In a massive win for the region, The Spirit of Tasmania is relocating its Victorian port operations from Port Melbourne to Geelong.
The Spirit’s operator, TT-Line, said the new 12-hectare site would include a purpose-designed passenger terminal building, vehicle marshalling area for 600 cars, more efficient passenger vehicle check in, security facilities, public amenities, food and beverage outlet, children’s play area and even a pet exercise area.
This move to Geelong will provide the company (who began operating in 1985) with a “unique opportunity to improve the passenger experience” and provide room to expand its freight offering for years to come, says TT-Line Chairman Michael Grainger.
“The company’s operations are often negatively impacted by significant congestion in the greater Port Melbourne area, particularly when cruise ships are in port, that in turn, causes delays in loading and discharge of passengers.
“Passenger feedback on this part of our operations has been critical, with passengers citing boarding queues of up to two-and-a-half-hours, which in turn impacts the sailing schedule.”
The move comes after independent passenger research identified three key elements in support of the move – a location that was easy to get to, ease of check-in procedures and a lack of traffic getting to and from the terminal.
The Corio Quay port base is about 70 kilometres south-west of Port Melbourne, roughly an hour’s drive from the capital city, however it’s claimed that the changed journey is not expected to add any time to the trip and the company said it was anticipating “time savings” due to greater efficiencies at the new port, as well as leading to increased passenger growth.
Alongside all of this, it’s also going to create major economic, employment and tourism opportunities for Geelong, the Bellarine and the wider G21 region, which is news that we all appreciate right now.
The project is expected to generate up to 75 construction jobs over the two-year build program while increasing tourism expenditure in the greater Geelong region by up to $174.1 million by 2029.
The Tasmanian Government first floated the idea of having the service dock at Geelong back in March.