ROAD TRAFFIC (MISCELLANEOUS) AMENDMENT BILL

Introduction and First Reading

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Minister for Correctional Services, Minister for Road Safety, Minister for Gambling, Minister for Youth, Minister for Volunteers, Minister Assisting the Minister for Multicultural Affairs) (16:33): Obtained leave and introduced a bill for an act to amend the Road Traffic Act 1961. Read a first time.

Second Reading

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Minister for Correctional Services, Minister for Road Safety, Minister for Gambling, Minister for Youth, Minister for Volunteers, Minister Assisting the Minister for Multicultural Affairs) (16:33): I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

I seek leave to have the second reading explanation inserted in Hansard without my reading it.

Leave granted.

The Road Traffic (Miscellaneous) Amendment Bill 2009 provides regulation-making powers to enable the introduction of 2 national heavy vehicle initiatives (the intelligent access program and heavy vehicle speeding compliance); and makes several amendments to the requirements for declaration, notification and testing of speed and red light cameras.

Heavy vehicle speeding compliance

Better heavy vehicle speed management and the reduction of fatalities and injuries involving speeding heavy vehicles is an objective of the National Heavy Vehicle Safety Strategy 2003-10, which was approved by the Australian Transport Council (ATC), and has the commitment of the Commonwealth, State and Territory Governments.

Despite the presence of many responsible operators, speeding heavy vehicles remain a problem within the road transport industry from a road safety perspective. Available data shows that speed is a significant contributing factor in heavy vehicle crashes. Research has shown if a vehicle is travelling at, or below, the speed limit when an accident occurs, the result of the crash will be less severe than if the vehicle was speeding.

There were 12 fatal crashes in South Australia involving heavy vehicles (including rigid trucks and buses) in 2007 and 19 in 2008. The National Transport Commission (NTC) has estimated that if all heavy vehicles comply with speed limits, there would be a 29 per cent reduction in crashes involving them.

The NTC commenced a review of speed compliance for heavy vehicles in 2005, including the release of a formal discussion paper in October 2005. In December 2006, the NTC released a draft policy proposal. The proposal focussed on the off-road parties in the industry who, through their action or inactions, can have a major influence on heavy vehicle driver speed behaviour.

Following this policy proposal, the National Transport Commission (Model Act on Heavy Vehicle Speeding Compliance) Regulations 2007 (the model speeding heavy vehicle legislation) were developed by the NTC in conjunction with State and Territory transport and enforcement agencies, and through extensive consultation with the road transport industry. On 21 December 2007, the ATC voted unanimously to approve the package. Under Intergovernmental agreements of the ATC and the Council of Australian Governments (COAG), jurisdictions are required to implement national road transport reforms approved by the ATC. This Bill realises that commitment by providing the head of power to make regulations that will embody the model speeding heavy vehicle legislation. Implementation of the model legislation will contribute to improved road safety and reduced deaths and injuries through increased compliance of heavy vehicles with speed limits.

The primary purpose of the model speeding heavy vehicle legislation is to adopt a chain of responsibility approach in relation to heavy vehicle speed compliance to ensure that those who are in a position to influence a decision to breach speed limits are held accountable for their actions. This means a person upon whom a duty to prevent a breach of speed limits is imposed must actively consider whether the way in which they intend to carry out their activities will satisfy that duty. This builds on the existing chain of responsibility framework for mass, dimension and load restraint and the driver fatigue compliance framework. A regulated heavy vehicle, for the purpose of this legislation, is a motor vehicle or trailer combination that has a gross vehicle mass greater than 4.5 tonnes.

The following are key features of the model speeding heavy vehicle legislation:

the introduction of obligations on all parties in the transport chain to take positive steps to prevent breaches of speed limits;

the chain parties identified in the legislation are employer, prime contractor, operator, scheduler, consignor, consignee and loading manager;

drivers of heavy vehicles are not included under this legislation as there is already an existing framework and roadside enforcement that targets drivers. The focus of this chain of responsibility legislation for speed compliance is off-road parties;

although the duties vary somewhat for each party, the core obligation remains the same, which is to take ‘all reasonable steps’ to ensure that the party’s activities will not cause, contribute to causing, or encourage a driver to speed;

chain parties will be able to demonstrate that they have taken all reasonable steps by complying with an industry code of practice that has been registered with the road authority and developed and maintained according to Austroads guidelines;

it will be illegal for companies to enter into contracts that result in speeding due to unreasonable schedules or deadlines;

the application of existing general compliance and enforcement provisions, including stronger penalties and sanctions, for heavy vehicle speed non-compliance.

It is not proposed to vary from the model national provisions other than as required to accommodate South Australian drafting style and maintain consistency with the way in which other national heavy vehicle reforms have been implemented in our legislation.

