benalla 11%

Figure 18 and Table 5 show that key regional centres within the Hume region arelikely to experience significant growth in the next 30 years. The highest growth ratesare seen in the LGAs of Shepparton (21%), Wodonga (28%) and Seymour (73%)where major regional railway stations are located.

The continued increases to population growth across the Hume region and thecomparative inadequacy of current service provision to areas beyond Seymoursuggests that passenger rail services would need to increase significantly in the futureto support projected growth. As discussed previously (refer to Table 3), the growth ofareas served by key regional railway stations within the Hume region are alsocomparable to the growth being experienced in areas outside the Hume region. Acontinued disparity in rail services despite this growth would result in ongoing andheightened disadvantages to localities beyond Seymour. These disadvantages wouldinclude increased reliance on car based travel and potentially negative economicimpacts of barriers to rail based travel and related tourism opportunities.


3. Freight RailFreight transport is the movement of goods from one destination to another. Typicallythe key modes of transport are road, rail, sea and aviation. The mode of freighttransport is often dependent upon the weight of the goods and the distance to betransported. Rail is typically viable for medium and long distance cross land transportand for heavy bulk items. Historically rail cannot complete with road freight for shortdistance land transport due to the diversity of origins/destinations and rail isconstrained to a set route and usually does not meet the required destination points.

This section presents government policy regarding the freight transport in regionalareas, as well as recommendations for infrastructure upgrades to improve theefficiency of freight movements in the Hume region from recently completed studies.

3.1 Rail Freight Network

The freight rail network within the Hume region is diminishing due to a lack ofinvestment in infrastructure and a trend over the past few decades for freight to betransported by road rather than rail.

Victoria’s predominant use of broad gauge track rather than standard gauge track is asignificant limitation for the transportation of freight via rail within Victoria as the broadgauge track limits the rail connections to interstate regions. Standard gauge track alsoallows for the ease of access to rolling stock and to rail freight operators. The VictorianState Government has been progressively investing in the upgrade and conversion ofrail tracks to standard gauge but progress has been slow.

The key rail lines for freight within the Hume region are the following:

Broad gauge track between Melbourne and Tocumwal;

Broad gauge track between Melbourne and Deniliquin with a connection atToolamba and Echuca;

Standard gauge track between Melbourne and Wodonga; and

Standard gauge track between Melbourne and Oaklands via Benalla.

Refer to Figure 19 which shows the alignments of the four lines and the intermodalterminals operating and proposed (GV Freight and Logistics Centre) along the lines.


Figure 19: Hume Freight Rail Network and Intermodal Terminals

3.1.1 The problem of gauge

There are three principal rail gauges within Australia namely broad gauge, standardgauge and narrow gauge. Broad gauge tracks are mainly located in the Victoriansystem with a small amount of track in South Australia.

The broad gauge tracks in the three states have no connectivity and rail freightoperators generally need to provide rolling stock largely captured to this network.Accordingly, rail operators provide limited resources to the broad gauge networkparticularly regions with variable freight volumes (e.g. grain). For example, in Victoria,Pacific National has relocated most of its broad gauge rolling stock and taken it toNSW for regauging to standard gauge. Standard gauge track is used for the interstaterail network and as the only gauge that exists in every state, provides flexibility for railoperators.

Similar to Victoria, other states are gradually converting many sections of broad andnarrow gauge track to standard gauge. Different gauges require items to betransported to a transfer/interchange point that has both gauges. Due to the limitationsof the broad gauge track, the freight transported in the Shepparton/Tocumwal regionvia rail is limited to travel to Melbourne before any other location within Australia. Thisadds time and costs to distribution of goods via rail (i.e. additional handling andadditional kilometres travelled).


The other major issue regarding the limited use of broad gauge track outside Victoriais rail’s competiveness within Victoria due to the paucity of broad gauge operators.Pacific National is the key broad gauge operator within Victoria and therefore has themarket power to set the prices. Significant capital investment would be required ifother operators wished to enter the market, which would typically include locos andwagons needing to be gauge converted.

In addition, the majority of Victoria’s rail freight is seasonal produce. This results insignificant peaks of produce and a resultant inconsistent demand for freight transportthroughout the year. Consequently, a proportion of the rolling stock required toaccommodate the peak produce demands is not utilised for the remainder of the year.If the rail gauges in Victoria, South Australia and New South Wales were consistentthere would be a greater opportunity for a larger number of operators which couldcreate a competitive market. The operators could utilise rolling stock for a greaterpercentage of the year due to the varied production times based on produce from thethree states. This could reduce the cost of rail operations for each individual trip.

The benefits of converting broad gauge track to standard gauge track will be seen inthe north east of the Hume region as rail services are restored to the upgraded andgauge converted Albury/Wodonga line. The Albury/Wodonga line forms part of thekey interstate route along the east coast which connects Melbourne to Sydney andBrisbane via rail. The project to convert the Albury/Wodonga line to standard gaugehas also included the conversion of the Benalla to Oaklands line, as this connects tothe Albury/Wodonga line to access Melbourne. The gauge conversion will providegreater efficiency for the transportation of freight and is likely to grow the rail modeshare for freight movements along this corridor.

3.2 Current Freight Terminals

Freight terminals are key features within the supply chain for efficient transportation ofgoods. The terminals are essential elements that provide economies of scale toenable rail to be a competitive mode of transport. There are currently a number ofterminals that exist, or are in the planning stages within the Hume region. The facilitiesand locations of the terminals are discussed in the following sections.

3.2.1 LOGIC Wodonga

The ultimate designs for the LOGIC intermodal terminal will cater for 2 km trains with a2.5 km arrivals road and a 900 m receival siding. The terminal has been designed for100,000 TEUs (Twenty Foot Equivalent Units) per annum.

The 600 hectare Barnawartha LOGIC Freight and Logistics centre is located at theintersection of the Hume Freeway and the Murray Valley Highway (290 km toMelbourne, 580 km to Sydney), within the City of Wodonga (refer to Figure 19 for thelocation of the terminal in relation to the rail lines). The centre has been strategicallylocated to be linked with the national road and rail corridors allowing for easytransportation along the east coast of Australia and to Adelaide.

According to the LOGIC Wodonga website, the current tenants include:

Woolworths distribution centre;

Border Express (Logistics distribution docking facility);

Cope Sensitive Freight;

TAFE NISTC;


PacLib Industrial (developer of industrial land); and

Roadmaster (refrigerated transport operator).25

There are currently no rail sidings at the LOGIC site but the site has been designed tohave the capacity to accommodate a rail terminal which would link into theAlbury/Wodonga rail line. A $4 million grant has been provided to Wodonga Counciltowards a rail intermodal terminal or infrastructure supporting freight based activities atLOGIC. Its location at the intersection of major highways supports an intermodalapproach with line haul to major cities.

The proposed Intermodal Rail Terminal at the LOGIC site could become an importantinland port for road/rail freight transfer and replace the terminals lost as a result of theWodonga rail bypass.

To maintain the vision of the LOGIC terminal, a Strategic Reference Group (SRG) hasbeen established for the continued development of LOGIC as a Freight Activity Centrefor north east Victoria. The group includes representatives from Department ofTransport, VicRoads, Regional Development Victoria, Commonwealth Department ofInfrastructure and Transport and Wodonga Council.

3.2.2 Shepparton Terminal (Mooroopna)

Shepparton is currently serviced by a freight terminal located on the Tocumwal–Seymour line, adjacent to the SPC Ardmona factory at Mooroopna (refer to Figure 19for the location of the terminal in relation to the rail lines). The facility is operated byPatrick Portlink (Asciano), with container shipments being added to the daily train thatruns from Tocumwal to the Port of Melbourne (Po M) and 90 per cent of the containerfreight is bound for the export market. Due to site constraints it is not expected that thevolumes could be significantly increased above the current levels.

The site was originally developed as the container loading area for the Ardmonafactory, but over time, with changed ownership, developed into the regional freightterminal. The facility operations are restricted due to location, bordered on one side bythe Goulburn River and on the other side by the SPC Ardmona factory. The rail spur islimited in length, making it difficult to pre-position containers for loading. Storage ofempty containers is restricted and dwell time for full containers (in or out) is held at aminimum. Effectively there is no scope for expansion on the current site.

3.2.3 Tocumwal Terminal

Tocumwal is located north of Shepparton on the New South Wales border (refer toFigure 19 for the location of the terminal in relation to the rail lines). The rail terminal atTocumwal links with the Shepparton rail terminal with the same trains servicing bothterminals.

3.2.4 Ettamogah

The Ettamogah Intermodal Hub abuts the Hume study region, and is locatedapproximately 17 km north of Albury (refer to Figure 19 for the location of the terminalin relation to the rail lines). The hub offers direct access to the Melbourne - Sydney railfreight line and the Hume Freeway. The Ettamogah Intermodal hub provides aninterchange between modes as well as container handling and storage facilities. Therail sidings on the site can accommodate trains up to a length of 1200 m. The rail hub

25 www.logicwodonga.com.au


has a current capacity of approximately 15-20,000 TEUs with current throughput of5,000 – 8,000 TEU. There are also future plans to expand the site.

3.2.5 Goulburn Valley Freight Logistics Centre

The Goulburn Valley Freight Logistics Centre (GVFLC) site (331 hectares) wasacquired by the Greater City of Shepparton in 2008 and is proposed for development.The site is located on Toolamba Road; 2 km south of the Midland Highway inMooroopna (refer to Figure 19 for the location of the terminal in relation to the raillines). The site is traversed by the alignment of the proposed Shepparton Bypass (i.e.Goulburn Valley Freeway Bypass) and the existing railway line linking Shepparton andTocumwal to Melbourne via Seymour. Funding to support the development of the sitehas been provided by the Federal and State governments ($3 million and $2 millionrespectively). The funding commitments and support by all levels of governmentindicate that there is a common drive to increase efficiency of freight movements andto provide opportunities for the mode share of rail to increase in the future.

The development brief for the site indicates the expectation that a range of businessesare interested in the site, covering:

Rail freight handling – operation of the container terminal, container storage;

Outbound warehousing and distribution;

Inbound distribution;

Freight related businesses; and

Transport related businesses.

3.3 Logistics Chain

The logistics chain for freight transportation by rail can be significantly more timeconsuming and complicated due to the large volumes handled by rail at the one timecompared to road.

In addition, rail movements usually require road pick-up and delivery legs at one orboth ends of the transportation task. Road is usually also required as rail isconstrained to the one alignment and usually the start/final destinations is not at therail head. These movements by road add time and costs due to the number ofmovements needed to tranship freight between the road and rail modes.

Current freight operation is required by industry to have an ‘on-time delivery service’.This usually requires freight operators to pick-up products when ordered rather than atthe freight operator’s timetable. Often this results in rail operators seen to be notmeeting the timing required and not providing the flexibility required by industry. Thesetiming issues are related to the complexity of the logistics chain of the rail and alsodue to the train having a number of pickup/drop off locations.

The supply and turn-around time for containers is a critical issue in industry and a keyto the development of further mode share for rail. Industry expectations for pick-upand delivery would be supported by further development of the inland ports conceptand intermodal terminal services in the Hume region providing:

Greater capacity for empty and full containers;

Options for direct delivery or staging; and

Consolidation of loads for line haul transport by rail to and from the main port.


Port of Melbourne Corporation has recently completed a container logistics study. Aspart of this study a logistics chain for containers to be exported was identified for roadand rail movements. The logistics chain within the PoM is presented as a summary inFigure 20. For the detailed logistics chain, refer to Appendix B.

Figure 20 : Port of Melbourne Logistics Chain Movements(Source: Port of Melbourne and Dynon Rail Terminals – 2009 Container

Logistics Chain Study)

Note: To interpret this diagram it is necessary to appreciate:

1. The coloured boxes represent the key land transport/logistics business types.

2. The arrows signify the road and rail transport movements (with different colours for full and empty

containers and dotted lines for rail movements, as identified within the key).

3. The numbers denote the quantity of TEUs (in thousands) that moved between each business

function in 2009.

4. The diagram is divided into two halves – the left half being export containers and the right half

import containers.

3.4 Government policy, projections and recent studies

The recent state government changes as a result of the November 2010 election willresult in a number of the existing state government policies being re-visited andassessed to ensure they are in line with new directions. Public transport is a keygovernment focus at the moment (mid 2011). In addition, public transport is alsoreceiving a significant amount of attention from the media and is a well conversedtopic within the public domain. The freight component of the overall transport taskdoes not receive the same level of attention from the public or the media but isnevertheless a key government priority. It is understood that the policies regarding


freight transport and regional areas will remain at a high level although the detailedprojects may vary.

There is a number of existing government policy documents that outline the StateGovernment’s policy relating to freight. While it is acknowledged these documents arecurrently being reviewed and are likely to be slightly altered, the key policy directionsare expected to remain consistent and therefore applicable to this study.

3.4.1 Data Sources

The main data sources consulted as part of this analysis are as follows:

Victorian Transport Plan;

Freight Futures;

State Government Victoria Media Releases - $550,000 grant keeps GoulburnValley freight on the rails;

Victorian Rail Freight Network Review - Switchpoint: The template for rail freight torevive and thrive;

The Hume Strategy for sustainable communities;

Northern Victorian Regional Transport Strategy;

Port of Melbourne and Dynon Rail Terminals – 2009 Container Logistics ChainStudy;

Hume Region, Victoria, Australia – An ideal Investment Destination;

Greater Shepparton Infrastructure Priorities – Submission in Infrastructure Australiafor the National Infrastructure Priority List;

Hume Corridor Regional Transport Strategy; and

GV Link - Goulburn Valley Freight and Logistics Centre.

For full details of the documents, refer to Section 8.

