Good planning will ensure that the port has the appropriate infrastructure to meet trade demands, that cargo can be moved efficiently between ship and shore, that the necessary transport linkages are available to assist the movement of the various cargoes through the transport chain, and that all this can be done in a sustainable, safe and efficient manner.

Planning for the Port of Fremantle has two distinct elements, namely, planning within and external to the port boundary. There are also many aspects to port planning, including port facility, land use, transport, heritage and buffer zone planning.

Within the port boundary it is essential that the ports major facilities, such as wharves, jetties, shipping channels, land areas, internal road and rail connections, are planned in a manner that supports trade growth within a sustainability context.

Externally, it is important that land uses around the port are compatible with port operations and that there are good road and rail transport corridors that link with the port. The transport corridors have to be designed to carry the forecast transport volumes, and need to have compatible land uses around them which will not constrain their use.