A small town with a big name opened a new rail freight terminal in early December 2019. In the northern region of Victoria, Ultima, with a population of 174 at the 2016 census, has welcomed the upgrade of the Manangatang rail line.
The Qube Ultima Intermodal Terminal currently receives two trains each week, but it is expected to increase to three or four trains per week. The train service will take up to 4,000 trucks from Victorian roads each year.
The funds invested for the $3.65 million upgrade of the facility come from businesses Qube, Pentarch Agriculture, and Pickering Transport. This investment was helped by an additional $23 million upgrade of the train line, including new sleepers over a 90km section of track and a new ballast to improve ride quality1.
Hay from local farms is transported to the facility, where it is compressed onsite and loaded into containers. The containers are placed onto trains and taken to the Port of Melbourne for export to Asia.
All of this is positve for the small town in the Mallee. New jobs, new infrastructure, new export opportunities. The new facility with its new assets holds promise for industry for decades to come.
Have your say on the new Qube Ultima Freight Terminal by leaving a comment. Or maybe you’d like to consider joining our Transport in Asset Management Special Interest Group, where you’ll have access to networking opportunities, webinars and events.
1 Sourced: https://transport.vic.gov.au/about/transport-news/news-archive/new-terminal-takes-trucks-off-roads