3.4.2 Government Policy and Projections

Government policies relating to regional freight targets, particularly in the Humeregion, have been reviewed. Victoria is currently experiencing significant growth inpopulation which results in increasing freight requirements. Freight volumes throughregional Victoria are forecast to double by 2030.26 There has been significant debateregarding how Victoria plans for this freight growth without significantly impacting onVictorians’ way of life.

“It is a State of Victoria goal to increase the proportion of freight arriving at the Port ofMelbourne by rail to 30% by 2010.”27 This policy has since been reviewed within theEddington Report and a government response is provided in the Victorian TransportPlan, 2008 (VTP). The Eddington Report and the VTP both indicated that this targetwas not achievable. Therefore the directions within the VTP were qualitative ratherthan quantitative, with the freight related direction being to “establish a MetropolitanFreight Terminal Network (MFTN) as a key plank in its strategy for moving increasingvolumes of freight by rail between the Port of Melbourne and freight terminals.”28 In

26 Greater Shepparton Infrastructure Priorities – Submission to Infrastructure Australia for the NationalInfrastructure Priority List27 Greater Shepparton Infrastructure Priorities – Submission to Infrastructure Australia for the NationalInfrastructure Priority List28 Victorian Transport Plan, 2008, page 136


addition, a key direction for rail freight growth in regional areas is given in FreightFutures. The direction is to “Revitalise the Principal Freight Network – Rail”29 with thefollowing required actions:

Fund essential rehabilitation and maintenance of the Victorian regional rail freightnetwork;

Rehabilitate nominated prioritised sections of the regional rail freight network tomaintain operating speeds where a sustainable commercial or economic benefit willresult;

Work in partnership with the Commonwealth Government and Local Government toenhance Victoria’s regional rail freight network, including:

- Facilitating the development of new intermodal terminals at GreaterShepparton and Dooen (Horsham); Construction of the Dooen Terminal isnow (August 2011) under way; and

- Undertaking upgrade works at the West Warrnambool and Gippslandintermodal terminals.

Where a sound business case exists for a new rail freight service, consider targetedinvestment to expand capacity in the regional rail freight network;

Work with the Commonwealth Government, neighbouring states and the AustralianRail Track Corporation (ARTC) to secure a significantly increased level ofinvestment in the interstate main line corridors; and

Work with the Commonwealth Government and the ARTC to enhance:

- Improvement works in the inner west corridor (Tottenham, ‘W’ track and‘missing link’); and

- Works essential to improving rail access to Metropolitan Freight Terminals atAltona/Laverton, Somerton and Dandenong.

These policies acknowledge that the current roads will not be able to accommodatethe forecasted growth and that there is to be a significant emphasis on rail and theVictorian Government’s desire for an increased rail mode share.

A March 2011 media release from the Minister for Transport, Terry Mulder, announcedthat the State Government would be providing a “$550,000 Coalition Governmentgrant to temporarily reopen the Toolamba (near Shepparton) to Kyabram and Echucaline”30 to minimise increases in truck traffic while the usual route is closed formaintenance. This grant has been provided as the current government “want to re-open country freight lines where demand existed.”31 This media release indicates thatif the line wasn’t re-opened then containers from the Tocumwal and Mooroopnaterminals (within the Greater Shepparton Council area) would have had to betransported by truck which would have cost up to $400 more per container. In addition,the grant also demonstrates that the current government is focussing on maintainingand potentially increasing the use of rail for freight transport.

“Victoria’s key regional freight corridors of Hume, South West, North West, Westernand Gippsland currently transport 91 million tonnes of freight. It is forecasted that by2020 this will grow by over 70% to reach nearly 160 million tonnes”.32 The Hume

29 Freight Futures, 2008, page 5430 State Government Victoria Media Release31 State Government Victoria Media Release32 Freight Futures: Victorian Freight Network Strategy – Appendix 3: Freight facts and projections.


region is a key generator of freight due to the large number of manufacturingindustries and raw material production within the region. It therefore will besignificantly impacted by the forecasted freight growth. Planning to accommodate thisgrowth is essential.

The Goulburn Valley (a sub region of the Hume region) generates a “greater volumeof freight going out of the region compared to that entering the region. Majority of theoutbound freight is destined to the Port of Melbourne for export.”33 The majormovement of freight is therefore along the same corridor to reach a commondestination and could benefit from consolidation of goods onto a rail system.

3.4.3 Recommendations from Recent Studies

To enable the government policy targets to be achieved a number of studies haverecently been completed. These studies outline the infrastructure requirements for theHume region.

The following studies have been reviewed as part of this study::

Switchpoint: The Rail Freight Network Review (2007)

A taskforce chaired by Tim Fischer was assembled for the rail freight networkreview. This taskforce submitted its findings to the Victorian Government inDecember 2007. The findings comprised 29 recommendations which included:

- Reduced rail access fees for grain transport;

- A targeted investment program in the freight only rail network;

- Standardisation of rail lines as opportunities arise and where justified;

- Establishment of a Rail Freight Facilitation Unit;

- Continued development of regional and metropolitan intermodal hubs; and

- Rail regulatory reform.

According to Switchpoint, the regional Victorian rail freight task is over 5 milliontonnes per annum and is made up of:

- Export grain (average 2 million tonnes);

- Export containers (1.8 million tonnes);

- Industrial freight – crushed rock and cement (0.893 million tonnes);

- Domestic grain (0.3 million tonnes);

- Paper products (0.27 million tonnes); and

- Logs (0.16 million tonnes).

This document was published a number of years ago and consequently thesefigures may have changed. However, the volumes provided are averages and it istherefore likely that the figures will not have varied too significantly between 2007and 2011.

An important point made in the Switchpoint report was that “the Victorian intrastaterail freight task has fallen by an estimated 20% since the late 1990s (beforeprivatisation) despite strong state economic growth. This is attributable to increasedroad competition (particularly B-Doubles), continued government investment in the

33 Greater Shepparton Infrastructure Priorities – Submission to Infrastructure Australia for the NationalInfrastructure Priority List


road network, lack of investment in the rail network, poor service levels, droughtand non-rail contestable markets such as feedlots. The only businesses that haveincreased are export containers and logs. However, this has been offset bydeclines in grain, petroleum, cement, paper and some dairy products. Gypsum,sand, fertiliser and small lots of freight are no longer carried on rail because of theirmarginal returns to the operator.”34

Greater Shepparton Infrastructure Priorities – Submission to InfrastructureAustralia for the National Infrastructure Priority List (2008)

The Greater Shepparton Infrastructure Priorities document prepared by GreaterShepparton City Council outlines the advantages and scope of three key projectssubmitted for funding from Infrastructure Australia in October 2008. One of the threeprojects included the Goulburn Valley Freight and Logistics Centre (GVFLC).

The council has planned the GVFLC to be an “inland port and centre for distributionfor one of Australia’s primary foodbowls.”35 The concept plans for the GVFLCinclude a rail terminal and road connections to allow rail to be a major modebetween the site and PoM. The new site would allow for “improved transportconnections which will result in efficient logistics and improved competiveness forthe food processors of the region.”36

Based on figures from the submission to Infrastructure Australia “The GoulburnValley produces nearly $2 billion worth of goods and services each year and muchof this is trucked or rail freighted to the ports of Melbourne and Geelong for export.Shepparton is arguably the freight capital of Australia with the following attributes:

- Roughly 25% of all trucks registered in Victoria are from the Goulburn Valley;

- 25% of the value of Victoria’s agricultural production is generated in theregion; and

- Commercial vehicles, mostly semi-trailers or B-doubles, make up 25-30% ofall traffic on the Goulburn Valley Highway, almost double the State average(source RACV).” 37

GHD Hume Corridor Regional Transport Strategy (2009)

In 2009, GHD developed a regional transport strategy for the Hume Corridor. Thestudy provided overarching inputs into the Hume Strategy for SustainableCommunities under the governance of the Department of Planning and CommunityDevelopment. The study area was primarily the North East Region of Hume with afocus on the Hume corridor. Based on this, the Hume Freeway was considered the‘spine of the study’ although other major road and rail transport connections in theregion were also important to the strategy.

Through stakeholder consultation a number of key issues affecting transportinfrastructure and transport service provision in the region were identified. Thesewere categorised into the following groups:

34 Switchpoint: The Rail Freight Network Review (2007)35 Greater Shepparton Infrastructure Priorities – Submission to Infrastructure Australia for the NationalInfrastructure Priority List36 Greater Shepparton Infrastructure Priorities – Submission to Infrastructure Australia for the NationalInfrastructure Priority List37 Greater Shepparton Infrastructure Priorities – Submission to Infrastructure Australia for NationalInfrastructure Priority List


- The capacity of the local road network to meet current and future transportneeds;

- The capacity of the State’s road network in the region to meet current andfuture transport needs;

- The capacity of rail freight network connections to meet an increasing railfreight task;

- The capacity of public transport services to meet current and future demand;

- The approach to passenger rail service and infrastructure provision;

- The approach to transport infrastructure and service provision in the tourismmarket; and

- The capacity of aviation facilities.

Based on these findings, a number of strategic priorities for the region wereidentified which included:

- Upgrading the Murray Valley Highway;

- Upgrading the Goulburn Valley Highway to Shepparton to M road standard;

- Future proofing the Hume Freeway to serve a growing transport task;

- Ensuring the Great Alpine Road meets future freight and tourism demand;

- Development of LOGIC through commercial facilitation;

- Road linkages between Canberra and Gippsland;

- Strategic planning for bicycle trails;

- Improving tourism road loops in the region;

- Developing the role of public transport; and

- Improving the main timber transport links in the region.

The above list provides upgrades for a range of modes of transport but there is aclear emphasis on roads due to the weakness in demand on rail networks within theregion. This weakness is caused by under investment resulting in a downwardspiral for rail. Although there are no specific priorities for rail improvements thereare a number of the priorities for multi-modes which would include rail. Theseimprovements would include developing the role of public transport and improvingthe main time transport links in the region.

At the time of the corridor study “10 – 13 million tonnes per annum of freight movealong the Melbourne – Sydney Au slink road and rail corridor between Seymour andAlbury-Wodonga. The current level moved by rail is minimal (estimated 9%).”38 Thestudy expected the majority of the freight and passenger transport to remain onroad although the “improved efficiency and ecological value of movement of goodsand people by rail must be noted.”39 In addition the National Transport Commission(NC) is also encouraging efficient and sustainable development of the rail modeshare by initiating regulatory reform and creating one national rail regulator.

38 Hume Corridor Regional Transport Strategy, GHD, page 2839 Hume Corridor Regional Transport Strategy, GHD, page 28


Northern Victoria Regional Transport Strategy (2009)

The Northern Victorian Regional Transport Strategy is an input document into theHume Strategy for Sustainable Communities. The document has been developed incollaboration with the councils in the study area and VicRoads. The key aim of theNorthern Victoria Regional Transport Strategy is to “provide comprehensivetransport planning for the defined region.”40 The strategy considers “the drivers ofcurrent and future transport demands, understanding the region’s current transportinfrastructure and services and developing a coherent series of strategies andactions.”41 The study area includes the Shires of Campaspe, Moira, Goonawarra,Loddon, Strathbogie and the City of Greater Shepparton. These shires are oftenreferred to as the Goulburn Valley (or the Food Bowl of Australia) due to the regionproducing “25 per cent of the value of Victoria’s agricultural produce.”42

The study has developed a number of strategies for the transport network, thestrategies that relate to freight movement via rail include:

– Strategy 6 - Develop and standardise the rail network

This study indicates that there is a paucity of competition on broad gauge andthat there are more operators and equipment available for standard gauge.Therefore if the rail network in the region was gauge standardised it wouldprovide more competition in the market and consequently allow rail to competewith road for the transportation of freight.

A key conclusion from the study in regards to this strategy is “The rail networkin the region suffers from lack of standardisation, which limits the potential forconnectivity interstate and limits the potential for a competitive commercialenvironment.”43

The specific elements of this strategy should include:

o “Upgrade rail infrastructure to meet demands of freight movement;and

o Continue to promote gauge standardisation across the railnetwork.”44

– Strategy 7 - Develop rail freight infrastructure

The rail network requires maintenance and upgrades to allow it to beoperational. In addition, to allow rail to be competitive with road, intermodalterminals are required to be developed. These centres provide efficient transferof goods and allow rail to be economically viable due to the concentration ofindustry.

The specific elements of this strategy should include:

o “Upgrade the rail line between Seymour and Tocumwal to increasethe capacity and speed of trains to allow more efficient movement offreight; and

o Continue development of intermodal freight terminals.”45

40 Northern Victoria Regional Transport Strategy, page ii41 Northern Victoria Regional Transport Strategy, page ii42 Northern Victoria Regional Transport Strategy, page ii43 Northern Victoria Regional Transport Strategy, page 4144 Northern Victoria Regional Transport Strategy, page 6445 Northern Victoria Regional Transport Strategy, page 64


The Hume Strategy for Sustainable Communities Regional Plan (2010)

The Hume Strategy for Sustainable Communities is an integrated strategic plan thata number of documents have provided integral inputs. The key aim of the strategyis to “provide a framework for long-term cooperation and investment within theregion.”46 The Hume region study area is in north eastern Victoria. The region istypically broken into four sub-regions based on the functions and roles of the towns.

A key characteristic of the Hume region is there is “no single dominant majorregional city” 47 rather it is made up of a number of towns that support the region.Due to this key characteristic, the region requires “different approaches toinfrastructure development, service provision and settlement growth”48 to allow theregion to develop sustainably.

Within the Hume region there are a number of towns that have been identified asbeing strategically important to the development of Victoria. It is forecast that eachof the four sub regions will “grow by 100,000 people from 300,000 to 400,000people”49 while the freight task is expected to “increase to a projected 58 milliontonnes annually, with the Hume Freeway freight task projected to grow by 50% overthe next 20 years.”50 To be able to accommodate this growth, the transport network(among a number of infrastructure requirements) will need to be upgraded andefficiencies applied to reduce any negative impacts.

