Australia:Impediments to efficiency in Australia’s port network ultimately impact negatively on the cost of living for Australians and Australia’s competitiveness on the international stage, according to Ports Australia chief executive Mike Gallacher.
He said that with a coastline in excess of 30,000 kilometres, with more than 85% of the population living within 50 kilometres of the coast, ports are central to the nation’s freight challenges.
As the freight task continues to grow, the arrangement of ports along the coastline will be an opportunity for ports and the country to spread the burden of this increasing freight task, he says, while adding: “There are plenty of factors that impact the effectiveness of ports and their ability to move goods from the waterside to the market and vice versa.”
A staunch advocate of more coastal shipping, Mr Gallacher says both the trucking and rail lobby are powerful in the eyes of government because they are so visual.
“Shipping, on the other hand, is largely out of sight, out of mind for most. We recognise the flexibility of trucking; the connectivity of rail, particularly in our regional communities, but no one can deny the carrying capability of shipping.
