Ministers approve new roadworthiness measures

Transport ministers recently met in Tasmania to discuss the on-going overhaul of heavy vehicle roadworthiness regulations

The Transport and Infrastructure Council has agreed to a range of changes to raise the level of heavy vehicle roadworthiness in this country, as governed by the Heavy Vehicle National Law.

Transport ministers met last week in Launceston, Tasmania, to discuss a variety of updates presented by the National Transport Commission and the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator. The measures include updates to the National Heavy Vehicle Accreditation Scheme and the current auditing framework.

The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development, Warren Truss, said the changes would give auditors until July 2016 to transition to the new arrangements, while truck drivers and fleet operators would no longer be able to choose their auditor.

"These new arrangements are important to adopting a nationally consistent risk-based approach to heavy vehicle roadworthiness," he said.

"Ministers have also agreed to accelerate work on the development of a heavy vehicle compliance and surveillance strategy. Fast-tracking this will help to focus national efforts on activities that support long-term transport safety improvements.

"The changes are important for a national framework that targets heavy vehicles for roadworthiness inspections, as well as managing and clearing heavy vehicle defects."

While all jurisdictions bar Western Australia and the Northern Territory adopted the NHVR's Heavy Vehicle National Law from February 10, 2014, the truck industry's roadworthiness framework is still hampered by extensive inconsistencies, especially when it comes to auditing.

Minimising those inconsistencies and raising the standard of heavy vehicle roadworthiness has been a high priority for the NTC and NHVR this year; both bodies began a program of evaluating the current system following the Cootes tanker tragedy of October 2013, with a view to overhauling and improving that system.

Speaking at the recent PACCAR & Dealer Technical and Maintenance Conference in Melbourne, Paul Retter, CEO of the NTC, highlighted the challenges of the current roadworthiness arrangements.

"There are eight different systems out there operating at the moment," he said.

"This is a function of the states being responsible for their own roadworthiness systems and, as a result, over time we've got different interpretations of standards, we've got different procedures in terms of inspections … and the end result is we're getting different outcomes and inconsistencies across the industry."

Mr Truss said in Launceston that transport ministers had agreed to the NTC releasing a Regulatory Impact Statement on heavy vehicle roadworthiness for public consultation.

"The RIS will canvass options for improving the roadworthiness of heavy vehicles," he said.

"Public consultation is a good opportunity for interested parties to have their say on options for a national Heavy Vehicle Roadworthiness program."

The RIS will be made available via the NTC website (www.ntc.gov.au) in early 2015.

Ministers approve new roadworthiness measures

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