The two key transport routes within the Hume Region are the Hume and GoulburnValley transport corridors. Within these corridors there are rail lines and keyhighways providing access to the towns within these areas.

The plan recommends a number of integrated transport system upgrades whichinclude a mixture of road and rail for both public transport, private transport andfreight transport. A key aim for the growth of the transport network is to “provide forchoice of travel modes and at the same time seek to reduce the impact of thetransport system on the natural environment.”51 The recommendations include:

- “Public transport underpinning networked communities;

- Major infrastructure upgrades and improvements to the regions rail links;

- Expansion of east-west public and freight transport links;

- Greater freight transport capacity;

- Innovation for energy efficiency and low carbon emission; and

- Encouraging further construction and use of cycle and walking paths.”52

The transport key directions to achieve the recommendations specifically are:

- “Enhanced integrated planning for mobility;

- Developing a proficient land transportation network;

- Linking communities through improved public transport and transport linkages;and

- Strengthen the sustainability of the transport system.”53

46 Hume Strategy for Sustainable Communities – Regional Plan, page 647 Hume Strategy for Sustainable Communities – Regional Plan, page 648 Hume Strategy for Sustainable Communities – Regional Plan, page 649 Hume Strategy for Sustainable Communities – Regional Plan, page 650 Hume Strategy for Sustainable Communities – Regional Plan, page 5251 Hume Strategy for Sustainable Communities – Regional Plan, page 5252 Hume Strategy for Sustainable Communities – Regional Plan, page 8


3.5 Current Freight Services

The freight services within the Hume region are limited. The number of services hasdecreased within the last couple of decades due to the trend for industry to use trucksas the preferred mode of transport. The demand for rail therefore does not warrant asmany services as previously. As outlined in a number of previous studies in Section3.4 the Hume region is a major generator of freight but with most freight beingtransported by road.

There are currently three freight rail services per week operating between Melbourneand Shepparton. Patrick/Pacific National operates the broad gauge freight withinVictoria, including Melbourne to Shepparton, where the train operations are on a settimetable. These services also continue to the Tocumwal terminal to unload and thenreload before returning to Shepparton. The limited number of services adds to thecomplexity of planning for freight to be transported by rail and potentially adds timewithin the logistics chain. Historically this service was operated twice a day for fivedays a week with services departing Shepparton around midday and 5 pm. Thefrequency of these services allowed for a relatively short turnaround time resulting in areliable and sustainable service. The improvements in road quality resulted in manyorganisations choosing to use trucks as the preferred mode of travel due to theflexibility of arrival at various origins and destinations. As such “the Victorian intrastaterail freight task has fallen by an estimated 20% since the late 1990s.”54

Rail freight services through Wodonga have decreased while the North East Railrevitalisation was being carried out. Final track upgrade works - rerailing and mudholeremoval/drainage improvements - are now being completed. As previously mentioned,this upgrade commenced in 2008 and is due to be completed during 2011. As theefficiency of the new double track standard gauge line becomes apparent, it is likelythat the number of freight services along the line will increase significantly. This line isthe key interstate rail connection along the east coast of Australia and therefore hasthe potential to attract significant volumes.

There were regular daily rail freight services into the Hume region in the late 1990sincluding:

Container traffic to and from Bandiana;

Logs and fertiliser from the Wodonga coal sidings;

Less than container load palletised freight (LCL) to Benalla, Wangaratta, Wodongaand Shepparton; and

Twice daily container trains to Mooroopna, Shepparton and Tocumwal.

These services have diminished due to manufacturing changes in the region,importation of some products and the viability of LCL services on rail. Volume changeshave resulted in a decrease in the regularity of services which in turn reduces theusage of the rail mode share.

53 Hume Strategy for Sustainable Communities – Regional Plan, page 5454 Switchpoint: The Rail Freight Network Review (2007)


3.6 Future Freight Rail

There are two types of freight rail within the Hume region - through traffic (freighttravelling between Brisbane/Sydney and Melbourne) and freight with anorigin/destination in the Hume region.

Being part of the national network, the through freight volumes are expected toincrease as the economy continues to grow and the demand increases. Themaintenance of the network will be high due to the national importance of themovement of freight.

The availability of capacity with road vehicles on the Hume and Newell Highwaysprovides significant competition for rail in this region. As a result, the number of localrail services along the Shepparton and Wodonga lines has been progressivelydeclining over the past few decades and the volume of freight transported on rail hasalso been decreasing in a downward spiral. Although there have been recentupgrades along the Albury/Wodonga Line, there is no freight rail terminal in Wodongato allow easy and efficient access to the network to transport goods to Melbourne.Trucks are therefore the currently preferred mode choice for transportation of goodsfrom the Albury/Wodonga region.

In order to allow improved freight access to rail in the Hume Region it will benecessary to have strategically placed intermodal terminals to accept and distributefreight. The LOGIC and Goulburn Valley Intermodal terminals have been proposed tofulfil this need but the business cases have yet to be completed.

Rail infrastructure in the form of intermodal terminals will provide for a mode change,but price comparisons with the road mode will remain the key driver to a change inbehaviour. A freight infrastructure charge for road access to the port area had beenproposed by the previous Victorian government. The access charge would not havebeen applied to rail movements. This type of intervention could provide a key driver tocreate a behavioural change towards rail in the Hume region.

There are a number of recent studies and government policies which forecast thegrowth of freight within the Hume region, with the Hume Freeway freight taskprojected to grow by 50% over the next 20 years.”55 Similar growth is also projectedfor the Goulburn Valley region which currently produces “nearly $2 billion worth ofgoods and services each year, [where] Shepparton is arguably the freight capital ofAustralia.”56

The forecasted growth of freight is commonly approximated to be double that of theeconomic activity growth of the region. Both Shepparton and Albury/Wodonga areexpected to continue to grow over the next 30 years to accommodate some of thepopulation growth within Victoria. Government forecasts anticipate regional Victoria’spopulation to grow by approximately 500,000 by 2036 with Victoria growing to beapproximately 7 million.57 This is significant growth and therefore the freight growth inregional Victoria would be of the order of 30% for a regional population increase of15%.

55 Hume Strategy for Sustainable Communities – Regional Plan, page 5256 Greater Shepparton Infrastructure Priorities – Submission to Infrastructure Australia for the NationalInfrastructure Priority List57 Victorian Transport Plan, page 47


3.7 The Case for Freight Rail

The freight network within Australia is a complex system due to rail track gaugevariations used. As previously discussed, until very recently Victoria has had apredominantly broad gauge “network” which created inefficiencies for interstate andintrastate rail freight movements and also reduced the number of operators. Prices forrail freight have therefore been unnecessarily high.

With the North East Rail upgrade and gauge standardisation the balance has swung infavour of standard gauge freight. Western Victoria and north eastern Victoria are nowfully standard gauged with ARTC being the track administrator. As gaugestandardisation proceeds on the remaining sections of the network there should be areduction in unit costs for rail freight and a greater degree of competition.

The development of a broader intermodal terminal network will allow the transportationof freight by rail to be a more cost effective form of transport due to economies ofscale, potentially, with a number of distributors located on the one site.

There have been a number of studies addressing the growth issues the Hume Regionwill face if no advance planning is implemented, particularly for the transport network.State Government policy has also addressed the growth of the region and identifiedkey directions for the development of the transport network. The completed studieshave a number of key recommendations for the region, many of which relate to theinfrastructure improvements required for rail to increase the mode share of freightmovements. This is a key direction of the state government and for this reason theimprovement to rail infrastructure within the Hume Region should be a stategovernment priority.

There are a number of benefits to the development of communities by increasing themode share of rail compared to road for the transportation of freight. These benefitsare particularly evident in a region like Hume which generates such a significantvolume of freight. The benefits include:

A reduction in emissions. More freight on rail than on road results in areduction of greenhouse gases. This is a significant issue for the world andreceives large amounts of media attention due to the number of studies indicatingthese emissions are contributing to global warming;

Safety on roads. The number of trucks on roads is directly related to thenumber of fatal accidents and the possibility of collisions. Rail is segregated fromthe local road network and therefore the potential for collisions is minimised;

Distribution of freight transport across modes. The freight task within theHume region is expected to increase significantly and this will put further pressureon road funding options. An alternative to the road network is a crucial element toenable choice with an ability to compare investment benefits across alternativeinfrastructure developments;

Rail will consolidate the number of movements. A train has a significantlygreater capacity than a truck therefore the use of trains reduces the number ofmovements and points of congestion along the corridor and at the terminal endpoints. As the freight task grows, congestion will become an increasinglyprominent issue; and

Road congestion within capital cities will grow. The future growth ofMelbourne will increase traffic congestion, consequently increasing travel timeand decreasing the reliability of road vehicles. The peak periods are expected to


be spread across a significant portion of the day, therefore reducing the windowof opportunity for efficient movement by road.

While the discussions throughout Section 3 have identified the need to upgrade railinfrastructure to improve the rail mode share it is also acknowledged that there is anumber of other issues that need to be dealt with to improve the mode share. Theseissues include:

Freight network gauge disparities. There are significant advantages in using aconsistent gauge - standard gauge - which will assist the rail industry tosuccessfully compete with road freight transport;

Logistics Chain Timing. The logistics chain for container movements for rail iscomplicated by the storage locations of containers and the requirement totransport the containers from the empty container parks to PoM then to theregional terminal. This process adds a significant amount of time the logisticschain;

On-time delivery perceptions. Industry requires/expects the goods to be pickedup when they are required and the majority of companies do not have systems toeasily accommodate train timetables. It is therefore often considered that raildoes not provide the same level of service as road transport for many products.However, when compared to the waiting times at the end terminal the two modescan be considered comparable; and

Pick Up and Delivery costs. Rail often cannot provide end to end service dueto the limitations of the rail alignment and various origins/destinations. Thereforetrucks are often required for the ‘last km of travel’, which results in additionallifts/transfers of the container. The number of container lifts is an expensivecomponent of the freight task and often adds a considerable amount to the costof rail when compared to road. A greater rail network with a larger number ofsmaller sidings on major logistics sites in combination with intermodal terminalswould reduce the need for multiple handling of containers to/from trucks andtrains.


4. Hume Passenger and Freight RailInfrastructure Issues4.1 Rail Track Conditions

The condition of the rail track has been identified as a critical issue for both passengerand freight services. The rail track condition impacts the speed and types of vehiclespermitted to travel along the line which in turn impact the frequency of services andthe comfort of the service.

V/Line typically classifies track into five classes plus a “siding” class based on thecondition of the track and subsequent speed permitted along the track. The fiveclasses as defined by ARTC for NSW are probably better indications of track quality.They are:

Class 1 track will take a 25 t axle load and is reasonably new track in goodcondition. The track is designed to permit speeds of approximately 160 km/hr forpassenger trains and 80 km/hr for freight. Therefore the signalling and levelcrossings will also to be to a standard to allow trains to travel safely at thesespeeds. The V’Locity passenger trains introduced along the Geelong, Ballarat,Bendigo and Traralgon lines require track to be Class 1 for effective use;

Class 2 track is limited to a 21 t axle load and speeds of 120 km/hr for passengertrains and 80 km/hr for freight;

Class 3 track has a 19 t axle load and a top speed of 70 km/hr for freight; and

Class 4 and 5 track have a 19 t axle load and speeds of 50 km/hr and 40 km/hrrespectively.

In the previous sections of this report it has been mentioned that the Albury/Wodongaline is currently undergoing rerailing and mud hole remediation following earlier workto resleeper the tracks and to convert the broad gauge track to standard gauge. Theseworks will provide a high quality line with effectively two new tracks, an upgradedsignalling system and improved level crossings. When the ARTC works are completethe track will be in good condition and will have an ARTC 1 ranking. This line is the railfreight route along the east coast of Australia and consequently regular maintenancewill be guaranteed to ensure that the line is kept to an acceptable standard. TheBenalla – Oaklands freight line has also been upgraded and converted to standardgauge as part of the north east line upgrades and therefore the track will also be ingood condition.

The condition of the Shepparton line is managed at a lower level compared to theAlbury/Wodonga line. The broad gauge section of track to Seymour is classified as aClass 2 track while the track north of Seymour is classified as a Class 3 track. Theimpacts of the lower condition track along this line include:

The condition of the track limits the speed at which trains can travel, therefore notproviding the travel time savings that rail can achieve compared to road. Thisimpacts both freight and passenger rail travel;

The comfort of the journey is impacted. A lower class track will result in a trip with areasonable amount of movement of the carriage therefore creating discomfort topassengers and making it difficult to write, drink and walk around the carriage;


Only older style trains are permitted to be used along the line. V/Line permits thenew V’Locity trains to be used only on Class 1 track; and

There are more breakages for freight due to the movement of the wagons on Class3 (or lower) track.

In comparison, much of the passenger networks to Bendigo, Ballarat, Geelong andTraralgon within Victoria have been upgraded to Class 1 track as part of the RegionalFast Rail program (discussed in Section 2.5). This indicates that the standard of theShepparton line and the resulting impacts of the track condition are not in line with theother major centres in the state and therefore works should be initiated to upgrade theShepparton line.

The gauge of the Shepparton track is also an important issue given the significantvolume of freight that could potentially be transported via rail. The issues of broadgauge track have been previously discussed in Section 3.1, where it was noted thatthe current gauge of the Shepparton line hinders the usage of the line for freight.While it is acknowledged that converting the Shepparton line to standard gauge willrequire the passenger carriages to be gauge converted thereby adding costs to theprocess the overall long term economic benefits for both passenger and freightservices will outweigh these costs.

4.2 Train Paths

Accessibility of train paths is a critical issue to be able to provide the number ofservices required for each line at purposeful times. The train paths are often critical atthe ‘squeeze’ points where there are junctions or a convergence of a number of lines.For regional passenger trains and freight trains this is usually when they enter theMetropolitan Melbourne passenger rail network.

