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Legislative Council - Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2)
2008-06-19 Daily Xml
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ROAD TRAFFIC (HEAVY VEHICLE DRIVER FATIGUE) AMENDMENT BILL

Second Reading

Adjourned debate on second reading.

(Continued from 30 April 2008. Page 2530.)

The Hon. S.G. WADE (15:52): This bill enables the adoption in South Australia of the model heavy vehicle driver fatigue legislation and model compliance scheme regulations. I do not propose to respond in detail to the legislation, because members of the opposition in the other place have done so. I want to put on record a couple of questions which I appreciate may not be answered before the bill passes, but I would appreciate receiving the information when it might be available.

The bill is part of a series of measures to improve safety in heavy freight movements. In that context I note that the roadside rest area strategy for South Australia has an allocation of $10 million, with an annual allocation for both the past financial year and the current financial year of $2.5 million. I understand the strategy is due to complete in 2011.

According to the budget papers, implementation of the roadside rest area improvements on long distance state arterial roads within the strategy is consistent with national standards. What are the national standards? What were the number of roadside rest areas before the strategy was launched? What is the target under the strategy? What is the progress to this point compared with the target to this point?

I also ask the minister to outline the application of this legislation on primary producers who primarily operate vehicles on private land and who may need to incidentally travel short distances on public roads during their work. In relation to any intended exemptions for primary producers, I ask whether the procedures under the legislation for exemptions to expire will apply to those exemptions, as well. I understand that the exemptions will be reflected in regulation, and I would seek confirmation of that fact. In particular, I am interested in the situation of primary producers who operate heavy vehicles across an area, for example, contract harvesters or primary producers operating two or more properties which are separated by significant distances.

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY (15:55): I rise today to speak in support of this bill, which has a great personal significance for me. This bill enables the adoption in South Australia of model heavy vehicle driver fatigue legislation and model compliance scheme regulations relating to trucks with a gross vehicle mass exceeding 12 tonnes and buses seating more than 12 adults, including the driver. This bill is significant to me on a number of levels. It is significant to me because, as a member of the local, state and national communities, I am well aware of the devastating damage to lives and futures caused by heavy vehicle crashes, which statistics reveal are often fatigue related.

I speak not only of the heavy vehicle drivers but also of the other road users who may be caught up in one of these tragic events. I speak of the families, friends and colleagues and the employers of all those involved, and of the reverberations felt throughout the community when one of these events occurs—sadly, all too frequently. This bill is significant to me because, in my nine years as a member of the Federal Council of the Transport Workers Union of Australia, I participated in the development of many of the initiatives which are contained in this bill today. I know that the Transport Workers Union regards safety as a very significant priority for its members and the public.

Its federal office works tirelessly with various federal industry associations, governments and the various state branches. The South Australian branch in particular has worked for many years trying to get protection for drivers and the community with regard to driver fatigue. This bill is significant to me as a member of this council. Road safety is of the highest priority to this government, and I am pleased to have the opportunity to express my support in that context for the measures I am about to discuss. First, may I say that the magnitude of the transport sector in the 21st century can be readily imagined—if not nearly encompassed—by way of even a brief consideration. We live on an enormous continent with cities, regional centres, towns and communities, often separated by massive distances. Conditions are often harsh.

The transport task in a global economy where operations take place 24/7 is extraordinary. As has been pointed out already, it is estimated that the transport and storage industry contributes 4.8 per cent to the economy, accounts for 3.8 per cent of the workforce in South Australia and supports a huge and diverse range of industries. As has been mentioned, the road transport sector employs more than 2 per cent of the workforce, and it is expected to grow exponentially, with the transport task anticipated to double in the period 2000-20. More and more frenetic transport events mean more and more opportunities for close shaves, accidents and even fatalities, but let us hope that our retail industry does grow. It is all good for jobs, employment and for the future of this state.

The Hon. R.D. Lawson interjecting:

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY: I know that it would upset the honourable member to think that the Shop Distributive and Allied Employees' Association might grow, but that is all about employment and growth.

The Hon. R.D. Lawson interjecting:

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY: I know that it might upset the honourable member, but people on this side of the chamber would be happy if it doubles in size in that time. Fatigue is a major element in so many of these events. According to research carried out in my office, fatigue is now acknowledged world wide as the main cause of accidents in the transport sector. The commonwealth House of Representatives inquiry into managed fatigue released its report 'Beyond the Midnight Oil' back in October 2000, but its terms still inform debate today. The report provides a useful definition of 'fatigue' derived from a number of sources. The report states:

...fatigue is the result of inadequate rest over a period of time...[and] that fatigue leads to physical and mental impairment.

