Kewdale Freight Services

Kewdale hosts the ARTC Kewdale Freight Terminal — the rail freight arrival and departure point for the Melbourne-Perth trans-continental corridor. Pacific National, SCT and other rail operators terminate trans-Australia trains here. That makes Kewdale the single most important freight precinct in WA for interstate volume, because every rail-transported pallet entering or leaving Western Australia passes through this yard.

Perth Airport sits immediately north — ~2-5 km depending on terminal — making Kewdale a dual rail+air freight precinct. The Leach Highway feeds west toward Fremantle Port and the Tonkin Highway runs north-south through the precinct, with direct connections into Welshpool to the west and the Great Eastern Highway inland.

Kewdale-to-Melbourne rail is roughly 4-5 days for general freight — the longest single domestic rail lane in Australia. Kewdale-to-Sydney rail typically routes via Melbourne and runs 5-6 days. Road is faster but substantially more expensive on bulk palletised lanes, so rail dominates east-west freight.

Interstate palletised volume dominates — pallets, cartons, crates, drums and oversized industrial freight. The precinct's rail-terminal adjacency means QFM can route consignments by rail for cost efficiency or by road for urgency, with the airport covering express requirements.

For time-critical consignments, road offers 3-4 day transit versus 4-5 days on rail. For cost-sensitive palletised volume, rail wins on per-pallet economics and typically handles the bulk of Kewdale-Melbourne lanes. QFM provides quotes for both so senders can compare transit and price directly — decisions often come down to specific delivery deadlines and consignment size.