Australasian Transport News (ATN) Issue 378

Sometimes the thought occurs that what should be relatively straightforward administration of the nation has been made so needlessly complex it is all but impossible. Take energy prices as an example. At the start of the decade, when fuel prices were fairly high but gas and electricity low, the idea that a market mechanism be used to ease the transition to cleaner electricity production, mostly through renewables, caused massive anxiety. The connection was less than hard but elements of the trucking industry were so swayed that the ‘Convoy of No Confidence’ arrived in Canberra to make feelings known, with some brave souls taking their trucks right across the country to make a point. What that actually was remains a little unclear but an underlying one was that voices should be…

The last time we noticed an ageing rigid coming to grief with a road authority was about three years ago in South Australia. At the time, and having seen similar, we wondered for a nano-second if it was an SA sort of thing and then dismissed that explanation. And just as well. Queensland’s Transport and Main roads department brings us this doosy. “This truck was registered with a 2R2 charge code, meaning it can’t tow a heavy trailer,” it tells its Facebook followers. “The driver had also failed to display any warning signs to let other drivers know it was a long vehicle. To top it all off, the dolly was unregistered and the trailer brake lines were disconnected from the brake boosters. Our inspectors issued the driver with infringement…

SIX YEARS after facing raids and a range of charges in New South Wales, Fred’s Interstate Transport Group has seen most of them dismissed or withdrawn. The Borg-family controlled group’s five companies had been caught up in a series of Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) and police actions in 2012 that saw a series of high-profile and, in some cases, controversial prosecutions ensue involving NSW, South Australian and Victorian companies. In all, there were 217 charges comprising 157 alleged speeding charges brought against corporate entities and 60 derivative liability offences brought against three directors, the decision reads. Magistrate Theo Tsavdaridis dismissed all charges related to the duty of operators to ensure speeding offences are not committed and of liability of directors and managers for offences by an enterprise and its…

The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU), Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) and Textile, Clothing and Footwear Union of Australia (TCFUA) have merged, in a move opposed by industry and employer organisations. The new Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMMEU) was sanctioned by the Fair Work Commission in March, two years after the move was first proposed. After the move was flagged two years ago, cooperation between the MUA and the CFMEU was given an early outing in December at the series of Victoria International Container Terminal (VICT) actions, following serious Australian Logistics Council (ALC) worries over the concentration of union power in November. ALC managing director Michael Kilgariff voiced concerns that supply chains will “now be subject to the whims of a powerful mega-union, comprised of…

AUSTRALIAN LIVESTOCK and Rural Transporters Association (ALRTA) executive director Mathew Munro tells ATN he is sure a decision has been made on an alternative system for heavy vehicle charging and the government is looking to road-test it. ALRTA reckons it will “almost certainly” involve: • Mass-distance-location charging system for general road use • Forward-looking cost-base so that charges are collected in advance • Total heavy vehicle charges increased to build better road infrastructure that delivers improved safety and productivity • Collected money must be spent on roads but with some level of cross-subsidisation to assist network building • Lower-tier rural and remote roads are unlikely to receive greater funding and will instead rely on ‘community service obligation’ payments to maintain a minimum standard • An independent body to determine the…

Primary producer concerns at the possible impact of freight chain of responsibility (COR) reforms may have been somewhat allayed after further consultations. The National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) says its chain of responsibility manager, Kym Farquharson-Jones, has been travelling across Australia outlining the changes to many of the 165,000 businesses that make up the heavy vehicle supply chain. “Because they are part of the heavy vehicle supply chain, primary producers have for almost a decade had the same legislative obligations for heavy vehicle safety as other parties in the chain,” Farquharson-Jones says. “Amendments to the COR laws coming later this year will align the existing laws more closely with workplace health and safety provisions. “This means that all parties in the chain, including primary producers, must proactively reduce risks related…