Two types of fatigue are postulated in the report. Acute fatigue is short term and is experienced as a direct consequence of activity, such as strenuous exercise or intense mental concentration. Chronic fatigue, and I do not refer to the medical condition, is defined as a cumulative state of tiredness and decreased alertness, and is more severe and long term than acute fatigue. Interestingly, the UK Committee on Flight and Time Limitations, whose report is quoted in the commonwealth inquiry report, supported the concept of fatigue that I am talking about today. The committee said:

Whilst tiredness may develop into fatigue, it differs from it in that a tired person can quickly be aroused to a high level of performance. We have come to consider fatigue as a markedly reduced ability to carry out a task. It is a condition of reduced performance from which there is no certainty that a person can be aroused in an emergency, even when considerable stimulus is present. Put simply, this level of fatigue can only result in an inadequate response to circumstances of sudden danger for a heavy vehicle driver and/or other road users.

The UK committee's words need only be considered in conjunction with the mass, rigidity and velocity of a heavy vehicle to result in mental images with which we would be all too familiar.

On a related note, members may be interested to know that the fatigue expert group was set up jointly by the National Road Transport Commission, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau and the New Zealand Land Transport Safety Authority. This group constructed evidence-based principles for regulatory options. It noted, even back in 2001:

The management of driver fatigue is not a matter for operators and drivers alone...the chain of responsibility—

and I will mention again that the Transport Workers Union of Australia had a significant amount of input into the chain of responsibility provisions—

are designed to highlight that on-road performance is closely related to decisions made by customers, consigners and loaders. Competitive pressures, payment systems, contracting arrangements and even the unintended consequences of the current driving hours regime combine to create an environment in which fatigue has become an accepted part of industry practice.

These words are very prescient indeed. In its 'Reform Evaluation Survey on Driver Fatigue—a National Study of Heavy Vehicle Users', the National Transport Commission stated:

Heavy vehicle driver fatigue reform shifts the focus from the driver to a range of other roles within a company. These roles are responsible for management and safety practices, for example, scheduling with the ability to manage driver fatigue precursors, such as opportunity to sleep, time of day influences and the cumulative nature of fatigue and sleep loss. The aim of this reform is to improve road safety through the implementation of company policies and practices.

The NTC continued:

This reform will affect all parties in the road transport supply chain, including: freight forwarders; shippers; stevedores; loaders; schedulers; distribution centres; unloaders and prime contractors; and third parties, such as consignees and major consigners of goods, including manufacturers, farmers and retailers, among others, who exert influence and can affect compliance with road safety regulations.

It is within the dual and related context of driver fatigue and widescale reform that I turn to the Road Traffic (Heavy Vehicle Driver Fatigue) Amendment Bill. These provisions are soundly based on expert advice and represent the accord between the Australian Transport Council, the National Transport Commission, jurisdictional transport agencies, unions and the heavy vehicle transport industry. Adopting the model legislation will bring South Australia into alignment with other jurisdictions in the administration of the scheme. Its implementation will introduce a three-level approach to fatigue management.

Heavy vehicle operators may choose standard hours, as set out in the provisions, or choose between basic and advanced fatigue management, which allow for scaled flexibility of work and rest hours for those with systems and protocols to manage fatigue risk. There will be new provisions for bus drivers and two-up operator teams to meet both fatigue management and productivity imperatives. The provision of safe rest areas, with appropriate facilities for heavy vehicle drivers on major transport routes in all states, is crucial to the operation of this legislation.

It is on this proviso that unions and industry are supporting the implementation of this legislation. The government has provided significant resources for its roadside rest areas initiatives and, as members are aware, the budget handed down recently included major new investments in road infrastructure to create safer and more efficient road systems and freight routes.

The government is committed to improving road and workplace safety. The safer and fairer system and the more effective enforcement and improved industry efficiency that will result from the cross-jurisdictional implementation of these provisions will benefit stakeholders and the broader community, as well as achieving the transport task. The product of significant concern and goodwill right across the transport sector, the bill represents a very pleasing level of cooperation and consultation between those stakeholders.

Again, I particularly mention the Transport Workers Union's sustained efforts to arrive at an outcome that provides greater equity within the heavy transport industry, as well as enhanced regulatory consistency between jurisdictions. I commend the bill and look forward to bipartisan support for its terms.

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY (Minister for Police, Minister for Mineral Resources Development, Minister for Urban Development and Planning) (16:06): I thank the Hon. Mr Wade and the Hon. Mr Wortley for their contributions to this important bill. The Hon. Mr Wade raised a couple of issues, and I undertake to provide a written response to him in relation to those matters he raised. I thank members for their support.

Bill read a second time and taken through its remaining stages.


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