Heavy vehicle health check kicks off

Australia’s heavy vehicle fleet will undergo its first national health check as a two-month survey begins this week.

Federal Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Darren Chester said the National Roadworthiness Baseline Survey would be the first time the same inspection would be undertaken at the same time to the same standard nationally.

“For the first time we’ll have a single approach and set of rules for inspecting and assessing the safety condition of heavy vehicles,” said Chester. “The National Heavy Vehicle Inspection Manual now provides a nationally consistent approach to assessing compliance to the vehicle standards.

“From today, heavy vehicle health check inspections will be conducted by authorised officers at roadside checkpoints and in depots throughout Australia to the same standard. This snapshot of the fleet’s condition will identify factors that increase the risk of incidents, assist to develop a national risk-based inspection approach and identify high-risk components, systems, vehicles or operators.”

NHVR CEO Sal Petroccitto said heavy vehicle operators need to advise their drivers and clients to allow appropriate time and have contingencies in place for potential vehicle inspections.

“If a vehicle is selected it will have a comprehensive visual inspection which, depending on the condition of the vehicle, may take on average 30 minutes and in certain cases around 45 minutes,” he said.

“Operators must be prepared for a potential delay. We understand the importance of time in the supply chain and with drivers’ cooperation we will ensure minimal disruption occurs.

“Several pilots across the nation were conducted during July to ensure that inspections were completed as quickly as possible. We met with 130 inspection staff in 12 workshops across Australia in preparation for the survey. The health check will deliver a clear picture of roadworthiness. We’re doing it right, not rushed.”

An industry webinar on 26 July also answered questions from more than 440 participants regarding how and why the health check is being conducted.