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House of Assembly - Fifty-Third Parliament, First Session (53-1)
2014-10-28 Daily Xml
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South Eastern Freeway

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN (Lee—Minister for Transport and Infrastructure, Minister Assisting the Minister for Planning, Minister Assisting the Minister for Housing and Urban Development) (14:25): I seek leave to make a ministerial statement.

Leave granted.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: Recent incidents on the South Eastern Freeway involving heavy vehicles have caused considerable concern for South Australians. I would like to take this opportunity to update the house on the government's actions to increase safety on the South Eastern Freeway.

Following a fatal road crash on 18 August 2014 that occurred at the intersection of Cross Road, Portrush Road, Glen Osmond Road and the South Eastern Freeway, the deputy coroner initiated a coronial inquest and issued a number of preliminary recommendations on 22 August. The deputy coroner recommended that steps be immediately undertaken to ensure that all heavy vehicles, defined within the Australian Road Rules as being a vehicle with a gross vehicle mass of 4.5 tonnes or over, be subjected to a 60 km/h speed limit on the down track of the South Eastern Freeway.

In response to these recommendations, the Minister for Road Safety announced on that same day that the state government would give effect to the speed limit change for all trucks and buses to come into effect from 1 September. As a result of the likely increased speed differential between heavy vehicles and light vehicles, the minister also implemented a reduced speed limit for cars from 100 km/h to 90 km/h on the down track. Furthermore, from 1 September 2014—

Mr Knoll interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Schubert is called to order.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: —all heavy vehicles were to remain in the left lane only from the Crafers interchange until near the Measdays Bridge. The deputy coroner also made recommendations regarding the current legal requirement for heavy vehicle drivers to adhere to Australian Road Rule 108 on the down track of the freeway. This legally enforceable road rule requires the driver of a truck or bus that is driving on a length of road to which a truck and bus low-gear sign applies to drive the truck or bus in a gear that is low enough to limit the speed of the truck or bus without the use of a primary brake.

The Coroner recommended that measures be introduced to place on conditions of licence that heavy vehicle drivers which use the South Eastern Freeway demonstrate competence in complying with Australian Road Rule 108. I am advised that, while current training requirements require a driver to demonstrate the ability to descend a hill in the appropriate gear, this issue has formed a key part of the consultation that the government has undertaken with the industry. There is significant support from industry for improved training requirements, and I have asked my department to investigate improvements to the current scheme.

The Coroner also recommended that heavy vehicle drivers be reminded by a public ministerial statement, immediately and prominently, of the legal requirement to comply with Australian Road Rule 108 and that contravention of this requirement attracts sanction. Both the Minister for Road Safety and I, as well as South Australia Police, have continually reinforced this message publicly, to industry and to the media about this legal requirement.

Since 18 August fatal accident and subsequent incidents involving heavy vehicles on the freeway, the government has been working with industry to develop a range of measures to improve safety on the South Eastern Freeway. Central to this has been the further promotion of the message about the legal requirement for vehicles to adhere to rule 108.

As an initial measure, the government has updated the key industry publication 'The right gear', outlining the requirement of adhering to rule 108. This document was distributed to 35 industry stakeholders, including the South Australian Road Transport Association and the Livestock & Rural Transporters Association, in early September to remind operators of this legal obligation. Furthermore, this document has been distributed to drivers at the Monteith heavy vehicle checking station during operations conducted there since 1 September.

Following consultation and feedback with industry regarding the communication to drivers of the rule 108 requirement, the government will be sending information out to all South Australian heavy vehicle licence holders outlining their legal requirement to comply with rule 108 and the sanctions involved for noncompliance. Information will also be provided at heavy vehicle rest stops along the Dukes Highway to target interstate drivers, some of whom may not have used the freeway before.

In addition, I have written to federal and state transport ministers requesting that information be provided to their relevant government departments for distribution to licensed heavy vehicle drivers, operators and industry associations. I will also be writing to interstate industry associations asking that they communicate to their members this information through their communication channels.

The government has also improved existing signage on the South Eastern Freeway which outlines this requirement for trucks and buses to use a low gear. On 8 October these signs were enhanced to increase visibility. Further, an additional sign was installed near the Mount Osmond overpass bridge to remind drivers that the descent continued towards the city.

Finally, the Coroner recommended that the Australian Road Rule 108 requirement for trucks to use an appropriate low gear be extended to a further section of the freeway beyond its current operation. Road signage providing for this requirement was installed by 1 September 2014 to extend the full length of the descent from the crest at Crafers and for seven kilometres to the approach at the Portrush Road/Cross Road intersection. This extended the previously signed requirement by one kilometre.

Following consultation with industry, stakeholders and the community, the government now has a list of 22 prioritised items to improve safety on the South Eastern Freeway. These reach across the areas of infrastructure (including investigations into intersection upgrades and the feasibility of a third arrester bed); regulation of the heavy vehicle industry (including driver licensing, education and training, and more stringent national regulation of the heavy vehicle industry); and communications (including fixed and variable messaging signage, and the distribution of information advice to heavy vehicle drivers).

The government will now finalise measures to implement in the short term and progress investigations into further medium and longer-term measures. What is clear is that a series of improvements across all three areas is likely to be necessary.

Mr Tarzia interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Hartley is called to order.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: I would like to take this opportunity to thank the shadow minister for transport, the member for Mitchell—

Ms Redmond interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Heysen is called to order.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: —on his bipartisan approach to efforts to increase safety on the freeway. The Minister for Road Safety and I have briefed the member on the government's actions and appreciated his attendance at the recent industry forum and community consultation.

I would also like to acknowledge the federal Assistant Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development, the Hon. Jamie Briggs MP, for the willingness of the commonwealth to participate in measures to improve safety on the freeway. Both the Minister for Road Safety and I will continue to update the house on this important safety issue.

Ms Chapman interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Bragg is warned a first time.

Mr Knoll interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Schubert is warned a first time.

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