The timetabling of the rail network provides the Metropolitan Melbourne passengertrains with first priority, regional passenger trains with second priority and freight trainsare required to fit around the passenger services. This therefore restricts the timing ofthe freight trains and to a lesser extent the regional passenger trains.

Train path availability is limited during the peak periods due to the high demand andlarge number of train services utilising the network at this time. Train paths within anetwork are impacted by trains operating at different speeds, stopping at differentstations and being different lengths. In a congested network (often during peakperiods) this is an additional complication that at times prevents regional and freighttrains from obtaining a train path.

The key issues regarding train paths for regional passenger services include:

Access into Southern Cross station

The platform availability at Southern Cross station is limited during peak periods.There are currently dedicated platforms for regional services but these need to beshared for all regional services. This situation is likely to be improved following thecompletion of Regional Rail Link (RRL), as two new platforms (one dedicated forregional services and the other to be shared with metropolitan services) will beconstructed at Southern Cross Station.

Costs associated with access to Southern Cross before 9 am

Metro Trains control access to the metropolitan tracks which also includes thepricing for access. Due to the high demand of usage during the peak periods,access costs are at a premium until 9 am. Based on this, to help reduce costs,


V/Line timetables services to minimise the number of services before 9 am,particularly on the longer routes. Both the Shepparton and Albury/Wodonga linesare considered longer routes and therefore do not have services arriving intoSouthern Cross Station before 9 am. This results in passengers not being able toarrive for a 9 am meeting in Melbourne and therefore a greater number of peoplefrom this region are required to drive or travel the night before. Both options reduceproductivity for the travellers and therefore are considered inferior travel options.

The key issues regarding train paths for freight services include:

Access into PoM

Within the PoM the arrival of freight trains is often required to be timetabled so thatthere are sufficient rail sidings to accommodate the trains and available resources(personnel and equipment) to unload and then load the train. Access into the PoMis also often limited to provide efficiencies within the port operation and to reduceadditional container movements and storage requirements.

This situation is likely to be improved in the future due to infrastructure efficiencyimprovements and improvements in the operation of the terminals. Currently theDepartment of Transport is investigating the feasibility of relocating interstate trainsthat are not related to the port to another Interstate Terminal.

Freight Utilising Broad Gauge Tracks

The movement of freight on broad gauge tracks is restricted by both regional andmetropolitan passenger rail services. This is an issue in peak times as freight trainstravel at different speeds to passenger services due to the length and weight of thetrains. Therefore, during peak times, the number of opportunities for freight issignificantly reduced.

Passenger services always have priority for train paths due to the need to movepeople as a priority to goods. The number of train paths is getting harder to find asthe number of passenger services is continually increasing due to demand. Inaddition, the commuter peaks are also increasing. The paucity of freight train pathsduring the peaks can affect businesses. A comparison is the traffic congestion onthe roads where trucks are competing with cars. Therefore costs for freight due tocongestion are increasing, particularly in regard to the unreliability of travel time. Itis therefore essential to improve the rail network for freight to provide a viabletransport option.

The cleanest option would be to move all rail freight to standard gauge lines.Standard gauge rail tracks are quarantined from the broad gauge metropolitanpassenger rail network and do not suffer the same degree of passenger serviceinterface issues.


4.3 Locomotives, Carriages and Wagons

The other limiting factor in providing additional rail services is the availability of rollingstock. There is currently limited rolling stock available and additional services wouldrequire rolling stock to be purchased. It is understood that the government hasrecently purchased a number of new V’Locity trains to accommodate the demand onthe regional rail network. However the last order will arrive in late 2011 and it isunderstood there are no immediate plans to order more rolling stock.

Based on this, the option of gauge conversion of the Shepparton line should beinvestigated before other rolling stock is purchased. The benefits of standardising theShepparton Rail Line include:

The two passenger services within Hume would no longer be on different gaugeswhich currently eliminates any potential efficiency. If the Shepparton line wasconverted to standard gauge then efficiencies of rolling stock could be gained. Thetwo lines would be able to utilise the same back-up rolling stock for routinemaintenance or repairs; and

The rolling stock available for freight would significantly increase due to the numberof freight rail operators with rolling stock on standard gauge. This would not onlyincrease the availability of rolling stock but it would also increase thecompetitiveness of rail freight within the Shepparton region thereby potentiallyreducing the cost of providing additional and more flexible services.

Standard gauge would allow freight from the Shepparton region to be transporteddirectly into NSW rather than to Melbourne for transfer to standard gauge andsubsequent transport to NSW. This not only reduces the travel distance, time and costbut also reduces rail movements within the PoM precinct.


5. Stakeholder Consultation5.1 Stakeholder Consultation Process

GHD found that a period of stakeholder consultation would be beneficial to ascertainnot only the current perceptions of the existing passenger and freight rail services inthe Hume region, but also the passenger and business demands for improvedpassenger rail and freight rail services respectively.

Stakeholders were consulted only to the north of Seymour. Due to the frequency of railservices to Seymour, stakeholder consultation in Seymour itself was not a priority forthis study.

Identification and collation of the main rail stakeholders in the Hume region wasconducted in close coordination with Hume RDA. Key stakeholders were identifiedfrom a number of sectors including:

Government;

Industry;

Education;

Health; and

Passenger Rail User Groups.

In order to keep the stakeholder process focussed, a questionnaire for passengerand/or freight rail was provided to all stakeholders for discussion and completion.These questionnaires targeted stakeholder satisfaction with current services and thetypes of future services that would satisfy the community. Both the passenger andfreight questionnaires are provided in Appendix C.

Due to the timeframe of this project it was not possible to meet with all stakeholdersindividually. As a result, key stakeholders were identified in conjunction with HumeRDA to organise meetings within the region. The remainder of stakeholders werespoken to over the phone or consulted via email.

Stakeholder meetings were undertaken in three locations on the following dates:

Shepparton – 5 May 2011;

Wodonga – 11 and 12 May 2011; and

Wangaratta – 12 May 2011.

GHD chose to travel to Shepparton, Wodonga and Wangaratta to conduct stakeholdermeetings due to their size, the frequency of rail services and the number of keystakeholders located in those towns. Despite its size, due to the frequency of railservices, it was not necessary to meet with stakeholders in Seymour.

Table 6 to Table 9 present the stakeholders that completed the passenger and/orfreight rail questionnaires for the Shepparton and Albury/Wodonga lines respectively.Appendix D contains a list of all stakeholders contacted, there are some in this list thatdid not complete the questionnaire. The tables have been segregated by thestakeholder group and whether the consultation was predominately around passengeror freight services. The level of consultation with each stakeholder has been shown inthe tables 6 to 9.


Table 6: Stakeholders Consulted Regarding Shepparton (GoulburnValley) Line Passenger Service

Industry

Consultation Level

Meeting Phone Discussion Email

Councils GreaterSheppartonCouncil

Moira ShireCouncil

Strathbogie ShireCouncil

Murrindindi ShireCouncil

Berrigan ShireCouncil

Industry Goulburn ValleyHealth

Goulburn ValleyWater

Goulburn OvensTAFE

Government Department ofTransport – Busand RegionalServices

V/Line

RDA Department ofPlanning andCommunityDevelopment

Education LaTrobe University– SheppartonCampus

MelbourneUniversityBusiness School

Rail ActionGroup

Shepparton RAILS Nicholas and CyrilWhite

Shepparton News


Table 7: Stakeholders Consulted Regarding Shepparton (GoulburnValley) Line Freight Service

Industry

Consultation Level


Council Greater SheppartonCouncil

Industry Campbell’s Soups SheppartonChamber ofCommerce

Bega CheeseLimited

VISY

Tatura Milk HW Greenham

Geoff Hartley

Government Department ofTransport – FreightLogistics andMarine

V/Line

RDA


Table 8: Stakeholders Consulted Regarding Albury/Wodonga (NorthEast) line Passenger Service

Industry

Consultation Level


Councils Wangaratta CityCouncil

Wodonga CityCouncil

Indigo Shire

Alpine Shire Mansfield Shire

Benalla Rural CityCouncil

Mitchell Shire

Strathbogie Shire Murrindindi Shire

Towong Shire

Industry WangarattaUnlimited

WangarattaHospital (NorthEast Health)

Government Department ofTransport – Bus andRegional Services

V/Line Murray RDA

Department ofPlanning andCommunityDevelopment

VECCI’s NorthEast Office

Education LaTrobe University– Albury/WodongaCampus

Wodonga TAFE


Table 9: Stakeholders Consulted Regarding Albury/Wodonga (NorthEast) Line Freight Service

Industry

Consultation Level


Councils Wangaratta CityCouncil

Wodonga CityCouncil

Industry VISY

Government Department ofTransport – FreightLogistics andMarine

V/Line

RDA

5.1.1 Shepparton RAILS Group community survey

In addition to the stakeholder questionnaires and interviews, this section alsoconsiders the key findings of the Shepparton RAILS Group community surveyconducted in May 2011. GHD received a snapshot of the survey responses from thefirst week of the survey where approximately 450 surveys were completed.

The Shepparton RAILS Group developed an online survey to establish residents’ useand perceptions of the available passenger rail services to and from Shepparton.Residents were asked to respond to the survey through a range of communitywebsites and newspaper advertisements. The survey focused only on passenger railservices to Shepparton with a target audience of residents in the Greater Sheppartonregion. The survey focused on understanding:

Time and frequency of travel between Melbourne and Shepparton;

The chosen mode of transport for travel;

Satisfaction of the current rail service to and from Shepparton for weekday andweekend services (including the number and scheduling of services); and

Satisfaction with the cost of the service.

Survey respondents were drawn from across a range of areas within the GreaterShepparton region and respondents ranged from those who often use the existing railservices (43%), to those who sometimes used the services (24%) and those whooccasionally or rarely used the services (56%).

5.2 Passenger Services

The approach GHD adopted for this project was to look at the service from a supplyside to then equate the demand – i.e. if better services were provided what would bethe demand. This is in contrast to the alternative approach which involvesinvestigating and calculating the demand and identifying the number of additionalservices the demand warrants. The approach adopted has resulted in the stakeholderconsultation being focused on the key issues of the current services and what thelevel of service would be needed to encourage more customers to use the service.


5.2.1 Shepparton Line

There is a strong community push for increased rail services to Shepparton and abetter quality of service. Consultation with stakeholders in Shepparton was verypositive with the majority of key stakeholders responding to the questionnaire in atimely fashion.

5.2.1.1 Views on current services

A number of common themes regarding the users of the passenger rail service andissues with the current service were raised during the stakeholder consultationprocess.

Stakeholders reported that the typical trips completed using the passenger rail servicewere:

Commuting to Melbourne for business meetings, training and conferences;

Leisure; and

Specialist medical appointments in Melbourne.

The key issues with the current passenger rail service are summarised below.

Limited number of services (frequency)

Many businesses have indicated the preference to use rail as the dominant mode oftransport as car travel is a significant OH&S issue. After a long day ofworking/meetings, fatigue becomes a significant issue. Rail often cannot be utiliseddue to the limited frequency of services and the timing of services not meeting thebusiness requirements. In fact, most respondents from the Shepparton communitysurvey were very unhappy (34%) or unhappy (41%) with the number of daily servicesto and from Shepparton on weekdays.

Many stakeholders have also indicated that currently if people from the GreaterShepparton region wish to travel to Melbourne via rail they will often drive to Seymourto catch the train due to the significant increase in frequency of services from Seymourcompared to Shepparton. This view is supported by findings of the Sheppartoncommunity survey that 25% of respondents sometimes drive to Seymour and 13%often drive to Seymour to use the more frequent services.

Timetabling of services

While rail service timetabling relates to the issue of service frequency, a number ofspecific issues in relation to train times were highlighted by stakeholders. During thestakeholder consultation process a number of comments were received relating to thetimetabling of the services not meeting demand. This has been noted for trips toMelbourne and for trips to Shepparton. Generally the feedback indicated that:

– The service does not sufficiently accommodate business travel. The first servicearrives in Melbourne at approximately 9.30 am and therefore 9 am meetingscannot be attended.

– The service does not accommodate a day trip to Shepparton for business orleisure as the first service arrives into Shepparton at approximately 12.30 pm andthen leaves at 3.30 pm.

Many Shepparton community survey respondents also highlighted that the inability toarrive in Melbourne in time for business commitments such as meetings, events andtraining was a significant barrier to train use on weekdays. As a result, respondentswere either forced to make inconvenient (and potentially more costly) arrangements to


stay “overnight to enable [them] to attend the conference on time” or had little choicebut to travel by car. As one respondent noted: “A day trip to Melbourne means youarrive late and leave Melbourne late for your return.”

Reliability of services

For a rail service to be used reliability is a key factor to be considered. Currently trainscan be cancelled with limited notice and replaced with a bus service. This change ofmode often leaves mobility impaired travellers stranded at the station and also resultsin a longer trip for other passengers.

Quality of the service

Driving is viewed as a loss of productive time compared to rail where passengers areable to complete work and read/reply to emails. However the consultation indicatedthat some of the services were too crowded to allow for productive work to becompleted. This is particularly the case for the morning service to Melbourne.Therefore many organisations did not promote the use of rail as a means of productivetime.

Speed of the service

The speed of the rail service was mentioned by a number of stakeholders although itwas not the first issue raised. Stakeholders commented that the service currently tooktoo long compared to other rail services and it stopped at too many minor towns. Thestakeholder opinion generally was that a few express services would allow rail to havean adequate travel time particularly for morning commuters and evening return trips.This would allow daily commuters greater time at home for family and leisure timerather than travelling. The majority of respondents to the Shepparton communitysurvey also indicated that they were (21%) very unhappy or (36%) unhappy with thecurrent speed (and therefore travel time) of services.

