Good news weekend for Fremantle Port

IN A GOOD news weekend for the Port of Fremantle the state government has announced record rail container freight numbers and also an earlier than expected completion date for the Fremantle Traffic Bridge.

A government media release said more than 900,000 containers in and out of the Port of Fremantle in 2025/26 had created a national record for container freight on rail.

A total of 26.4% of Fremantle's container trade, or more than 240,000 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) containers, were transported in and out of Fremantle's Inner Harbour by rail during this period, according to the state government.

“This sets a new record for WA and represents the highest proportion of container freight transported by rail of any major city port in Australia,” the release said.

The state government claims its container rail subsidy has driven the nation-leading results with around 80% of the containers fully loaded and subsidised by the Cook Labor government's Fremantle Container Rail Subsidy.

“The increased use of rail is estimated to have removed around 164,000 one-way truck movements from metropolitan roads in 2025-2026, helping to reduce congestion, improve efficiency, sustainability and road safety.”

It comes as Fremantle Ports recorded its strongest container trade result on record in 2025-2026, handling more than 920,000 containers.

Fremantle Ports processed 920,521 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) during the year, surpassing the previous record of 887,514 TEU and marking a 3.7% increase on the previous financial year.

The Fremantle Container Rail Subsidy was first introduced by the WA Labor Government in 2007 to incentivise the use of rail over road transport.

Currently set at $50 per TEU, the subsidy is paid to the North Quay Rail Terminal operator, who passes it on to rail customers through reduced transport costs.

All loaded rail containers transported between Fremantle Inner Harbour and intermodal terminals at Forrestfield, Kwinana, Rockingham and Kenwick are eligible for the subsidy, along with containers of hay received by rail for international export.

The media release said the state government would continue to invest in the state’s rail freight chain through the planned Westport container terminal program.

“Westport will further increase the number of containers travelling by rail across the state and deliver long-term economic benefits for Western Australia,” the release said.

In more positive Fremantle Port news the government also announced over the weekend that the Fremantle Traffic Bridge construction was progressing ahead of schedule.

Road‑freight operators have experienced longer travel times and heavier congestion since the closure of the existing Fremantle Traffic Bridge, with all north–south truck movements now funnelling through Stirling Bridge.

Main Roads WA says delays were expected and are being actively managed, but peak‑hour pressure points remain around Stirling Highway, Canning Highway and the Tydeman Road approaches to Rous Head.

Intersection upgrades and new traffic‑monitoring systems have been rolled out to stabilise flows, and incident‑response teams are stationed along the corridor to keep freight moving.

Despite the congestion, port operations have continued without major disruption, and landside truck turn‑times at Fremantle’s terminals remain within normal ranges.

A government announcement said the project was on track to fully open to road users later this year.

The old Fremantle Traffic Bridge was closed on 1 February, with the closure originally expected to continue for up to 12 months and the new bridge earmarked to open in the first half of 2027.

Demolition of the old bridge is now complete, and construction of the new bridge continues to make strong progress, the government said.

The old timber traffic bridge was removed whilst construction on the new bridge was taking place.

The new bridge's concrete deck has been completed, with barriers to separate the road and shared paths currently being installed.

Works will soon begin to complete the new road across the bridge, including priming, sealing, and asphalting.

The old bridge has been successfully removed from the river, with four rows of timber on the northern side retained to acknowledge the old bridge's heritage.

The media release said this meant a wider, safer navigational channel for commercial and recreational river users, including ferries passing under the bridge.