The Burnie to Hobart freight corridor is Tasmania’s most significant freight route, operating as a parallel road and rail corridor that carries around 65% of Tasmania’s land freight task and connects major ports and population centres of Burnie, Hobart and Devonport with industrial centres and regional production areas. Freight volumes across Tasmania’s land transport network are forecast to continue growing, with the Burnie to Hobart corridor expected to remain the highest in freight volume.  

Increasing demand, coupled with commercial and residential development along key sections of the route, is placing pressure on the corridor’s ability to meet freight standards required to support High Productivity Vehicles (HPVs), which currently account for 24% of traffic on some segments of the corridor. The proposal aligns with both the Infrastructure Policy Statement and the National Freight and Supply Chain Strategy’s objectives to strengthen supply chain efficiency and resilience. The Burnie to Hobart Freight Corridor Strategy sets clear expectations for road and rail investment, including service levels and long-term upgrades. 

PROPOSAL DESCRIPTION  

This program proposal involves a range of road and rail improvements to the corridor to support Tasmania’s productivity and enable greater volumes of natural resource exports – complementing proposed upgrades at the Port of Burnie. Improvements aim to ensure freight performance standards are maintained and enhanced over the long term, in line with freight demand, user needs and emerging challenges. As part of the program, upgrades are identified for the Bass Highway, Brooker Highway and East Derwent Highway, with further planning required for potential rail enhancements to supplement road corridor upgrades.  

INVESTMENT RECOMMENDATION   

The Australian Government should note this proposal as a potential future investment opportunity in the 2-4 year pipeline.  

OPPORTUNITIES AND OUTCOMES  

This proposal has the potential to: 

• Strengthen Australia’s international competitiveness – upgrading the Burnie to Hobart corridor would improve access for HPVs, enabling higher volume and lower cost movement of export commodities including agriculture, forestry, manufacturing, critical minerals and metals processing.
• Increase supply chain efficiency and reliability – supporting HPV movement and reducing corridor bottlenecks would improve travel time reliability, freight frequency and network performance, supporting lower freight costs over time.
• Reduce constraints on a nationally significant freight corridor – addressing capacity and safety constraints on the route would lift network performance across Tasmania’s most used freight link and support long-term growth in freight volumes.
• Reduce transport emissions – enabling access for HPVs would improve freight efficiency by reducing heavy vehicle kilometres for a given freight task, supporting a reduction in carbon emissions and fuel consumption.
• Support local economic growth – improving the efficiency of freight movement between production areas in Tasmania, processing centres and export points will support local business operations and growth.  

NEXT STEPS  

Proponent to develop Final Business Cases (Stage 3 of Infrastructure Australia’s Assessment Framework) for components of the Burnie to Hobart freight corridor program for evaluation and investment consideration in the future.