Australian Rail Track Corporation

AustrAliAn rAil trAck corporAtion

AustrAliAn rAil Keeping Australia moving

trAck corporAtion

The Australian Rail Track Corporation Ltd (ARTC) manages the seamless and safe transit of hundreds of freight and passenger

trains every single day. The company prides itself on enabling its customers to benefit from a safer, greener and more reliable transport method. It employs 1150 members of staff across five states in Australia and maintains an 8,500km rail network.

Having invested over $6 billion in infrastructure upgrades, dedicated freight mines and real time freight tracking, ARTC is able to offer greater reliability and efficiency than ever before. Such improvements help businesses, motorists, the environment and communities.

It was agreed by the Commonwealth and State Governments in 1997 that a ‘one-stop’ shop would be formed for everyone wanting to access the standardised national interstate rail network and ARTC was created. Almost 20 years on, ARTC plays a vital role in transporting both freight and passengers. Supporting industries and businesses that are vital to the nation’s economy, ARTC remains dedicated to modernising the interstate rail network to create a sustainable future.

Rail over roadServicing all major capital cities, markets, regional freight centres and ports in Australia, the reliability of the interstate rail has improved dramatically in recent

years. With its ability to deliver consistently across the country, ARTC highlights that rail freight offers significant advantages over other modes of transportation:Efficiency: With consistently high freight-availability, ARTC states rail freight transport is three times more fuel efficient than road transportation. Equally, the average time needed to transport materials is competitive with the costs and time of road freight services.

Capacity:Capable of carrying high volumes, freight trains can transport more than many other modes of land transport at one time. With the ability to handle sizeable bulk goods, customers can benefit from economies of scale too.Flexibility:Possessing an ever growing collection of solutions, ARTC is able to offer hundreds of services to meet demands. Its offering includes express to high volume, double stacked or high cube vans.Cost Savings:As ARTC is able to make savings through its efficiencies, its customers are too. Rail transportation provides distance and scale advantages that in turn can significantly decrease the amount of time and money its customers require.Environmental Benefits:Considered one of the most energy-efficient means of transportation, rail freight is the more environmentally friendly transportation option. Producing less pollution, a lower carbon footprint and improved fuel efficiency, rail is the least wasteful solution too.Safety:Rail accident incidents are much lower than those involving other modes of transportation and goods are more secure. Substituting road for rail also reduces the number of cars and trucks on the road, theoretically leading to fewer road accidents too.

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SLOW AND STEADY WINS THE RACE.MAKE THAT FAST AND READY.

Track changes: InnovaTIve dIgITal parTnershIp drIvIng on-Track InnovaTIon

With more than 8500 kilometres of rails in its network, the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) supports rail transport across Australia, including key stretches linking Adelaide to Darwin and Darwin to Perth.

The remoteness of those links meant that when ARTC needed to bring its Australia-wide rail communications network into the modern era, there was only one partner it considered: Telstra.

Together, Telstra and the ARTC settled on a mix of 4G and satellite communications – technology that was only possible through an organisation with the expertise and network infrastructure geared to deal with the ARTC’s singular needs.

“This is a unique challenge in terms of the remoteness of the regions involved,” says Telstra’s state general manager, South Australia and Northern Territory, Glen Winkler. “Telstra is the only technology company in Australia capable of delivering all of the ARTC’s needs for a network able to connect some of the most distant parts of Australia.”

While parts of the national rail network were already digital, the new project aims to bring the entire network, including the new Brisbane to Melbourne line, into the digital age.

Winkler says there are many benefits of bringing the ARTC’s communications into the modern era. “This network will help improve safety on the rail network as well as significantly reduce carbon emissions,” he says. The network will also help the ARTC attain its goals of innovation, standardisation and interoperability for the national rail network.

When it is completed, the new network promises to deliver applications such as proximity alerting, situational awareness and the next generation of train management – the Advanced Train Management System (ATMS) to all rail transport in Australia.

“We are working closely together with the ARTC to deliver this next generation of train network infrastructure,” Winkler says.

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With Telstra by your side, you’ll deal with one single partner to develop and deliver a complete, integrated solution for your business. So it’s easier to get your team up to speed.

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SLOW AND STEADY WINS THE RACE.MAKE THAT FAST AND READY.

Inland Rail – letting the train take the strain In 2013, the ARTC was tasked with developing a 10 year programme to deliver the Inland Rail Project, under the guidance of the Inland Rail Implementation Group. With a wealth of experience and as the operator and manager of Australia’s national rail freight network, ARTC is well qualified to manage a project of this scale and significance.

Inland Rail, Australia’s new freight rail connection is a new 1700km line between Melbourne and Brisbane. It avoids the congested Sydney network and travels via regional Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland. Preparing for a future of growth, freight volumes are expected to double in coming decades on the east coast of Australia. Inland Rail is a solution that will provide a safe, efficient and sustainable transport method to the increasing freight requirements.

Connecting capital cities, farms, mines and ports; Inland Rail will also create jobs, reduce supply chain costs and ultimately make Australian exports more competitively priced. A typical train travelling on Inland Rail will have the equivalent capacity of 108 B-Doubles that would otherwise be on the roads. The length of time is also competitive with road with expected journey durations of less than 24 hours.

Combining existing tracks with upgrades and completely new tracks, the 1,700km route involves delivering enhancements to 700km of existing interstate track, major upgrades to a further 400km of track and constructing 600km of new track. ARTC is dedicated to reducing any disruptions and its utilisation of 1200km of existing rail corridors will both save time and minimise the impact on the surrounding communities. With a number of significant advantages for using rail over road, ARTC and Inland Rail continue to future proof freight in a cost efficient, safer and sustainable way.

Conducting Australia’s railwaysMr John Fullerton is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director (MD) of Australian Rail Track Corporation Limited (ARTC). Fullerton has been leading the organisation since his appointment to the position in 2011. Bringing an abundance of experience with him, prior to joining ARTC Fullerton was CEO of FreightLink, the Chairman of Rail CRC Pty Ltd and a Director of Tasmanian Railway Pty Ltd.

Having spent many years in the rail industry, Fullerton also held positions as Chief Operating Officer of the National Rail Corporation and Divisional General Manager (Operations) at Pacific National. Fullerton is a member of the Environment, Health & Safety committee as well as the People, Policy and Remuneration committee at ARTC.

Because Expertise Matters

Interfleet Australasia has an extensive history supporting clients throughout the region with offices in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Wellington.

Interfleet’s team of specialists can provide knowledge and expertise to help deliver the best solutions, applying international best practice to your local context.

www.interfleet-australasia+61 (0) 2 9262 6011

Image courtesy of TasRail

Oliver Moy PublisherFor enquiries emailokm@aubusinesscoverage.com