Regulation of heavy vehicle driver fatigue reviewed

An issues paper has been released by the National Transport Commission (NTC) seeking input on the regulation of fatigue management.

As part of the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL) review, the paper seeks views on how fatigue is currently regulated — as well as the issues relating to the existing law — in order to find options for effectively managing fatigue risk in a new law.

NTC Chief Executive Officer Gillian Miles said the existing fatigue management requirements are complex, highly prescriptive and therefore difficult to understand and comply with.

“The existing law, despite its detailed prescriptive requirements, doesn’t adequately address the complexity of fatigue risks and causes, and how they relate to each other,” Miles said.

“Our goal is to develop a new law with a harmonised approach to effective fatigue risk management that delivers safer outcomes.”

This is the second of eight issues papers in a rolling consultation to mid-2019. Consultation on this paper is open until 16 August 2019.

Following consultation on the eight issues papers, the NTC will develop a consultation Regulatory Impact Statement for comment before taking recommendations to Ministers in November 2020.

For more information about the open and upcoming consultation phase, visit https://hvnlreview.ntc.gov.au/.

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