Inland Rail Graduate Programs & Internships

What is Inland Rail:

Inland Rail is transforming how goods are moved around Australia.

More than 1,700km long, Inland Rail comprises 13 individual projects across 36 local government areas: one project in Victoria, seven in New South Wales, and five in Queensland. It involves upgrading and enhancing 1,100km of the existing rail line and building 600km of new track to connect missing links between Melbourne and Brisbane.

Inland Rail will carry double-stacked, 1,800m-long trains travelling at speeds up to 115km/h, with each train carrying the equivalent freight volume of 110 B-double trucks.

Construction of Australia’s largest freight rail infrastructure project is well underway and the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) is working with regional businesses and communities to make it happen.

Why Inland Rail: 

Australia's population is predicted to reach 45 million by 2060, according to 2018 Australian Bureau of Statistics data. We need a reliable and efficient rail network to meet our increasing freight needs and take the load off our already congested roads. 

Connecting Melbourne and Brisbane via regional Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland, Inland Rail will complete our national freight network—better connecting producers and manufacturers to markets and creating new opportunities for businesses, industries and regional communities.

Inland Rail means freight can be delivered faster and more reliably to our growing population, and beyond to global markets. It also means safer, less congested roads and fewer carbon emissions. 

When is this happening: 

Work on Australia's largest freight rail infrastructure project – a priority infrastructure project for the Australian Government – is well underway, and we're working with regional businesses and communities to make it happen.

Construction commenced in 2018 and one project – Parkes to Narromine in NSW – has already been commissioned while construction on our Narrabri to North Star project is well underway. 

Inland Rail is expected to be fully operational by 2027. This is an indicative estimate only and will be determined by several factors, including ongoing community consultation, design development work and unforeseen weather events. 

Inland Rail’s commitments:

Supporting job creation

Inland Rail will create more than 21,500 direct and indirect jobs during construction.

Commitment to Sustainability

Inland Rail has a strong commitment to sustainability and creating long-term value for local communities, the economy and the natural environment. Inland Rail is committed to achieving a program-wide ‘excellent’ Infrastructure Sustainability (IS) rating. 

Already, our Parkes to Narromine project and Narrabri to North Star Phase 1 projects have achieved ‘excellent’ ratings.

It is the first rail infrastructure project in Australia to install certified carbon neutral concrete culverts (Parkes to Narromine project), reducing carbon emissions by more than 7,500 tonnes.. 

We have achieved significant circular economy outcomes with the Parkes to Narromine project diverting 100% of its spoil from landfills, incorporating 297,000m3 of blended ballast and ash into rail formation works and recovering 90,000 steel and 46,716 timber sleepers.

We also promote and support strong sustainability practices across our supply chain by facilitating business capability workshops and webinars which help regional businesses enhance their sustainability credentials.

Supporting and developing our workforce

Inland Rail supports the workforce in many ways:  

• Our Graduate Program ensures that younger generations can participate in a nation-building project and can benefit from the wealth of experience of Inland Rail and ARTC’s combined workforce
• Our mentoring program supports provides individuals with the fit for purpose personal and professional development
• We provide work experience opportunities to young individuals identifying as Indigenous and wanting to get a qualification 
• We provide support to employees who are undertaking studies, aiming for industry accreditation or professional / industry memberships
• We are committed to providing equal opportunity employment, with females comprising more than 40% of our entire workforce. 
• We are committed to bridging the industry gap by developing individuals who would have not worked in the rail industry previously
• Our free Employee Assistance Program is also available for employees and their families as part of our commitment to supporting the positive mental health and wellbeing of our workforce. 

These are just a few examples of how we are supporting and challenging the Inland Rail workforce in a dynamic project delivery environment that encourages continuous improvement and professional development.