5.2.1.2 Suggestions for future service provision

The results from the stakeholder consultation show that the following areas of the railservice to Shepparton need to be addressed to improve the demand for the rail line:

A greater number of services.

During a number of the discussions a question regarding the timing of the service wasasked. The question was: ‘if only one additional service could be introduced wherewould this service be within the current timetable?’ Responses to the question variedslightly depending on the demographic of people represented by the stakeholder.However, the majority of the responses were for a service to be introduced that arrivedat Southern Cross Station before 9 am, preferably around 8.30 am. This service wasthe preferred service as to enable attendance at 9 am meetings.

Increasing the number of rail services was also the highest ranking response to whatcould encourage the respondents of the Shepparton community survey to use thetrain more often.

The timetabling of services.

The issues of timetabling and frequency of services are related as more serviceswould enable the timetable to meet more passenger requirements. The consultationindicated that the current timetable provided trains at inconvenient times. To increasedemand, trains would need to operate at times passengers wanted to travel. Inparticular, responses to the Shepparton community survey indicate that services thatarriving in Melbourne at convenient times for business travellers (i.e. in time for


morning meetings and events) would be a key enabler for increased business relatedtrain travel. Improved timetabling of services was the second highest ranking responseto what could encourage respondents to use the train more often.

Duration of the service.

The stakeholder consultation results indicate that the demand for the rail servicewould increase if the travel time was decreased; this was also supported by resultsfrom the Shepparton community survey. A decreased travel time would enable the railservice to be comparable to driving especially as traffic congestion in Melbourne’speaks continues to increase. An express service was suggested as a potentialsolution to decrease travel time for some services.

5.2.1.3 Relay Service

During the stakeholder consultation the potential to operate a relay or shuttle typeservice was raised. This service would involve a sprinter train to operate betweenShepparton and Seymour and allow passengers to connect with the regular serviceoperating between Seymour and Melbourne. This shuttle service would not requireadditional train paths within the metropolitan network whilst increasing the number ofservices to/from Shepparton. The service does however require there to be sufficientcapacity on the existing train services from Seymour. In addition, the passengerswould be required to change trains at Seymour which would add travel timeparticularly if the trains were not scheduled to align.

This type of service was seen by some stakeholders to be a viable option to increasethe number of services. However other stakeholders believed that this type of servicewas not sufficient and would add significant travel time for commuters and thereforepatronage from Shepparton would not significantly increase.

5.2.2 Albury/Wodonga Line

Community concern regarding rail services to and from Wodonga and Wangarattawas not as strongly vocalised and there was a noticeably lower community drive forpassenger rail services voiced by stakeholders interviewed in this region compared tostakeholders in Shepparton.

This may be related to rail services not operating due to the rail standardisation worksas part of the North East Revitalisation Project. Comments indicated that people andbusinesses have found alternative modes of transport in the absence of a rail servicealong the line for the last couple of years; it is possible that residents have becomeaccustomed to the use of other transport modes for journeys that could otherwise bemade using the railway line.

Although other modes of transport have been utilised, consultations confirm that thecommunity would like the passenger rail services to be returned. The consultation withstakeholders in Wodonga and Wangaratta was positive with the majority of the keystakeholders responding to the questionnaire in a timely fashion.

5.2.2.1 Current services

The key issue for the current service of the Albury/Wodonga Line is that there arecurrently only two XPT services operating.

Consultation with stakeholders indicated that when the three V/Line services werereinstated, the total of five services return to Melbourne would be sufficient untildemand increased again. The general consensus was that the demand for passenger


rail has decreased due to the lack of services over the past two to three years andtherefore it will require some time to rebuild demand for the service.

The other key issue that was identified throughout the consultation process withstakeholders in Wodonga and Wangaratta was the need for intra-regional servicesparticularly between Wodonga and Wangaratta rather than services to Melbourne.

5.2.2.2 Future provision

The key features of a rail service that would increase demand would include:

Reliability of services.

Services which run on time and reach the destination at the scheduled time and alsothat services are not cancelled without notice.

Express services that do not require a change at Seymour.

This would shorten the journey time and allow the trip by train to be a viable optioncompared to a car.

Timetabling of the service.

It has been identified that services should provide ‘business friendly’ hours that allowpeople to complete a full day of work in Melbourne i.e. arrive by 9.00 am and leaveabout 5.30 pm.

5.2.3 Business Carriage

The concept of a business carriage to be implemented on all trains in the HumeRegion has been proposed by various stakeholders. This includes a ready to advancerecommendation in the Hume Strategy for “Transit business centres – train carriageson Hume corridor daily service”. The business carriage would be similar to first classwith greater room for passengers when seated and the layout would be designed toallow and encourage people to work while travelling. Therefore the business carriagewould have:

Easily accessible power points for users to plug laptops into;

Layout conducive to business discussion;

Constant ICT coverage;

Emphasis on a working environment;

Free WiFi within the carriage; and

Lighting to a level which allows for reading at all times of the day.

The general response to the business carriage idea was that ‘it is a great idea andwould encourage more business workers to use the train and become the preferredmethod of transport to/from Melbourne’. Despite the positive response regarding thebusiness carriage this concept would encourage users only if the times of servicesuited the purpose of travel.

Costing of the carriage was raised during the consultation process. The majority ofstakeholders accepted that the additional facilities would come at a cost. The exactcost that potential passengers would be prepared to pay cannot be determinedthrough this process and will need to be identified in collaboration with V/Line and theDepartment of Transport. Costing points to compare against were discussed with thecost of a tank of petrol plus a full day car parking in Melbourne (i.e. not early bird)being the most common suggestion. However, due to occupational health and safety a


number of organisations require personnel to stay a night in Melbourne if they arecompleting a full day of work in Melbourne and then travel back the following day.Therefore for a number of organisations as long as the cost is lower than the cost ofdriving plus accommodation for a city hotel then the business carriage would be used.A small number of stakeholders also charter planes (from Shepparton) or use theairport in Albury to complete the trip within a day if meeting times cannot beaccommodated any other way. The cost of a train ticket with these facilities andoccupational health and safety benefits would be significantly cheaper than thesealternatives. However, the timetabling would need to provide more frequent serviceswhich would allow passengers to plan for a full business day in Melbourne.

During consultation with a representative from V/Line, the business carriage conceptwas raised and it was identified that V/Line is currently investigating many featuresincluded in this concept. A key component V/Line has already investigated is theviability of Wireless Internet on board all carriages throughout the network. This wasdone as part of a business case to upgrade the train to base radios to digital. Thisproject and upgrade would need to be funded and undertaken before the conceptcould be fully explored. V/Line has submitted business cases to the Department ofTransport to fund this project. Large costs are involved.

5.3 Freight Services

Similar to the passenger services, GHD has adopted a supply side service to equatethe demand. This approach has also been adopted throughout the stakeholderconsultation process.

5.3.2 Shepparton Line

The number of freight rail services to the Shepparton region has diminished over thepast few decades due to a lack of demand as road has developed to be the pre-eminent mode choice. The broad gauge rail line is also a disincentive for the use ofrail for freight. Currently, there are three return freight rail services to the Sheppartonregion per week. As previously mentioned, these services also service the Tocumwalfreight terminal and therefore the trains operate to a timetable rather than to demand.The current volume of freight transported by rail from the Shepparton region is limited.The majority of freight transported by rail (containerised freight) is destined for the Portof Melbourne for export.

The consultation process was received positively from industry within the Sheppartonregion. The response rate was lower than the passenger responses, which is mostlikely to be due to these organisations currently not using rail for any transportation.


The following key issues were identified regarding the current freight rail service withinthe Shepparton region:

Insufficient frequency of services.

There are only three return rail services to Shepparton/Tocumwal each week. Thisdoes not provide sufficient flexibility for organisations to provide goods to customers ina timely fashion. Also, it does not provide margin for error if a train is missed.

Arrangements between the operator including cost.

Depending on the agreement between the operator and organisation the costs vary.Some organisations indicated that the costs for rail were greater than road and


therefore they would not use rail until costs were lowered. During the consultationprocess it was identified that the minimal competition from rail operators (one of theproblems of running on broad gauge lines) resulted in higher pricing and no choice forrail.

Lack of flexibility and reliability.

Stakeholders identified that it was not possible to have rail services to meet the varieddemand throughout the year and the operators were not willing to accommodate thesedemands easily. In addition, there is a perceived lack of reliability for freight rail andtherefore rail is not readily chosen to transport freight.

Double or triple handling of freight.

This can lead to an increased number of breakages/spoilage of product, although railcan be a gentler journey as there is often less movement between destinationscompared to the road.

Inability to source empty containers in a timely fashion.

This is a significant issue as it can often add a number of days to the process anddoes not always enable sufficient time to meet the shipping departure times.

Supply Chain Timing.

This is also related to the sourcing of empty containers but is an issue in its own right.During the consultation many comments were made regarding the turn-around timefor rail and this was a significant factor in why an organisation chose to use trucksrather than trains. Typically the turnaround time for rail will be up to four days from thetime an order for empty containers is placed to the arrival of the goods in Melbourne.In comparison the turnaround for road is between 6 and 10 hours depending on theavailability of the truck, although in most circumstances a truck can be easilyaccessed.

5.2.2.2 Future Provisions

Based on stakeholder inputs from the consultation, the key areas of improvement toencourage a greater mode share for freight rail would be:

Cost effectiveness;

Frequency of services; and

Flexibility for seasonal produce.

All of these areas of improvement would become possible if the line was converted tostandard gauge - open to competition, access to short haul operators and connectivityto the National Interstate Network.

5.3.3 Albury/Wodonga Line

The consultation process was received positively from industry within the Wodongaand Wangaratta regions. The response rate was lower than for the passengerresponses. This is most likely to be due to these organisations currently not using railfor any transportation.


There are currently limited freight rail options along the Albury/Wodonga line for bothWodonga and Wangaratta. This is due to the limited number of rail facilities i.e.intermodal terminals or freight sidings along this corridor. Most rail freight on this


corridor is interstate freight. The Ettamogah terminal, approximately 17 km, north ofAlbury, provides the only current local freight access to the corridor and this is limitingthe access for freight products.

Significant development and investment is being completed in Wodonga at the LOGICsite but even this site does not currently accommodate any freight rail services.

The key issues for the use of rail along the Albury/Wodonga line are similar to theissues for the Shepparton line and include:

Insufficient frequency of services;

Arrangements between the operator including cost;

Lack of flexibility and reliability;

Double or triple handling of freight;

Inability to source empty containers in a timely fashion; and

Supply Chain Timing.

For further discussion on these key issues refer to Section 5.3.2.1.

5.3.3.2 Future Provisions

The future requirements for industry located in Wodonga and Wangaratta are slightlydifferent as there is no intermodal terminal located in Wangaratta therefore affectingthe cost effectiveness of rail within this region. Feedback from stakeholders indicatedthat an intermodal terminal would need to be developed in order for freight rail to beconsidered as a viable transportation mode choice. This future development ofintermodal terminals in the region will be dependent on containerised freight volumesreaching a “critical mass” to ensure that terminals are viable. As a result the furtherinvestigation and justification of the LOGIC Intermodal Terminal is a greater priority forinvestment in the region at this stage.

Based on stakeholder inputs from the consultation, the major future requirements forfreight rail services in the Wodonga region would include:

Availability of an intermodal terminal with warehousing facilities

Cost effectiveness;

Frequency of services; and

Flexibility for seasonal produce.


6. Service Improvements for Peopleand Business6.1 Benefits of rail

This study has investigated the current levels of service, usage and facilities providedfor passenger and freight rail within the Hume Region. Throughout the study a numberof benefits for rail when compared to road have been identified. The benefits of railinclude:

Safety

Rail is a guided transport mode in not only being physically guided but also veryregulated with a focus on trained and accredited operators. It is therefore inherentlyvery safe. This characteristic contrasts with the road system which is very open in itsoperation.

Driving for significant lengths of time after a long day of work/training is considered bymany organisations to be an Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S) issue due tofatigue resulting in an increased chance of a collision. In addition, elderly citizensusually prefer to catch the train as they are not confident driving, however the limitednumber of rail services do not always allow them to reach their desired destination at asuitable time.

The number of trucks on the road has increased significantly within the past decade.This has resulted in the increasing probability of collisions. Collisions with trucks oftenresult in serious injury due to size and mass of a truck compared to a car. Althoughcollisions with a train also result in serious injury, the level of interaction betweentrains and cars is minimised. The train is located within a dedicated corridor which haslimited road crossing points (the majority of crossings are signalised with boom gatesto prevent cars from crossing when a train is in the vicinity).

Cost of Oil Increasing

Oil is a finite resource and will continue to increase in price as it becomes difficult tosource. Based on average occupancy rates road vehicles (cars and trucks) utilisemore oil (petrol and diesel) than rail per person. This results in passenger and freightrail not being impacted by the increasing oil prices to the same extent as road travel(cars and trucks). Increases in freight costs are generally passed onto the consumerby increasing the price of goods and utilities. Therefore it will be become moreeconomical to transport via rail instead of road.

Environmental Impacts

Greenhouse gas emissions including vehicle emissions are a critical issue for theenvironment and currently there is a general focus on reducing all greenhouse gasemissions. Average vehicle occupancy for passengers and the volume of goods truckscan carry cause road vehicles to emit significantly greater amounts of greenhousegases.

Due to the size and loads trucks carry, they have a significantly greater impact on theroad pavement than cars. This results in increased initial design requirements andmaintenance of the pavement for roads with a high volume of trucks.

The Hume region is forecast to grow significantly over the next 20 years. To enablethis growth to be sustainable, a policy focus on increasing the use of rail should be


implemented to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to lessen the impacts onroads.

Congestion

Traffic volumes on roads within Melbourne and local towns are increasing, resulting insome roads reaching capacity during peak periods (this is particularly the case formajor inner city arterial roads). Congestion on these roads is therefore resulting inlonger travel times and greater variation of trips. According to forecasts for the HumeRegion it is expected that the freight task will grow to 58 million tonnes per year overthe next 25 years. This means a significant increase in the number of trucks along thehighway networks within the Hume region if the current mode share continues.

