Opinion, Rod Hannifey

Juggling time on the 14-day rule

Juggling time

Goodaye all, been a big month for kms travelled, calls taken, and issues raised.

I have done five states in four weeks and generally not had much drama, though the 14-day rule has meant 24-hour breaks in Cobar on the way home from Perth, yes only three-and-a-half hours from home, but then the following week at Yunta, stuck there for the same rule, then tried to have another at home, to not get caught again.

I thought these rules were supposed to manage and improve fatigue, not make it worse.

I have been asking, have any drivers ever been pinged on the 14-day rule? How many of us can remember where we were last week, let alone two weeks ago and, as I suppose I have often done, kept driving knowing we had to have a 24-hour break, got home, had a second 24-hour break and started again, without much specific thought and or checking on what had been done two weeks previous.

Now, with my Electronic Work Diary (and we will come back to that), it picks up, and yes does warn me, when 24-hour break is due. Though I have asked for more warning time, and this is being addressed, it will show a breach if I don’t comply. We finally got the 84-hour rule, giving flexibility in the first week, but there is no flexibility with the 14-day rule.

(Image: Rod Hannifey)

I must admit, till the EWD caught me out in Sydney the first time, yes hours enough left in every other way, but because I had gone to the Castlemaine Truck Show and then left Saturday afternoon to get into Brissie on Monday, it forced me to sit in the Sydney depot for 24 hours from Friday afternoon and I just made it back there legally. But it would have been time much better spent at home.

So, I made some calls and found the 14-day period is a rolling one, like most others, and then I made more calls about why and how and what can be done. It has now bit me three or four times and left me frustrated, sitting with little or no facilities away from home for a 24-hour break that whilst legally needed, is not needed in any way for fatigue as such.

I have raised it with Hubfleet, which is how I found it is a rolling 14-day period, so not a start, work 14 days and then another start, but it starts after every 24-hour break. So, I raised it with the NHVR officers at Truckfest and had a call back within the day asking what I was on about.

I then spoke with the NHVR fatigue guru and there is little they can do in any way. I thanked them for the near immediate follow up and after the last time, rang and raised it again, getting some empathy, but no result, though it is now on their radar as well.

I rang the National Transport Commission and was told it is unlikely to be addressed in the current HVNL review. Again, got some empathy, but it seems it has not been raised by anyone else anywhere I can find. So, have you had the issue? It is only likely if you are using an EWD, please let me know.

Diary of confusion

So, I got a call from a driver wanting to use an EWD. He had been doing local for years, so did not need a logbook much at all. He was about to change to long distance and simply thought it would help him. He had been told by the NHVR call center he could not have one as a driver, unless his company had one and agreed.

I said that was not correct and detailed why, he was then going to check again with the NHVR and get back to me. Instead, I heard from his immediate next in line up the tree to go through it all again.

(Image: Rod Hannifey)

I said I believed the NHVR officer had simply misunderstood the question, believing the driver wanted to use a company system, and if that system is not approved for use as an EWD, then the answer would be NO, you can’t use it.

I had of course immediately contacted the NHVR to both confirm the information I was giving was correct and that the information being given out by the call centre was not.

This was confirmed and then again by the fatigue guru who also called me back, so I thought, fixed.

Wrong.

I got another call saying he went back and checked with the NHVR, and was told if the driver has used an EWD it was already a legal matter (this really ramped up the concern) and they were told ‘no’, he can’t use one as a driver and gave a link to the NHVR website.

I checked and read the info on the link and it agreed with me, so again, back on the phone and after only five hours over two or three days, not only has the driver now got Hubfleet, is using it and very happy, his next up says, once I explained the benefits, he would look at getting it for himself as well.

Show time

I have just spent the weekend at the Golden Oldies Truck, Tractor, Coach and Quilt show in Dubbo with the trucks and trailers on display.

Lots of nice words and comments from many, some fantastic machinery on show and without such shows and the chance to show such gear, I was left to wonder who will make the effort to restore and keep working to maintain our history, through the trucks of the past?

Safe Travelling, Rod Hannifey.

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ROD HANNIFEY, a transport safety advocate, has been involved in raising the profile of the industry, conducting highway truck audits, the Blue Reflector Trial for informal parking bays on the Newell, the ‘Truckies on Road Code’, the national 1800 number for road repairs proposal, and the Better Roadside Rest Areas Group. Rod is the current past president of the NRFA. Contact Rod on 0428 120 560, e-mail rod.hannifey@bigpond.com or visit www.truckright.com.au

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