AusRAIL, Market Sectors

FreightLink pledges value for disgruntled clients

<p>FreightLink has pledged to work with its Adelaide-Darwin rail customers to provide a "value for money" service in the wake of negative feedback about recent price increases.</p> <p>Chief executive John Fullerton told <em>Lloyd’s List DCN</em> that reaction from customers had been "fairly negative", but the company needed to adjust the rates because some of the assumptions made in initial pricing models did not bear out.</p> <p>"There was always an intention to review the rates. I mean we have only been going for eight months," Mr Fullerton said.</p> <p>FreightLink has put quite a bit of work into assessing where rail rates sit in comparison to road, he said.</p> <p>"My objective is to move forward in this," he said.</p> <p>"The commitment we have given to the customers is that we will work with them and we will continue to provide value for money."</p> <p>Mr Fullerton said the company had not observed a shift back to road since the October 1 price increases.</p> <p>Both Toll Holdings and Northern Territory Freight Services were reported earlier this week as threatening to return freight to road because of the increases &#8211 reported to be up to 20%.</p> <p>Toll Holdings managing director Paul Little was reported on the ABC as saying his company had been encouraged into developing a major logistics terminal in Darwin along the railway and may well have "an underperforming investment".</p> <p>If FreightLink could not provide future security Toll would have to consider road-fleeting freight, he told the ABC.</p> <p>When contacted by <em>Lloyd’s List DCN</em> , Mr Little declined to comment further on the issue. </p> <br />