Traffic volume forecasts predict the level of congestion to increase and the peakperiods to spread over a greater portion of the day. Consequently, the window ofoperation is narrowing for freight vehicles to travel avoiding the peak periods. Thiseither restricts business operating hours or increases the time allowance due to longerand greater variability in travel time for the trip. The increasing congestion also affectspassenger trips as people spend more time travelling than at home or in leisure orsocial activities.

Passenger and freight rail provide greater certainty for the duration of the trip and thearrival time. This is due to rail having a dedicated corridor and not being affected bythe road congestion.

Productivity and Time Savings

Rail services offer passengers the opportunity to use their time productively by beingable to read and respond to emails, read reports, study, read leisure material etc.Driving significantly limits the amount of work/study that can be completed due to thelevel of concentration required while driving.

Travel on rail is significantly less tiring than driving and also provides the opportunityto rest. The operating speeds of trains will usually result in the travel time beingquicker than driving. This is particularly noticeable for upgraded track that allows trainsto operate at speeds up to 160 km/hr.

Financial Savings

Driving to the Melbourne CBD for the day can be relatively costly compared to a railtrip to the same destination due to parking, petrol and car usage expenses. Parking inthe CBD can be particularly expensive if early bird rates are not provided.

In addition, due to safety requirements some travellers may need to travel the nightbefore and pay for overnight accommodation. This usually is not required for railpassengers from a safety perspective and therefore could be a significant cost saving.

Social Inclusion

Social inclusion is a key issue to be considered for regional centres and isolation isoften a cause for depression or people not staying within the region. Rail servicesprovide a quick connection between the regional centres and the city thereby reducingthe feeling of isolation for people who don’t drive (i.e. young people, elderly people,backpackers and those who can’t afford a car).


6.2 Issues due to poor Rail services

Issues associated with poor rail services relate to both passenger and freightservices. However, the issues have some different aspects and therefore have beendiscussed separately in this section.

6.2.1 Passenger - Shepparton Line

There is a clear disparity between the rail services along the Shepparton line and theother regional rail services, such as in the Regional Fast Rail areas.

A paucity of passenger rail services creates the following social and economic issuesfor the region:

Constraints on regional growth

Since the RFR project increased rail services to Bendigo, Ballarat, Geelong andTraralgon the population of these towns has increased dramatically.

Increased dependence on private cars

With minimal train services, households need multiple cars to allow people to travel towork and to leisure activities.

Reduction of productivity

Staff and students can work on the train but cannot work while driving. Train travelalso provides passengers with the options of relaxing and reading for leisure ifdesired.

Decrease in the number/variety of specialist services able to be providedwithin the town

It is difficult to attract medical specialists to have a one or two day clinic in the regionas they find the travel both time consuming and unproductive.

Education growth limitations

The paucity of rail services does not encourage students from Melbourne to studywithin the Hume region due to the isolation and difficulty of travel back to Melbourne tovisit friends and family. The existing rail services compare very unfavourably withBendigo, Ballarat, and Geelong. This creates a disparity for the region and does notallow for potential growth.

Fruit picking and multi-cultural migration difficulties

The paucity of services results in people being isolated from Melbourne and otherareas as they are often reliant on the public transport network. This isolation reducesthe desirability for workers to travel to the Shepparton region.

Tourism

Minimal rail services create a barrier for tourism. The current services to Sheppartondo not provide sufficient time for a day trip as there is only three hours between thetrain arriving in Shepparton and the last train leaving Shepparton. The timing of thetrains is also not desirable for weekend tourism as the travel is in the middle of the dayand does not allow for maximum time in Shepparton.

The current services operating along the Albury/Wodonga line are also scheduled atsimilar times and are not suitable for day trips on weekdays or attractive for weekendtourism (only two return services per day compared to between 10 and 16 to otherregional centres).


6.2.2 Passenger - Albury/Wodonga Line

The V/Line passenger rail service to Albury/Wodonga partially recommenced onSunday 26 June 201. There are expected to be some delays before services resumefully in November 2011. XPT trains have continued to operate during the upgradingworks with two return services a day.

The current level of service for this line is well below that of other railway linesservices to destinations of a similar size and distance from Melbourne (detailed inSection 2).

However, the level of service is considered to be reasonable once the three dailyreturn V/Line services are reinstated. The Albury/Wodonga line will be serviced by atotal of five daily return services (including the two Country Link services) when allV/Line services are reinstated.

The issue with the reinstated services will be the timetabling. Services need to beprovided at times that allow the majority of users to travel at their desired times.Another critical issue for the towns of Wodonga and Wangaratta is the links betweenthe two towns, particularly for accessing educational facilities.

A further issue for timing of services is the ability to encourage tourism to the town viarail. Wangaratta in particular is promoting and growing cycling tourism with thedevelopment of a number of cycle trails within the region. The rail is viewed as asustainable option to travel to Wangaratta as bicycles are permitted to be carried onthe trains. However, the timetabling has to be convenient for visitors.

It is noted that improvements to services may not result in increases to patronagewithout effective communication and promotion. As previously discussed, residentsmay not be receptive to new and improved services because they may have becomeaccustomed to using other transport modes in the absence of frequent and reliablepassenger rail services.

6.2.3 Freight - Shepparton Line

Minimal freight rail services have created the following issues:

More road maintenance due to an increased number of trucks on the roads;

Social issues in towns due to road divisions with large vehicles constantly travellingalong roads through the town;

Road safety;

Congestion in towns and Melbourne; and

Lack of choice for industry to choose a mode of transport.

The number of freight rail services to Shepparton has gradually decreased from twoservices per day to one per day or even less. As the number of services has beenreduced, the number of industries transporting by rail has also decreased due to theconvenience of road and the diminishing options for rail. The rail operators havereacted to the reduced demand by further reducing the number of services in adownward spiral.

To increase the rail share for the Shepparton line the number of services provided toindustry needs to increase to provide flexibility and the cost needs to remaincompetitive with road freight. This would be facilitated by converting the track tostandard gauge which would allow for a greater amount of rolling stock to be availableand provide greater flexibility during the peak seasons. Rail operators provide services


in other states of Australia which have different peak seasons. If the line was standardgauge, the rolling stock would be able to be transferred to where the demand existsfor moving seasonal produce.

Gauge standardising the Shepparton rail line would also allow for produce to betransported directly to NSW rather than to Melbourne and then back again. This tripcurrently is likely to be completed by road due to the additional distance the goods arerequired to travel on rail. Standardising the Shepparton line would also allow for freightto have greater priority on the line as it would be separated from the metropolitanpassenger rail when accessing the PoM. This higher priority would permit greaterflexibility in the timing of rail services.

There is also the opportunity for rail to increase the mode share of land transportationof freight to/from the Shepparton region through the use of ‘fast freight’. However, thiswould only be viable (or even possible) if the line was converted to standard gauge.The concept of ‘fast freight’ is small freight trains that can pull up to 500 tonnes and beused for short haul trips. This would require a number of spur lines to be constructedallowing for direct access onto the line from a greater number of industries and largefarms transporting goods within the region or to neighbouring regions. The costs of thespur lines could be covered by the industries requiring access to the main lineprovided that access to the main line was flexible and adaptive to meet the needs ofthese industries. If the ‘fast freight’ concept was implemented correctly it could allowrail to be more competitive with road for shorter distances due to the following:

The trains can operate at faster speeds therefore reducing the travel time;

The trains have a smaller load capacity and therefore do not need to have anumber of loads combined to be cost effective. This also results in the trains beingable to operate more often and at a time that better suits the customer; and

The rail heads are at the origin/destination due to the spur lines, therefore reducingthe need for trucks to transport the ‘last km’.

Currently there are two standard gauge Cargo Sprinter locomotives at the Ettamogahterminal. These are designed for short haul rail movements but are not being utiliseddue to lack of demand. These locomotives could potentially be utilised for theShepparton region

If the Shepparton line is not converted to standard gauge there is the danger ofeffectively ‘cutting off’ Shepparton from the freight network. This will be due to the lackof competition of freight rail operators pricing out the option of rail when compared toroad. Also the lack of flexibility of rail both for pick-up/drop-off times and for thedestinations available will limit the use of rail to transport freight if gauge conversiondoes not occur.

The opportunity to provide an empty container storage facility in close vicinity to therail terminal in Shepparton should be investigated. This will require agreement fromthe shipping lines and rail operators but would provide several advantages for rail.These would include:

Increased flexibility for containers;

Reduced delays when transporting goods to the PoM; and

Decreased travel time and distance for empty containers as they would not berequired to be transported to an empty container park, then to the PoM and then toShepparton.


There is the potential for the container terminal to be located at the Goulburn ValleyFreight Hub which would provide this terminal with the anchor tenant required toenable the project to proceed. The Greater Shepparton Council would need to investmoney to provide the required facilities for this container park. However, the presenceof a container park would be likely to attract other businesses to the precinct.

6.2.4 Freight - Albury/Wodonga Line

The rail freight currently being transported along the Albury/Wodonga line is the longhaul freight travelling to/from NSW and QLD. Therefore although the line has freighttravelling along it the Albury/Wodonga region will have similar issues to Sheppartondue to the lack of local freight transported on rail from the region.

To increase the mode share of freight rail from the Albury/Wodonga region the keyrequirement is greater local access to the network.. This can be achieved through thedevelopment of an intermodal terminal at the Wodonga LOGIC site. This site is slightlysouth of Wodonga and has been developed as an industrial park and distributioncentre for the region. An intermodal terminal has been planned but is still awaitingfunding from State and Federal Governments. As seed funding, a $4 million grant hasbeen provided to the City of Wodonga to put towards a rail intermodal terminal orother related facilities at LOGIC. The site has the potential to provide rail efficienciesas there is already a number of industries located in the one precinct and access torail could provide services for all industries. For example, if the WoolworthsDistribution Centre was to move goods on rail then the LOGIC Intermodal Terminalwould become a necessity. Refer to Section 3.2.1 for further detail on the WodongaLOGIC terminal.

There is a small existing intermodal terminal at Ettamogah (approximately 17 km northof Albury). However, the location of the terminal limits the viability of transportinggoods to be transported by rail for the relatively short distance to the PoM. For goodsto be exported, this rail terminal requires industries within Wodonga to transport thegoods north via road to Ettamogah and then transfer these goods to rail to travel southto the PoM. The time and cost associated with these additional movements result inindustries choosing road to transport the goods for the full distance. However, ifindustry warehousing was located at the LOGIC site then goods could be transferreddirectly to rail if an Intermodal Terminal was built.


6.3 Investment requirements to increase the demand forrail and number of services

The Shepparton and Wodonga populations are now growing at a rate comparable tothe cities of Bendigo and Ballarat in the 1970-90’s and the growth in new businessentries suggests acceleration of activity in the coming period (2011 – 2020). Thestakeholder consultations undertaken in the region confirm an increasing need foradditional services with consideration of timetable changes and improvements inspeed and travel comfort.

As the population and economic activity grows there is a need to cater for additionalservices and improved transport outcomes to support the ongoing growth of theregion. The planning for additional services is now a priority which can address thesocial needs of this region and provide further growth in a similar way to that enjoyedin the major centres where Regional Fast Rail services have been implemented.

There are two major rail investments that are required to provide the best futureoutcome for the Hume region:

1. Gauge Standardisation of the Shepparton line (including standardisationof relevant links to Seymour), and

2. The provision of improved passenger services similar to the RegionalFast Rail investments in other parts of the state.

These two investments are required to provide the necessary service improvementsand future scope to cater for the region’s economic growth and development.

The two outcomes intersect across common infrastructure and require detailedplanning and development both in the Region and in the Melbourne area wherenetwork capacity constraints are an important issue.

The outcomes are in line with the policy/planning directions which provide for theextension of the V’Locity rolling stock and improved passenger services together withthe need for a regional network with key links to the national network.

It is recognised that these outcomes require major changes to the current networkinfrastructure but the resultant outcomes are essential to the future of the Humeregion.

6.3.1 Key investment areas - Long term view

The key areas of investment which need to be completed to allow for increased railservices are:

Standardisation of all rail lines in the Hume region, particularly the Sheppartonline

The Albury/Wodonga line has now been converted to standard gauge with upgradingworks including rerailing expected to be finished by November 2011. To allow freightdistribution within the area, to avoid confusion and to allow for economic efficiencies itwould be desirable and beneficial if all lines within the region were the same gauge -i.e. standard gauge.

Train Paths into Melbourne could be an issue. However, if the track to Sheppartonwas converted to standard gauge then it would be less of an issue as it would nolonger be competing with the metropolitan passenger services. It would also createeasier access for rail freight to the PoM.


Additional rolling stock for both freight and passenger movements throughoutthe Hume region.

Further investment is required to enable the number of passenger services to increaseand to reduce the disparity between the Hume passenger rail services and theservices on other regional lines in Victoria.

There is also a rolling stock availability issue for freight which would disappear if thetrack was gauge standardised. There are a greater number of operators usingstandard gauge compared to broad gauge. There is also more standard gauge rollingstock available in seasonal times as rolling stock can be transferred from other statesthat do not have the same peak demands. While the Shepparton Line remains broadgauge it will always be difficult and costly to source additional rolling stock foradditional services during the peak periods.

Regional Fast Rail Standard Rail Services.

The current services providing transport links to the Hume region do not provide thespeed and efficiency of Regional Fast Rail (RFR) services which have dramaticallyimproved the passenger rail services to the larger regional cities of Geelong, Bendigo,Ballarat and Traralgon.

