A new Heavy Vehicle Safety Station (HVSS) – based 5.5km east of Ballimore between Dubbo and Dunedoo along the Golden Highway – is now operational.
The National Heavy Vehicle Regulator, which is operating it, said the HVSS is expected to deliver a safety boost for the key freight route.
“The Ballimore HVSS will require all heavy vehicles travelling along the Golden Highway to enter the HVSS when directed,” the NHVR said in a statement.
“The HVSS operating hours and staffing levels will vary to match traffic patterns but can operate up to 24 hours a day, at peak times including weekends and public holidays.
“The HVSS sites are fitted with safety software which can determine a heavy vehicle’s registration status and defect status, while also accessing Safe-T-Cam sightings that along with the driver’s work diary, can assist with monitoring driver fatigue.”
All heavy vehicles with a Gross Vehicle Mass (GVM) greater than 4.5 tonnes travelling on the Golden Highway will be required to enter the HVSS when directed, according to Transport for NSW, to ensure the vehicle meets safety and roadworthiness standards and the driver is complying with road transport laws.
Transport for NSW Executive Director Road Safety Regulation Duncan Lucas said the new station would enforce heavy vehicle safety regulations, reducing overloading, fatigue-related crashes and the risk of non-compliant vehicles travelling to Dubbo.
“Work on the new safety station started in May 2023 and following some construction delays due to waterlogged ground from flooding and complications in accessing and installing some of the Intelligent Transport System, ITS, components, the station is now operational,” said Lucas.
“The NHVR uses the network of Heavy Vehicle Safety Stations to intercept and inspect heavy vehicles which may be operating illegally or in an unsafe manner on NSW roads and may pose significant risk to road users, the road infrastructure and the environment.
“The new facility at Ballimore is the 10th HVSS in NSW and its opening is an important milestone in improving safety for all motorists travelling long distances on roads and highways across regional NSW.”
The other sites include:
- Mt Boyce (Great Western Highway)
- Mt White (northbound and southbound on the M1 Motorway)
- Marulan (northbound and southbound on the Hume Highway)
- Twelve Mile Creek (Pacific Highway)
- Chinderah (Pacific Highway)
- Pine Creek (Pacific Highway)
- Halfway Creek (Pacific Highway)
- Bell (Bells Line of Road)
- Kankool (New England Highway)
In 2023, Transport for NSW said this project formed part of a jointly funded $23.7 million commitment under the Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program (HVSPP). At the time, the Federal Government committed $3.7 million, while the State Government committed $3.3 million.
“This inspection station is one of many HVSPP projects increasing safety and reliability for the
trucking industry across Australia while enhancing access and improve freight transport
through local rural communities,” said Carol Brown, Federal Assistant Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, when the project was first announced.
NSW Minister for Regional Transport and Roads Jennny Aitchison added that heavy vehicle safety stations are an important part of Transport for NSW’s on-road enforcement program.
She said: “There is a network of these heavy vehicle safety stations on major routes across the state which heavy vehicle inspectors use as a base to intercept and inspect heavy vehicles to identify whether any may be operating illegally or in an unsafe manner on NSW roads.”
This week, Member for the NSW Legislative Council Mark Banasiak said the project blew out to $11 million.
He is critical about what appears to be ‘a couple of portable sheds and a weigh pad’.
“Disappointing the government has prioritised investment in revenue raising over real measures that improve safety like improving rural road conditions and having well designed and adequate rest stops.”
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