Reforms to Australia’s heavy vehicle licensing system are long overdue. While we are starting to see some welcome progress, with options for a nationally standardised training and licensing framework now being put to industry, the rate of change is too slow. If we want skilled, safe and well-prepared truck drivers on the road, the federal government needs to keep pace and stay open to the positive reforms already being put in place at state level.
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NatRoad has long called for a national competency-based truck driver standard to provide clear training pathways for operators and aspiring drivers, while keeping all road users safe. There is clearly an unacceptable safety risk when drivers with incompatible experience and/or lack of familiarity with Australia’s roads, rules and conditions are at the wheel of a heavy vehicle. We’re seeing the tragic results of putting inexperienced drivers in charge of heavy vehicles all too often.
While progress has been slow, it is encouraging to see the federal government taking action, with Austroads’ reforms to the National Heavy Vehicle Driver Competency Framework (NHVDCF) aimed at creating the national standard we have been calling for. There are two licensing pathways being looked at: one based on supervised training hours and the other on demonstrated driving experience.
These proposed methods are a positive step towards creating the national training and assessment model the industry needs, where drivers are tested and assessed on their ability to handle a truck in a range of conditions rather than basing their qualification on the period of time they have held their licence.
Having a nationally administered training and accreditation system will also go a long way to help address the dire truck driver shortage by providing clearer training pathways for those wanting a career in the industry. This will be essential to attract younger people and a more diverse and skilled workforce to fill the driving positions being left vacant by older drivers as they move into retirement. We already have 28,000 unfilled driver positions in this country, and that’s expected to blow out to 78,000 by 2029.
The proposed reforms are welcome and will see more competent heavy vehicle drivers on the road. However, while changes are still being developed, the federal government must remain open to considering other approaches. For example, South Australia has already enacted changes to its licencing system, including the requirement for overseas licence holders (except New Zealand) to have held an Australian Heavy Rigid or Heavy Combination licence for at least a year before being eligible to apply for an Multi Combination licence.
Unfortunately, it appears Austroads is limited to considering only two alternatives: it can’t include others like the South Australian pathway. NatRoad believes all options should be on the table, and we think the reform process would be best served by adding the South Australian licensing model as another alternative.
Heavy vehicle licensing reform has stagnated for far too long, so it is critical that we get this right. To do that all viable alternatives should be on the table. How we get there isn’t important, what matters most is that we end up with a safe and effective national licensing framework for the road freight industry that provides clear and effective pathways for new drivers to the industry and keeps all road users safe.
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