The Intelligent Access Program (IAP)

The IAP framework provides a means to monitor, by global positioning satellite technology and in-vehicle measuring devices, the compliance of individual heavy vehicles, particularly Restricted Access Vehicles (RAVs), with various access conditions in an accurate and tamper-evident manner. It will allow the heavy vehicle industry increased productivity and provide improved protection for the road network.

RAVs currently operate under an exemption or approval arrangements pursuant to the sections 161A and 163AA of the RTA (i.e. by permit or in accordance with a notice published in the South Australian Government Gazette) on parts of the road network. Route access is provided according to certain restrictions (such as mass, vehicle dimension and time of travel). Within the competitive environment of the transport industry, some operators resort to non-compliance to improve productivity, at the expense of road safety and increased wear to the road network.

The probability of non-compliant behaviour being detected is very low using traditional enforcement practices. The successful implementation of national transport reforms has led to the greater use of larger and heavier RAVs and demands from industry for increased heavy vehicle mass limits and expanded access opportunities to the road network.

Numerous parts of the road network, especially local roads, cannot safely or structurally accommodate heavy vehicles. Councils are very concerned at the level of damage caused when these vehicles, in particular RAVs, travel on non-approved routes.

Within this new context, the ability of governments to administer and enforce heavy vehicle road law, while also promoting economic reforms within the industry and protecting the community and road infrastructure, becomes increasingly important.

The Intelligent Access Program National Model Legislation (the model IAP legislation) was approved by ATC on 2 December 2005. As with the heavy vehicle speeding compliance reform, implementation is an obligation under Intergovernmental agreements.

IAP uses an in-vehicle monitoring device to provide data for the vehicle. The data is relayed by satellite to an accredited third party data collection centre (called an IAP service provider). Location, speed and time of day are currently capable of being monitored, and in time, so will mass and vehicle configuration.

Operators who wish to operate under IAP apply to the relevant state road authority, and if accepted, enter into a contract with an IAP service provider. Agreed Intelligent Access Conditions are monitored and any deviation is automatically detected. Where this occurs, a Non Compliance Report is generated and forwarded to the relevant state road authority for processing, adjudication and/or prosecution.

The following are the key elements of the model legislation:

powers for a state road authority to issue Intelligent Access Conditions when granting concessions to transport operators;

duties of transport operators, drivers and IAP service providers—including the process for IAP service provider certification;

privacy safeguards for heavy vehicle operators and drivers;

auditing requirements for IAP service providers;

obligations on IAP service providers to report certain types of breaches and any tampering with IAP equipment;

provisions relating to non-compliance with Intelligent Access Conditions, including offences and defences;

evidentiary provisions to assist the use of data to prosecute breaches of Intelligent Access Conditions.

It is intended that the model legislation will be adopted without variation by regulations made under the head of power provided in the Bill.

It has taken several years since the approval of the reform to develop rigorous ICT operational standards that applicant IAP service providers must comply with in order to be certified. Since March 2008, 2 providers have been certified and are offering services. Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria have now implemented the model IAP legislation, with the other jurisdictions expected to follow during 2009.

Passage of this Bill will enable recognition of IAP operators from the jurisdictions currently offering the scheme so that they will not have to comply with the paper-based requirements for monitoring access conditions in South Australia. It will also provide the advantages of IAP to South Australian operators.

Declaration, notification and testing of speed and red light cameras

Approval of Traffic Speed Analysers by Regulation

Section 53A of the Act provides that the Governor may, by notice published in the gazette, approve apparatus of a specified kind as traffic speed analysers. This is in contrast to approving apparatus of a specified kind as photographic detection devices, which the Governor may approve by regulation.

For consistency and greater transparency, the Bill requires that both apparatus be approved by regulation. In addition, as traffic speed analysers often form part of a photographic detection device, it makes sense to have the approval located in the same place.

Removing the requirement to gazette the locations where both red light and traffic speed analysers are installed

Section 79B(9a) of the Act requires that a photographic detection device must not be operated for the purpose of obtaining evidence of the commission of a red light offence and a speeding offence arising out of the same incident, except at locations approved by the Minister and notified in the Government Gazette.

This requirement was introduced in 2003 when cameras which could detect both speeding and red light offences were introduced so that the public would be aware of the locations and modify their behaviour accordingly. At that time, there were only 13 of these cameras rotating amongst 26 sites. Most cameras now operate as dual red light and traffic speed analysers and by the end of June 2009, there will be 86 sites.

The requirement to gazette these locations is thus becoming an onerous and administratively time-consuming task, and an incorrect identification of a site may lead to a prosecution failing on a mere technicality.

It is also unnecessary as signs are installed leading up to each of location advising road users that there are a red light and speed camera ahead and a list of all camera locations is available on the Department for Transport, Energy and Infrastructure internet site. This will continue. In addition, most street directories and many GPS tracking devices installed in motor vehicles display red light camera locations.

