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Electronic work diary trial gets underway

Field trials begin to test the effectiveness of electronic work diaries for fatigue management as an alternative to paper-based reporting

August 4, 2011

Field trials to test the effectiveness of electronic work diaries for fatigue management as an alternative to paper-based reporting have started in NSW.

The Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA), which is responsible for the pilot, has tasked Transport Certification Australia (TCA) to carry out the tests.

TCA is currently responsible for managing the Intelligent Access Program (IAP).

“To provide ongoing advice throughout the pilot, an industry reference group has also been established comprising truck drivers, transport operators and peak bodies and associations,” TCA CEO Chris Koniditsiotis says.

He says the pilot aims to resolve issues raised in the National Transport Commission’s electronic work diary policy proposal, which the country’s transport ministers have approved.

The trial will determine the feasibility of making trucking operators install printers in their vehicles so drivers can provide roadside inspectors with copies of their records.

Industry is opposed to the move, but the National Transport Commission (NTC) claims it is the only feasible option at the moment in making records accessible at the roadside.

The NTC says governments should also amend fatigue management sanctions to account for the high accuracy of electronic diaries.

It wants a voluntary system to give operators the choice of paper or electronic work diaries and says it should not be a requirement for the latter to be hooked up to GPS.

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