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Posted by Allen Newton
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30 Sep, 2026
AURIZON has opened a new $60 million freight terminal in Kewdale, a major investment the rail operator says will significantly increase interstate freight capacity and improve national supply‑chain efficiency.
The purpose‑built facility sits within Perth’s key logistics precinct and is designed to handle longer, double‑stacked interstate trains serving the high‑volume east–west corridor.
Managing director and CEO Andrew Harding said the new terminal would help meet rising demand for containerised freight between Western Australia and the eastern states, with consumer goods, industrial inputs and motor vehicles among the cargoes moving on Aurizon’s interstate services.
“We have outgrown our existing terminal at Forrestfield and this new terminal will have more capacity for longer trains delivering vital goods in and out of Western Australia,” Mr Harding said.
He noted the new site could accommodate 1.8‑kilometre double‑stacked trains without shunting, improving loading and unloading times and helping customers get products to market faster.
The 18.8‑hectare site also provides improved truck access and opportunities for co‑located logistics operations.
Aurizon will repurpose its Forrestfield terminal to support the company’s expanding national motor‑vehicle distribution network.
Mr Harding described the opening as a “significant milestone” for Aurizon and a major investment in Western Australia’s freight future.
The terminal is intended to support increased capacity, efficiency and flexibility for customers moving freight nationwide, while also enabling a modal shift from road to rail.
“It will help shift more freight from road to rail and that will deliver enormous benefits in helping reduce emissions, congestion on our roads and safety risks for motorists,” he said.
The facility was officially opened by West Australian deputy premier, treasurer and transport minister Rita Saffioti, alongside Aurizon chairman Tim Longstaff.
Although inland, the Kewdale terminal is expected to have flow‑on benefits for Western Australia’s port supply chains with more reliable east–west rail flows supporting import and export movements through Fremantle and Kwinana.
Longer, double‑stacked trains will increase throughput and reduce bottlenecks, improving the predictability of container arrivals at port terminals.
Improved truck access may ease pressure on metropolitan freight corridors feeding Fremantle Port and co‑located logistics operations could streamline consolidation and deconsolidation for exporters and importers.
The investment strengthens WA’s inland logistics backbone at a time when supply‑chain resilience is under scrutiny, particularly for containerised imports and manufactured goods moving through Fremantle.
Aurizon’s expansion aligns with broader national freight trends, with east–west rail volumes continuing to grow as consumer demand increases. The company has been investing in intermodal capacity and motor‑vehicle logistics as part of a strategy to diversify and modernise its national network.
The Kewdale terminal is expected to become a key node in that strategy, supporting both domestic supply chains and the port‑side operations that depend on predictable inland freight flows.
