Australia wants to shift more goods from road to rail in the short term. To this end, the first round of the new TRACK pilot program opened on September 11, 2026. TRACK stands for "Transport Resilience and Capacity Kickstart".
The first round has up to 26 million Australian dollars available. The entire program comprises 52 million dollars. Future funding rounds are intended to include coastal shipping and ports in addition to rail.
The interesting aspect is the rationale. It is not only about reducing emissions or fewer trucks on roads. Australia primarily wants to save diesel and better secure its supply chains in the event of international crises. The government explicitly references the conflict in the Middle East and potential risks to fuel supply.
Payment is not a flat rate. Rail operators must demonstrate that they are transporting additional loaded containers that would otherwise have been transported on roads. Funding is provided per TEU. One TEU corresponds to a 20-foot container. A 40-foot container typically counts as two TEU.
Only volumes above an agreed baseline value receive funding. Shipments also cannot be simply poached from another rail operator. This is intended to prevent existing rail traffic from being marketed as new traffic shifting.
Compared to Europe, the model is quite direct. European funding models often support infrastructure, terminals, new connections, or offset avoided environmental and accident costs. TRACK instead focuses specifically on quickly demonstrable diesel savings and additional containers per route. However, per-unit transport funding is not entirely new in Europe either.
Licensed Australian freight rail operators can submit applications until October 1, 2026, at 5:00 PM Australian Eastern Standard Time. Up to ten million Australian dollars are possible per application. Projects must be completed by June 30, 2027.