The Hume region has shown significant growth over recent years and expectationsare that this growth will continue; particularly in the centres of Shepparton andAlbury/Wodonga. The growing populations and economic requirements in thesecentres must lead to consideration of improved rail services similar to the RegionalFast Rail services provided to other major regional cities.

Improvement of rail service times and conditions to the region can provide a catalystto increase the use of Public Transport to Melbourne and reduce the traffic on roads ina similar way to what has now been achieved on RFR routes throughout the state.The improvements would attract additional people to the region in line withGovernment policies to decentralise the population and increase overall economicactivity in the region. Tourism and visitors would be further attracted by ease of accessand this would provide additional economic benefits for the region.

It is understood that this proposal has a number of elements which would take time toimplement and would need targeted investment to achieve. It also involves changes tothe Seymour to Melbourne leg of the journey which would provide benefits byincreasing public transport use and commuting in the growing area betweenCraigieburn and Seymour.

Overall, its implementation would improve services and access to the north east ofVictoria and help drive further investment and economic activity in the Hume region.

Key components of these rail service improvements would include:-

Network capacity planning;

Metropolitan network changes (i.e. all freight on standard gauge);

Signalling improvements to ensure faster speeds and easier access to thenetwork;

Track quality upgrades (including resleepering and drainage);

Level crossing improvements and upgrades; and

Other station and facility upgrades.


6.3.2 Key Passenger Investment options - Short Term

Short Term Passenger Solutions

There is short- term and lower cost solutions that could be adopted for rail services inthe Hume region (particularly for the Shepparton line). These solutions could beprovided while funding is sourced and planning/design is undertaken. These solutionsshould not be adopted as ultimate solutions as they could not accommodate theforecast growth to the region or provide a level of service required for improvements torail system within the Hume region. The short-term solutions require little if any extratrain paths into Melbourne and existing infrastructure would be able to be used. Thereis, however, a possible need for some signalling improvements to cater for theproposed solutions. The short term solutions are aimed at increasing the frequency ofthe services while the longer term solutions provide increased frequency and alsohigher train speeds.

The potential short-term solutions include:

Relay service between Shepparton and Seymour

This solution would include a sprinter service operating between Shepparton andSeymour, as previously discussed in Section 5.2. The service could be timed to arrivea few minutes prior to the Seymour service to allow passengers sufficient time tochange services without waiting for an extended period of time. This solution wouldnot require any additional train paths within the Metropolitan network but may requireadditional locomotives and carriages.

This solution raises a few potential issues which include:

– Increased travel time and inconvenience for passengers as they are required tochange services; and

– The current peak period services from Seymour to Melbourne are nearingcapacity and therefore may not be able to accommodate the additionalpassengers from Shepparton.

To avoid the above issues while increasing the number of services betweenMelbourne and Shepparton, the relay service could be provided only during off-peakperiods. There is likely to be a lower demand for the rail service from Seymourcompared to the peak periods and there would therefore be capacity for additionalpassengers from Shepparton.

Extension of a number of the Seymour services to Shepparton

This solution would involve a number of services being extended to Sheppartoninstead of terminating at Seymour. As presented in Section 2 there are currently morethan 6 times the number of services at Seymour compared to Shepparton. Thestakeholder consultation also indicated a large proportion of people from Sheppartonwho caught the train drove to Seymour due to the number of services provided.

Extending some of the services to Shepparton would result in the same number oftrains requiring access to the Metropolitan network but the times may need to bealtered slightly to allow for the additional travel time.

This solution provides additional services to the Shepparton region and does notrequire passengers to change trains. However, it may result in the trains reachingcapacity and passengers who usually catch the train south of Seymour not being ableto access the service. Also, there may be a requirement for additional rolling stock ifthe timetable cannot be modified to provide the same number of services within the


required timeframes due to the additional distances that some services would berequired to cover.

Business Carriage

The business carriage concept is another feature that could be implemented in theshort-term to provide better facilities for passengers. The business carriage conceptreceived positive feedback from stakeholders during consultation. The majority viewwas that these facilities would be beneficial to the business traveller. . The conceptwas not as popular for students due to the cost implications. Consultation with V/Linehas confirmed that the provision of WiFi throughout V/Line carriages is currently beinginvestigated and could be provided through the radio system of the train if the radiosystem was upgraded. If WiFi was able to be provided throughout the carriages then itwould probably remove the need for carriage classes throughout the train.

The ability to work while travelling is a key advantage of rail. Therefore the features ofthe business carriage (whether provided in one carriage or throughout the train) wouldsignificantly help passengers to achieve greater productivity. The provision for allpassengers to access an internet connection allows for a more satisfying use oftravelling time whether for work, study or personal interest. It also provides equality ofopportunity for the general public.

For a suitable fare premium, the business carriage would have the advantage ofsegregating business people in a quiet and comfortable environment, conducive towork.

6.3.3 Key Freight Infrastructure Investments

Freight Infrastructure Longer Term

Intermodal Terminals at Shepparton and Wodonga (LOGIC Barnawartha).

The two proposed intermodal terminals at Shepparton and Wodonga (LOGICBarnawartha) are key features of the future infrastructure requirements for the region,providing out of town freight consolidation with little or no amenity impacts on localcommunities.

The two proposed facilities are planned to cater for both road and rail access in thefuture and both are adjacent to major interstate highway routes to Sydney andBrisbane.

The development of both facilities will bring additional efficiencies to freight transportin the region and create opportunities in the supply chain with direct links to the PoMand other major distribution facilities. Inclusion of a major tenant in these facilities withinterest in rail transport would also assist in the implementation of the rail options.

Both facilities will create additional supply chain efficiency and will link direct transportoptions with potential industrial development and economic activity in the region.

The current Infrastructure Australia submission for the LOGIC terminal includes anadditional range of development options including major fatigue management andtruck parking facilities which are seen as a further catalyst to support funding in theshorter term.

Freight Infrastructure Short Term

In the short-term the number of freight services provided along the Shepparton lineneeds to be increased to a 5 or 7 day a week service. This would reduce some of thedelays associated with the logistics chain using the rail service.


The additional services would also provide flexibility for industry. During consultationthis was identified as a principal reason why rail was not used to transport goods -i.e. no flexibility.

While the additional freight services would increase the flexibility they would notprovide the same level of service, competition and connections to interstate networksthat a standard gauge system would provide. Therefore such a solution can be seenonly as a short term solution to start to grow the rail mode share for freight.


7. RecommendationsThe Hume Region Passenger and Freight Rail Review has identified the need forsignificant improvements due to a paucity of passenger rail services provided to theregion and a continuing decline in the use of rail to transport freight.

The key recommendations for rail improvements within the Hume region are outlinedin Table 10.

Table 10: Key Recommendations


Gauge Standardisation ofthe Shepparton ( GoulburnValley ) Line

There is a paucity of freight operators on broadgauge and therefore the cost competitiveness ofefficient rail transport cannot be tested against roadtransport.

The broad gauge line increases travel time for railfreight from Shepparton to Sydney/Brisbane due to theneed to travel to Melbourne to change gauges.

The Hume region has two gauge types andtherefore gauge standardising the Shepparton linewould allow for efficiencies in the region.

Gauge standardisation on the Goulburn Valleycorridor would relieve congestion on the North Eastcorridor with trains able to travel direct to Shepparton..

Increase passenger railservices along theShepparton andAlbury/Wodonga Lines

There is a disparity between passenger rail servicesin the Hume region and other major regional centres inVictoria. The analysis shows that the number ofservices to Shepparton and to Albury/Wodonga aredisproportionately low compared to regional centres ofsimilar population and proximity to Melbourne’s CBD.In particular, Shepparton shares similar demographics,population and commuter travel characteristics withTraralgon but receives less than one fifth of thenumber of services.

Track upgrades along theShepparton andAlbury/Wodonga Lines toachieve parity withRegional Fast Rail (RFR)standards (i.e. Class 1track)

Currently the tracks are in poor condition(particularly the track to Shepparton). This results inlower train speeds and an uncomfortable journey.

Track upgrades would allow faster and newer trainsto operate on these tracks.

Additional passenger railrolling stock

To increase the number of passenger services morerolling stock is required.

More rolling stock provides greater flexibility fortimetabling.


Additional freight rail rollingstock

More rolling stock allows for an increase in thefrequency of the services.

Investigate opportunitiesfor a container terminal inthe Shepparton Region

A container terminal in the Goulburn Valley areawould reduce the complexities of the logistics chain,reduce the turnaround time for containers and provideflexibility.

Develop the GV LogisticsCentre ( incorporating acontainer terminal )e

The Goulburn Valley Logistics Centre wouldprovide opportunities for efficiencies in freightmovements to/from the region as multiple industrieswould be located on the one site.

This centre would allow for the industry to grow andaccommodate future forecasted growth volumes.

Develop Intermodal RailTerminals at the GVLogistics Centre and atLOGIC Wodonga

There is significant potential for efficient railmovements from the intermodal terminal.

The logistics centres are the ideal and logicallocations for intermodal terminals as the concentrationof industries will provide efficiencies in rail movementsand container handling.

Increase the freightnetwork to allow privatesidings/spur lines toconnect to the mainnetwork.

Reduces the need for trucks to complete the ‘last kmof the journey’ therefore reducing the number ofcontainer lifts.

Cargo Sprinter services could operate in thisenvironment allowing for ‘short haul’ rail trips to be aviable alternative for freight movements.

Introduce a ‘businesscarriage’ on all trains withinthe Hume region. Thesetrains would provide therequired facilities forpassengers to performeffective work - i.e.internet connection, tablesand comfortable seating.

Increases potential patronage by providing a meansfor passengers to effectively utilise travel time forwork or leisure;

Increases overall productivity of the region throughbusiness people using time more productively;

Increases the potential for greater interaction withbusinesses based in Melbourne.

High interest and demand from the communityduring stakeholder consultation.


8. References1. ABS 2006, Census Data, <http://www.abs.gov.au>

2. ABS 2009, National Regional Profile 2005 – 2009, <http://www.abs.gov.au>

3. ABS 2010, Australian Standard Geographical Classification 1261.0,<http://www.ausstats.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/subscriber.nsf/0/AA73DF0A91A3F71BCA256AD500017147/$File/12160_jul2001.pdf>

4. Bicycle Industry Confederation, Australasian Railway Association and theInternational Association of Public Transport 2010, Moving People – Solutions for agrowing Australia,<http://www.ara.net.au/UserFiles/file/Publications/Moving_People_report.pdf>

5. City of Wodonga, Submission to Shaping Melbourne’s Freight Future, Victoria

6. Country Link 2010, Southern Timetable,<http://www.countrylink.info/__data/assets/pdf_file/0013/13810/SouthernRegion.pdf>

7. Department of Human Services (DHS) undated, Average Driving Time map,<http://www.dhs.vic.gov.au/vrhss/travel.pdf>

8. Department of Infrastructure, Victorian Rail Freight Network Review Switchpoint:The template for rail freight to revive and thrive, Victoria

9. Department of Planning and Community Development, 2009, Hume Strategy forSustainable Communities Regional Plan 2010 – 2020, Victoria

10. DoT 2011a, North East Revitalisation Project, <http://www.transport.vic.gov.au/>

11. DoT 2011b, Regional Fast Rail,<http://www.doi.vic.gov.au/DOI/Internet/transport.nsf/AllDocs/AB72CE7E732DC450CA2571F80006286D?OpenDocument>

12. DoT 2009, Transport Demand Information Atlas for Victoria 2008,<http://www.transport.vic.gov.au/DOI/DOIElect.nsf/$UNIDS+for+Web+Display/CA256FD2007CB833CA2573E9001E228C/$FILE/Transport-Demand-Information-Atlas-for-Victoria-2008.pdf>

13. DoP NSW 2010, NSW SLA Population Projections 2006 to 2036,<www.planning.nsw.gov.au>

14. DPCD 2008, Victoria in Future Projections 2008,<http://www.dpcd.vic.gov.au/home/publications-and-research/urban-and-regional-research/metropolitan/victoria-in-future-2008/victoria-in-future-2008-detailed-data-files>

15. GHD Pty Ltd, 2009, Hume Corridor Regional Transport Strategy – Final Report,Victoria

16. Greater Shepparton City Council, 2008, Greater Shepparton InfrastructurePriorities – Submission to Infrastructure Australia for the National Infrastructure PriorityList, Victoria

17. Greater Shepparton City Council, 2010, GV Link, Goulburn Valley Freight andLogistics Centre, Victoria

18. Port of Melbourne Corporation, 2009, Port of Melbourne and Dynon Rail Terminals2009 Container Logistics Chain Study, Victoria


19. Regional Development Victoria, Hume Region, Victoria, Australia – An idealinvestment destination, Victoria

20. V/Line 2010a, Various V/Line timetables,<http://www.vline.com.au/about/performance/intro.html>

21. V/Line 2011a, Annual patronage figures for the Shepparton and Albury-Wodongaservices and seat capacity and seats figures filled for Shepparton services (2011),provided by Phillip Tarry (V/Line) on the 30/05/2011

22. V/Line 2010b, 2009 – 10 Annual Report,<http://www.vline.com.au/pdf/publications/annualreports/annualreport09-10.pdf>

23. V/Line 2011b, Performance,<http://www.vline.com.au/about/performance/intro.html>

24. V/Line 2006, Annual Report 2005 – 2006,<http://www.vline.com.au/pdf/publications/annualreports/annualreport05-06.pdf>

25. V/Line 2009, 2008 -09 Annual Report,<http://www.vline.com.au/pdf/publications/annualreports/annualreport08-09.pdf>

26. Van Stel, A & Diephuis, B 2004, An empirical analysis of business dynamics andgrowth, Zoetoermeer, October <http://www.ondernemerschap.nl/pdf-ez/N200412.pdf>

27. VicRoads, Northern and North Eastern Regions et al, 2009, Northern VictoriaRegional Transport Strategy, Victoria

28. Victoria State Government, 2008, $550,000 grant keeps Goulburn Valley freight onthe rails – Media Release, Victoria

29. Victorian State Government, 2008, Freight Futures, Victoria

30. Victorian State Government, 2008, Victorian Transport Plan, Victoria

31. Victorian State Government, 2011, First V/Line Albury line trains to recommence26 June 2011, Press release, Victoria

Appendix AComparative Analysis

GHD | Proposal for Regional Development Australia - Final Report

The following items are contained in this Appendix:

Item Appendix Content

1 Table describing the data used from various data sources for thecomparative analysis of passenger rail services and demographiccharacteristics.

