The release of the Draft Heavy Vehicle National Law and associated Draft Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS) lay the foundation for the creation of a National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) – a new organisation that will be the one stop shop for heavy vehicle registration and compliance in Australia.
National Heavy Vehicle Regulator Project Office Director, Richard Hancock, said the public release of the law and related RIS were key milestones on the path towards the establishment of a single national regulator for heavy vehicles.
“There are a number of major milestones along our journey to a national heavy vehicle regulator, and the public release of these documents is a very important one.
“The draft laws and RIS spell out how things will work in practice, so it’s a great opportunity for anyone involved in the road transport industry or their customers to have their say,” Mr Hancock said.
The Draft Heavy Vehicle National Law is a new proposed single body of laws that streamlines the regulation of heavy vehicle usage in Australia, while the Draft Heavy Vehicle National Law RIS explores its likely impacts.
National Transport Commission (NTC) Heavy Vehicle Laws Project Director George Konstandakos said the documents represent a huge milestone in the creation of a centralised regulatory system to reduce administrative burdens and operational costs that when implemented is expected to deliver around $12.4 billion worth of savings over 20 years.
“An important aspect of the Draft Heavy Vehicle National Law RIS release is that it provides the opportunity for businesses and people likely to be affected by the proposed changes to have their say through a ten week consultation period,” George said.
“The points and issues raised through these submissions will then be considered when drafting the final Heavy Vehicle National Law.”
Through the NHVR, which is expected to become operational from January 2013, a new centralised system to administer heavy vehicle registration, safety compliance, enforcement and road access will come into effect.
“This means once it’s up and going, operators and drivers won’t have to navigate through a maze of local, state and federal government bodies for important decisions about access, registration and accreditation,” George said.
“Among other things, the NHVR will also be able to coordinate access requests, locate, track and analyse access hot spots and work with local councils, state governments and the Commonwealth government to resolve them.”
The Draft Heavy Vehicle National Law RIS contain 368 proposed variations to heavy vehicle law. The majority of which are minor technical variations, the remainder deal with fatigue management, vehicle registration, vehicle standards, mass and loading, as well as compliance and enforcement.
To ensure all those involved in heavy vehicle transport have the opportunity to review these documents and lodge a formal submission, the NTC will hold a series of public forums during March and April. To find out more and register your interest, visit www.emgevents.com/event/ntc/.