The Australian federal government undertook a three-year land transfer program that included a planning and feasibility study for the development of a port related intermodal terminal on commonwealth land at Moorebank in south-western Sydney. The proposed facility will be the first and largest of its kind to be built in Australia. The terminal is a first step to providing an integrated transport solution to meet the significant growth in the movement of freight to, from and within the Sydney basin, and will provide significant congestion relief, freight capacity and environmental benefits to the urban community, region and its surroundings.

The Moorebank Project Office (MPO) needed a flexible project team that was capable of maintaining an open channel with government decision makers without compromising study progress. WSP teamed up with financial adviser KPMG and other consultants to plan and design a viable concept for the Moorebank IMT project, covering the following components:

• Rail and roadway access

• Port Botany shuttle train container handling tracks

• Interstate intermodal terminal container handling tracks

• Train arrival and departure tracks

• Storage tracks

• Storage areas

• Site Utilities

• Ancillary Facilities

• Warehouse and distribution Facilities

Our team delivered the following:

• Developed technical options for intermodal operations and terminal infrastructure layouts, such as rail track, road, and terminal handling equipment

• Evaluated and selected the most viable option via operational benefits, cost-effectiveness, and other criteria

• Used proven ‘best practice’ planning principles from mature intermodal freight markets globally

• Traffic modelling and road access design

• Economic, environmentally and social impact analysis

• Throughput capacity and operating cost modelling

• Capital expenditure estimating for infrastructure and equipment

• Conceptual intermodal terminal master plan for the full site development

• Construction programming and integration with relocation of existing defense units

• Risk management plan associated with engineering solutions and environmental and planning approvals

• Business strategy planning

• Financial feasibility modelling

• Developed a reference design and functional reference design brief

Once completed, the new facility advances Australia’s productivity and economic performance, promotes significant industry development and investment, and creates jobs in south-western Sydney. The benefits include better management of heavy vehicle traffic on Sydney’s roads through more efficient distribution of containers by rail; an improved import and export speed efficiency and economic performance by rail; and improved air quality, decreased greenhouse gas emissions and motor vehicle accident rates. The Moorebank Terminal serves as a model for other IMT/Inland Port developments in Australia and the world.