HIGH ROAD
The early stages of the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL) review saw the majority of industry supporting a shift to risk-based legislation while retaining some prescriptive aspects.
Moving on to what is regulated by the law, and how, there has been no shortage of introspection on the internal factors, and critique of external pressures, affecting safety and compliance in transport.
A firming position is that a safer and more competent industry starts at the beginning of the journey, which requires a heavy vehicle licensing system that is national and competency-based, as opposed to the current state and graduated one.
The freight task also requires realistic expectations from customers and cooperation higher up in the Chain of Responsibility (COR), with proportional enforcement to foster a culture of compliance.
LICENSING AND COMPETENCY
It’s clear from feedback that the current licensing framework, which many stakeholders say contributes to safety and driver shortfalls, needs overhaul.
“If we are going to make heavy vehicle driving a career option of choice and develop the workforce of the future, we need to move to a skill and competency-based approach which doesn’t discriminate on the basis of age,” Ron Finemore Transport (RFT) founder Ron Finemore says.
“The reality today is that many companies cannot provide a graduated approach through