2 Travel time by car and travel time by rail data table.

3 Train reliability and punctuality data table.

Appendix Table 1: Description of data used by data source

Data Source Description & data used

ABS, Census 2006 Motor vehicle ownership per dwelling has beenassessed on the basis of 2006 ABS Census data.

ABS, NRP 2005 - 2009 The NRP present a standard set of data from a varietyof sources, both ABS and non-ABS. The data isprovided in time series on an annual basis between2004 and 2009. The ABS advises that time series datacan be used to assess changes over time.

This comparative analysis considers age profile,estimated resident population, unemployment rate, landarea, business entries and business exits and thenumber of business by industry on the basis of NRPdata.

DPCD, PopulationProjections

The Victoria in Future projections are based on analysisfrom the 2006 Census of Population and Housing. Theyinclude annual projections of population growth by arange of geographies between 2006 and 2026. Thisanalysis has used these projections for the comparativeanalysis of SSD populations in Geelong, Ballarat,Bendigo, Traralgon, Shepparton, Wodonga and Albury.The same statistics for the corresponding LGA’s and theWangaratta and Seymour LGA’s have also been used.

DoP NSW, PopulationProjections

The NSW projections provide population estimates for arange of geographies between 2006 and 2036. Theprojections have been used to assess population growthin Albury SSD and Albury LGA.

Country Link timetables Country Link timetables have been used to assess thenumber of rail services running between Melbourne andAlbury/Wodonga.


Data Source Description & data used

V/Line annual reports,timetables and websiteand data provided byV/Line staff

Rail patronage data to Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo,Traralgon and Seymour have been sourced from theV/Line Annual Report (2009 – 2010), services betweenMelbourne and key rail destinations have beencalculated on the basis of V/Line timetables and railservice capacity, number of seats filled, train reliabilityand punctuality data has been sourced from the V/Linewebsite.

Annual train patronage, number of seats filled andavailable for the Shepparton line and Albury-Wodongaline have been assessed on the basis of data providedby V/Line staff for the purposes of this analysis.

DoT Regional TransportAtlas

The map of town centre populations presented in thisdocument has been used to illustrate the size of towncentres served both along the railway lines consideredas part of this analysis.

Appendix Table 2: Travel time to town centres by car and rail (DHSundated; V/Line 2010a)

Town centre Hours within whichjourney to Melbournecan be made by car(DHS undated)

Hours within whichjourney to Melbournecan be made by train(V/Line 2010a)

Geelong 1 1.5

Ballarat 1.5 1.5

Bendigo 2 2

Traralgon 2 2.5

Seymour 1.5 1.5

Shepparton 2.5 2.5

Wangaratta 3 3

Albury-Wodonga 4 3.5


Appendix Table 3: Train reliability and punctuality to regionalrailway stations (V/Line 2011b)

Railway station Train reliability

(% of services run)

Train punctuality

(% of services that runon time)58

Geelong 99% 82%

Ballarat 99% 81%

Bendigo 100% 80%

Traralgon 97% 65%

Seymour 99% 85%

Shepparton 100% 93%

Wangaratta Data not available

Albury-Wodonga

58 On short distance, commuter services punctuality is measured on time to 5 minutes 59 seconds. Onlong distance services it is measured on time to 10 minutes 59 seconds.The journey to Shepparton is considered to be long distance and others are considered to be short forthe purposes of assessing punctuality.

Appendix BDetailed Logistics Chain

Appendix CStakeholder Consultation

Questionnaires

131/27462/194577

Hume Region RDAStakeholder Consultation Questions

Passenger RailInstructions:

Where possible, please provide your answers to the questions presented below. Each question isaccompanied by a short explanation in italics.

For all questions, please provide details of any evidence you may have to support your answers.Evidence may include research outcomes, survey results and anecdotal evidence.

When answering the questions please try and provide an general view for the group you arerepresenting and not just an individual point of view.

Stakeholder Details

Organisation name:

Please indicate the Council/s in which your organisation is located:

Alpine Shire Benalla Rural City City of Wodonga Greater Shepparton

Indigo Shire Mansfield Shire Mitchell Shire Moira Shire

Murrindindi Shire Strathbogie Shire Towong Shire Wangaratta Rural City

Please indicate the organisational role of all the individuals who contributed towards this questionnaire:

Role(s):

About Passenger Rail Travel in Your Region

1. What are your views on the current passenger rail services provided in your region? What iseffective and what are the key issues/deficiencies?

Where relevant, please comment on the types of journeys (e.g. commuting, leisure) for whichpassenger rail is used by members of your community/organisation/clients and the effectivenessof passenger rail services including frequency, departure times, transit times and quality ofservice. Do the services run often enough to serve the transport needs of the community? Arethey at convenient times for most users? Are the services considered to be comfortable and isthe current travel time considered reasonable by your community? How do you know?

<Please insert comments below>

231/27462/194577

About Future Passenger Rail Services

2. What impact do you think a more frequent passenger rail service offering approximately 8services both to and from Melbourne on weekdays, including trains arriving in Melbourne before9.00 am, would have on your community? What do you think the impact would be if these wereexpress services stopping only at key centres (i.e. Shepparton, or Wangaratta and Wodonga)?

Where relevant, please comment on potential benefits to your community/organisation/clients (ifany), the potential impact on the frequency train travel by residents, tourism and the localeconomy. Would the services need to be more frequent than 8 times a day to Melbourne and 8times a day from Melbourne to be adequate? How many times a day (to and from Melbourne)would be reasonable for residents/visitors in your area? Would travel times need to be quickerand by how much? What impact would arrival/departure times have on the community and why?What evidence do you have to support this?


3. It has been proposed to include a “Transit Business Centre or Business Class Compartment orCarriage” to the expanded future rail service. This carriage would have Wi-Fi and be set up forbusiness/laptop use while in transit. If such a service was to be offered:

a. How do you think this would change the travel choices made by members of yourcommunity (if at all)?


b. Do you think this carriage could encourage people to use the train rather than driving?

Please provide details of why you think this is the case.


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4. What other changes to the current passenger rail services do you feel could encourage yourcommunity to use train services more frequently?

Please provide details of why you think such changes would influence passenger rail use.


5. Any other comments:


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Hume Region RDAStakeholder Consultation Questions

Freight RailInstructions:

Where possible, please provide your answers to the questions presented below (all questions areoptional however your answers and inputs are highly valued).

For all questions, please provide details of any evidence you may have to support your answers.Evidence may include research outcomes, survey results and anecdotal evidence.

Stakeholder Details

Organisation name:

Please indicate your organisation type:

Agriculture Food manufacture Livestock Metals Clothing and textiles Petroleum, chemicals and plastics Wood, leather and paper Electronics, computers and transport Other (Please indicate)

Please indicate the Council/s in which your organisation is located:

Alpine Shire Benalla Rural City City of Wodonga Greater Shepparton

Indigo Shire Mansfield Shire Mitchell Shire Moira Shire

Murrindindi Shire Strathbogie Shire Towong Shire Wangaratta Rural City

Please indicate the organisational role of all the individuals who contributed towards this questionnaire:

Role(s):

About your Organisations’ Current Freight Transport Practices

1. What quantities of freight do you currently transport (e.g. TEU’s or Tonnage of bulk products)?Is this a year round quantity or are your freight requirements seasonal? (Please specify)

a. For Outbound Freight


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b. For Inbound Freight


2. To what regions do you send/receive freight?

a. Send Freight

Melbourne Interstate Ports for export Other (please describe):

b. Receive Freight

Melbourne Interstate Ports for export Other (please describe):

3. Do you know the locations of freight rail services within close proximity to your organisation?

Yes No

4. Are you aware of what is possible/ not possible to be transported via freight rail?

Yes No

5. Do you currently use rail to transport your freight?

Yes No

6. If yes, what percentage of your freight do you transport using rail?

a. For Outbound Freight


b. For Inbound Freight


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7. If you answered no to Question 5, why not? Have you considered using rail to transport yourfreight?


About Future Freight Rail Services

8. If you could sort out flexible contractual arrangements, would you consider using rail to transportyour freight?

Yes No

Please provide reasons for your answer:


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9. Would you use a rail freight timetabled service if it was offered (i.e. twice per day at a set time foroutbound and inbound services)?

Yes No

Please provide reasons for your answer:


10. What other changes to the current freight rail services do you feel could encourage yourorganisation to use train services to transport freight? Are there any specific requirements thatwill enable your organisation to use rail for freight?

Please provide details of why you think such changes would influence freight rail use.


11. Any other comments:


Appendix DStakeholder List

GHD www.ghd.com.auTel. (03) 8687 8000 Fax. (03) 8687 8111180 Lonsdale Street Melbourne Vic 3000

Stakeholder Consultation List

Company / Organisation Receivedaresponse toemail

Company / Organisation Receivedaresponse toemail

Company / Organisation Company / Organisation

Albury Chamber ofCommerce

Noresponse- emailsent

Goulburn River ValleyTourism

Noresponse- calledand left a

Murray Goulburn Noresponse- calledand left a

Unilever

Alpine Shire Council Noresponse- emailsent

Goulburn ValleyEnvironment Group(GVEG)


Murray RDA (based inAlbury)

Phonediscussionregardingsurvey

University of MelbourneSchool of Rural HealthShepparton

Noresponse- calledand left amessageto call

Asciano Limited - PatrickNoresponse- calledand left a

Goulburn Valley Health Meetingregardingsurvey

Murrindindi Shire Council Noresponse- emailsent

Victorian FarmersFederation

Phonediscussionregarding

Bega Cheese Limited(Strathmerton)

Meetingregardingsurvey

Greater Shepparton CityCouncil


Nicholas and Cyril White Phonediscussionregardingsurvey

VECCI’s North east officelocation


Benalla Rural City Council Noresponse- emailsent

GV Water Emailrepsonsereceived

Numurkah Senior Citzens Noresponse- emailsent

VISY Meetingregardingsurvey

Berrigan Shire CouncilCouncil(NSW)


Hume SustainableCommunities


Peach and ApricotGrowers

Noresponse- calledand left amessage

V/Line Phonediscussionregardingsurvey

Bright and DistrictChamber of Commerce(Apline Shire)


HW Greenham atShepparton


Pental (Soaps)Noresponse- calledand left amessageto call

Wallis Group Meetingregardingsurvey

Campbells Soups Meetingregardingsurvey

Indigo Shire Council Noresponse- emailsent

Rail Action GroupShepparton RAILS


Wangaratta Chamber ofCommerce (BusinessWangaratta)


City of Wodonga Phonediscussionregarding

Jeanette Powell LocalState Member- Nationals

response- calledand left amessage

Rural City of Wangaratta Meetingregardingsurvey

Wangaratta Hospital(North East Health)

response- calledand left amessage

DOT - Bus and RegionalServices - Hume


LaTrobe University –Albury Wodonga Campus


Shepparton Chamber ofCommerce


Wangaratta Unlimited Emailrepsonsereceived

DOT Freight Logistics andMarine


LaTrobe University–Shepparton Campus


Shepparton News Owner Emailrepsonsereceived

Wendy Lovell UpperHouse MP

Emailrepsonsereceived

Food bowl group Meetingregardingsurvey

Mansfield Shire Council Noresponse- emailsent

SPC Ardmona – FactoriesShepparton, Mooroonpnaand Kyabram)


Wilson’s StockfeedsNoresponse- calledand left amessageto call

Fontera response- calledand left amessage

Melbourne UniversityBusiness School


Strathbogie Shire Council Noresponse- emailsent

Wodondga Chamber ofCommerce


Furphy’sNoresponse- calledand left amessageto call

Mitchell Shire Council Emailrepsonsereceived

Swifts Meats (JBSAustralia) at Cobram


Wodonga Chamber ofCommerce - Dysons BusService


Geoff Hartley Phonediscussion

Moira Health Alliance Noresponse- email

Tatura Milk Meetingregardingsurvey

Wodonga TAFENoresponse- called

Goulburn Ovens TAFE Phonediscussionregarding

Moira Shire Council Emailrepsonsereceived

Towong Shire Council Noresponse- emailsent

Phone

List for Appendix DG:\31\27462\Tech\Stakeholder spreadsheet ER.xls26/08/2011 9:58 AM Page 1 of 1

GHD

180 Lonsdale StreetMelbourne, Victoria 3000T: (03) 8687 8000 F: (03) 8687 8111 E: [email protected]

© GHD 2011

This document is and shall remain the property of GHD. The document may only be used for the purpose ofassessing our offer of services and for inclusion in documentation for the engagement of GHD. Unauthorised use ofthis document in any form whatsoever is prohibited.G:\31\27462\WP\198658.docx

Document Status

RevNo.

Author Reviewer Approved for IssueName Signature Name Signature Date

0 N.GuyH.Whitley

E.Ryan *E Ryan M.Baggott *M Baggott 1/7/11

1 N.GuyH.Whitley

B.ShepherdP.Templer

*B Shepherd*P Templer

M.Baggott *M Baggott 15/7/11

2 N.GuyH.Whitley

B.ShepherdP.Templer

*B Shepherd*P Templer

M.Baggott *M Baggott 26/8/11

* Signed on original

www.ghd.com

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Regional Development Australia |Regional Development Australia - Final Report This Hume Region Passenger & Freight Rail Review Final Report (“Report”): 1. has been prepared by