etruck.com.au

The decision by the Australian Transport Council to award the hosting of the National Transport Regulator to Queensland has been welcomed with relief by the trucking industry. The main reason for the relief is the fact the gig didn’t go to New South Wales and Australian trucking has avoided the nightmare scenario.

Although the new national trucking laws to be enacted by the new authority will be derived from a consensus of state government opinion, the new regime is likely to create some enlightened legislation. Queensland has a history of being at the leading edge of innovation when it comes to innovative regulations.

The Fatigue Management Program has its roots in the Queensland pilot and volume loading has been a success in the livestock industry in the state. There have also been a number of innovations on the vehicle design front in Queensland. The state saw the first appearance of BAB and ABB quads on public roads and has had a comprehensive B-triple network for some time.

If just a little bit of this smart thinking from the ‘Smart State’ rubs off on those putting together trucking regs, we can look forward to sensible development of high productivity trucks, if everything goes to plan. Conversely, the new move may just stimulate the, normally obstructive, regulators in NSW and Victoria to find new and innovative ways of tying the trucking industry up in red tape.