Impacts of heavy vehicle reform

Supplementary modelling results coming soon.

Supplementary modelling results coming soon.

• Heavy vehicle transport plays an important role in the Australian economy, but productivity growth in the road freight sector has stalled for over a decade.
  • Advances in technology and vehicle design provide opportunities to re start productivity growth and improve emissions outcomes.
  • The recent fuel supply disruption has only strengthened the case for reform to unlock higher productivity and lower emissions vehicles.
• High productivity vehicles, heavy zero emissions vehicles (HZEVs) and automated permits can support productivity uplift if deployed well. These opportunities will only be realised if all tiers of government collaborate to remove regulatory and other barriers to innovation and investment.
  • Governments are working together on new national approaches, while individual jurisdictions are pursuing reforms that demonstrate how new technologies can improve vehicle access and how regulations can be updated to recognise electric vehicle charging as an emerging form of land use.
  • However, more can be done to accelerate this work. The largest potential productivity benefits will arise from reforms that increase access to Australia’s road network for high productivity vehicles.
• The largest potential productivity benefits will arise from reforms that increase access to Australia’s road network for high productivity vehicles.
  • Increasing General Mass Limits (indicative of general increases to road access) would boost long-run GDP by about 0.03-0.10% ($900 million to $2.7 billion based on 2024-25 GDP), depending on the level of ambition.
  • Implementing the National Automated Access System (NAAS) would boost long-run GDP by about 0.02-0.05% ($600 million to $1.3 billion based on 2024-25 GDP).
  • Reforms that work towards ‘as of right’ access – reducing the time and costs associated with applying for a permit for pre approved vehicles driving on pre approved networks – should be prioritised, as should reforms that make it easier to get high productivity and low emissions vehicles on the road.
  • Additional funding for the road infrastructure assessments needed to support informed decision-making about access and a focus on building local government capacity will help ensure that the NAAS roll-out does not fall further behind.
• Adjusting noise-based curfews to exempt HZEVs, ensuring planning rules are suited to HZEV charging, facilitating private investment in HZEV charging in heavy vehicle rest areas and improving information to guide charging site selection will assist uptake of HZEVs.
• National driver competency reforms to improve safety have been agreed, though implementation across jurisdictions will largely occur between 2026 and 2028.
  • Implementing the National Heavy Vehicle Driver Competency Framework would boost long-run GDP by about 0.004-0.015% ($100 to $400 million based on 2024-25 GDP).

• Preliminaries: Cover, Copyright and publication detail, Request for advice, Disclosure of interests, Acknowledgements and Contents
• Overview
  • Road freight productivity growth has stalled
  • The PC has examined 5 heavy vehicle reform areas
  • Road access settings need to better balance costs and benefits
  • Other regulation has not caught up with HZEVs
  • Current reforms will improve driver capability
• Findings and recommendations
• 1.    Context for this study
  • 1.1    What have we been asked to do?
  • 1.2    Conduct of the study and consultation
  • 1.3    Heavy vehicles perform a range of critical functions
  • 1.4    Truck productivity growth has stalled
  • 1.5    The fuel supply disruption has boosted the decarbonisation imperative
  • 1.6    Roadmap for this report
• 2.    Access for high productivity and heavy zero emissions vehicles
  • 2.1    How do access arrangements currently work?
  • 2.2    Opportunities to improve productivity and environmental outcomes
  • 2.3    Reforms to access for high productivity vehicles
  • 2.4    Overcoming the ‘payload penalty’ for HZEVs in the longer term
• 3.    Accelerating a National Automated Access System
  • 3.1    The existing heavy vehicle access system is not fit for purpose
  • 3.2    About the NAAS
  • 3.3    Ensuring the NAAS is delivered in a timely way
  • 3.4    Getting the most out of the NAAS
• 4.    Administrative and regulatory barriers to charging infrastructure
  • 4.1    HZEV charging infrastructure
  • 4.2    Grid connections are challenging but largely not for administrative or regulatory reasons
  • 4.3    Providing better information to guide investment
  • 4.4    Updating land use regulation to meet the needs of HZEV charging
  • 4.5    Heavy vehicle rest areas warrant special attention
• 5.    Heavy vehicle curfews
  • 5.1    Curfews apply unevenly across Australia
  • 5.2    Some curfews may not be fit for purpose in light of new technology
  • 5.3    Time based restrictions should be better targeted at addressing noise
  • Attachment 5.1
• 6.    The National Heavy Vehicle Driver Competency Framework
  • 6.1    Current arrangements differ across jurisdictions
  • 6.2    Reforms to the NHVDCF are progressing
  • 6.3    Impact of the NHVDCF reforms
  • 6.4    Future reform directions
• A.    Public engagement
• B.    About the in-house economy wide modelling
  • B.1    Approach to assessing the economy wide effects
  • B.2    What economy wide modelling does and does not do
  • B.3    Model simulations and results
  • Annex: Products and industries in PC National
• Abbreviations
• References

Printed copies of this report can be purchased from Canprint Communications.