Extending the testing period - section 175(3)(ba)(i)

In proceedings for the commission of an offence detected by a traffic speed analyser, the Commissioner of Police or any other police officer of, or above, the rank of Inspector must certify that a specified traffic speed analyser was tested on a specified day and was accurate on that day and for the following 6 days. This will be taken as proof of these facts in the absence of proof to the contrary is proof of the facts certified, pursuant to of the Act.

South Australia Police (SAPOL) has requested that presumption of accuracy be extended from the following 6 to the following 27 days.

When the speed function of red light cameras was first activated in December 2003, SAPOL had no experience as to the volatility of induction loops for the purpose of providing evidence of speeding offences. Consequently, rigid testing procedures were developed. They require tests every 7 days to ensure that the device is operating correctly and detecting vehicles passing over the induction loop; correctly indicating the lane in which the vehicle is travelling; accurately indicating the speed of any detected vehicle; and correctly indicating the date, time and code for the location at which the photos are taken.

After 5 years of operation, SAPOL advises it has gained sufficient experience and evidence as to the stability and accuracy of induction loop technology and the seven day testing requirement is now regarded as too onerous.

The induction loops are calibrated pursuant to the National Measurement Act 1960 (Cth) every 12 months by the Department for Transport, Energy and Infrastructure. The tolerance allowed before a site would be defected is 25mm between leading edges of the induction loops. Calibration results for 2003-04 and 2004-05 reveal that the maximum movement was 2.25mm, well within stability parameters. This provides a further indication that the induction loops of the speed detection device are stable and do not require seven day testing.

The manufacturers of the systems for speed and red light camera operations involving induction loops recommend testing to maintain the accuracy of the device at intervals of 30 to 90 days. Interstate jurisdictions test speed detection devices at monthly or longer intervals. In NSW the induction loops are tested every 30 days and so are the overall systems. In Victoria the induction loops are tested every three months and the systems are tested monthly.

Extending the presumption of accuracy to 27 days rather than 6 days will reduce the number of on-road tests, reducing the resource requirement spent on what SAPOL believes, on the basis of the above information, is unnecessary testing of accuracy and to provide consequent occupational health, safety and welfare benefits to both police officers and non-sworn members of the Traffic Camera Unit who perform these on-road procedures.

Other minor amendments—section 175(4)

The Bill also makes 2 minor amendments to the evidentiary provision in section 175(4) of the Act.

The first is to permit the presumption of accuracy in relation to traffic speed analysers found in section 175(3)(ba)(i) to be available where the analyser is fixed in a housing that is itself fixed to a permanent structure (such as a tunnel or underpass) rather than directly affixed to the ground by means of a pole.

The second amendment is consequential on the repeal of section 79B(9a) by this measure.

This Bill will provide mechanisms to assist the heavy vehicle industry improve its safety and productivity and will assist government efficiencies and protection of the road network.

I commend the Bill to the House.

Explanation of Clauses

Part 1—Preliminary

1—Short title

2—Commencement

3—Amendment provisions

These clauses are formal.

Part 2—Amendment of Road Traffic Act 1961

4—Substitution of section 53A

This clause substitutes a new section 53A of the Act, which allows the Governor, by regulation, to approve apparatus of a specified kind as traffic speed analysers, as opposed the old section 53A which allowed the approval to be given by notice in the Gazette.

5—Amendment of section 79B—Provisions applying where certain offences are detected by photographic detection devices

This clause repeals section 79B(9a), a subsection that prevented the operation of a photographic detection device for the purpose of obtaining evidence of the commission of a red light offence and a speeding offence arising out of the same incident.

6—Insertion of sections 110AB and 110AC

This clause inserts new sections 110AB and 110AC into the Act as follows:

110AB—Speed

This clause provides a regulation-making power in relation to the establishment of a scheme for the management of speeding by drivers of certain heavy vehicles.

110AC—Intelligent Access Program

This clause provides a regulation-making power in relation to the establishment of a scheme to provide increased access to the road network for certain heavy vehicles (known as the Intelligent Access Program).

7—Amendment of section 173AA—Reasonable steps defence

This clause inserts new section 173AA(4) into the Act, which provides a regulation-making power allowing the regulations to set out circumstances in which a requirement under the Act to take all reasonable steps to prevent the occurrence of a specified offence will be taken to have been satisfied.

8—Amendment of section 175—Evidence

This clause amends section 175(3)(ba)(i) of the Act, extending from 6 days to 27 days the period within which certain traffic speed analysers will be presumed to be accurate following the day of testing.

The clause also amends section 175(4) of the Act to address traffic speed analysers that are fixed to permanent structures (such as tunnels or underpasses) rather than directly affixed to the ground by means of a pole.

Finally, the clause amends section 175(4) of the Act to correct an obsolete aspect of the subsection.

Debate adjourned on motion of Ms Chapman.