The changes to the legislative framework that governs road transport in New South Wales that were proposed have now cleared the Upper House and have been passed across to the Legislative Assembly for approval.
The Road Transport Bill, the Road Transport (Repeal and Amendment) Bill and the Road Transport (Statutory Rules) Bill were passed by the Legislative Council last week and they are meant to consolidate the numerous transport laws and address issues of duplication, and inconsistencies and anomalies.
Even though the Legislative Assembly initially passed the bills last month there is now a need for them to enter a ruling on some slight amendments to the original Road Transport Bill made by the Legislative Council
The Legislative Council changed some of the written language in the Bill because it may have meant that a person could have been subjected to a different penalty regime for traffic offences than the one that is currently in place according to the Roads Minister Mr Duncan Gay.
He also said that the original Bill did not mention offences related to unlicenced driving and there was a concern that offenders would get lesser penalties as a result. This meant that the Legislative Council felt it necessary to insert an amendment.
Mr Gay said that the amendments ensured that the language used in the Bill is consistent with the provisions already in place and ensures that the current set of penalties is preserved.
The other amendments that the Legislative Council felt were necessary included vehicle sanctions and also hoon type offences and the necessity to preserve the penalties that are already in place for both.
The Road Transport Bill is particularly important to the trucking industry as it will determine heavy vehicle mass, dimension and load requirements along with other regulations such as fatigue management.
It will remain in place until the State adopts the national heavy regulations later on this year.
Peter Cutforth is a Director at Urban E-Learning, a global elearning and web strategy firm based in George St Brisbane. Peter's interests extend to training, safety and compliance, online marketing, and Mobile Apps.
