Expert panel meeting detailed and review timeline outlined.
The review of the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL) review has taken another step forward, with the expert panel meeting on January 30 and endorsing the National Transport Commission’s (NTC’s) approach to the review.
As part of the process, the NTC has launched a new microsite (www.hvnlreview.ntc.gov.au), designed to be the “primary resource for updates on the review, information from the expert panel and providing feedback”, encouraging operators to make submissions for the new law.
“The expert panel has endorsed our approach to the review.
“The approach has us releasing several issues paper over the coming months. We will seek your feedback on these issues, including current problems that you have with the HVNL and potential ways to solve them,” the NTC says.
The website details the timeline of the review; having commenced with the terms of reverence approved by ministers in November 2018, the development of policy options is now underway and is expected to last until February 2020 following consultation with government and industry.
The list of consultations includes:
- Risk-based regulation: March 2019
- Safe people and safe practices: April 2019
- Effective fatigue management: April 2019
- Safe vehicles: May 2019
- Easy access to suitable routes: May 2019
- Accrediting operators to deliver best practice: June 2019
- Managing compliance: June 2019
- Other policy matters: June 2019
“We recognise that the current law is not best practice – it’s outdated, complex, long, prescriptive and does not support road safety outcomes. We are going back to basics to review the law from first principles,” the NTC notes on the new website.
Policy options are then projected to be presented to ministers in May 2020, with drafting of new legislation to take another 12 months to May 2012, and that legislation to be presented to ministers in November 2021.
More information on the review approach is available here, and the expert panel’s meeting minutes here.
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