Owner/Driver #339

THE GOODS NEWS FROM THE HIGHWAY AND BEYOND
ATA calls for truck dimension reform
Andrew McKellar bemoans width
and mass limits restrictions holding
back new vehicle developments
Above: ATA CEO Andrew McKellar
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OWD-QV-5188294-TS-336
THE AUSTRALIAN TRUCKING
ASSOCIATION (ATA) has taken aim at
local truck dimension restrictions,
saying the current rules prohibit
the latest vehicle technology to
enter Australian shores and must be
overhauled.
The call comes as the ATA releases a
submission on heavy vehicle emission
standards, Heavy Vehicle Emission
Standards for Cleaner Air – Euro VI
draft regulation impact statement,
to the Department Of Infrastructure,
Transport, Regional Development and
Communications (DITRDC).
The submission recommends
increased width and mass for diesel
trucks that meet the Euro 6 emission
standard or equivalent, as well as
electric and hydrogen trucks.
“Australian trucks have a width of
2.5 metres, with extra allowances for
equipment such as tautliner curtain
buckles, lights and removable load
restraint equipment,” ATA CEO Andrew
McKellar says.
“In contrast, trucks in Europe are
generally 2.55 metres wide and trucks
in the US are 2.6 metres wide.
“Electric and hydrogen trucks
developed overseas will need to be
redesigned for the Australian market
to meet our dimension rules.
“This will slow the rollout of zeroemission
trucks in Australia.”
McKellar says an increase in vehicle
mass was also needed to encourage the
purchase of newer, greener vehicles.
“Euro VI, battery electric and
hydrogen trucks are heavier, which
reduces the amount of freight they can
carry and their commercial viability,”
he says.
“There needs to be an extra 500kg axle
mass allowance for single steer trucks
and an extra 1,000kg for twin steer
trucks,” he says.
McKellar says zero-emission trucks
were a reality and needed the right
policy settings to increase their uptake
in Australia.
“We are getting to the stage
now where international vehicle
manufacturers are bringing electric
vehicles to the market.
“To support this, government must
ensure vehicle standards regulations
are flexible enough to allow that to
happen.”
The Euro series of standards regulate
the emission of carbon monoxide,
hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides and
particulates by on-road heavy diesel
vehicles.
All new trucks sold in Australia
must, as a minimum, meet the Euro V
standard or the equivalent US/Japanese
standards.
McKellar says the Government’s
proposal to mandate Euro 6 or the
equivalent US/Japanese standards
should be brought forward to January 1,
2024 for new truck models and January
1, 2025 for new trucks generally.
The government’s current proposal is
to mandate Euro 6 or its equivalents for
new truck models from July 1, 2027 and
for new trucks from July 1, 2028.
“After extensive consultation with
our members, the ATA considers that
we can now mandate Euro 6 and its
equivalent standards earlier than
originally planned, but the mass and
width changes must come into force
well in advance of January 1, 2024,”
he says.
The ATA’s full list of recommendations
are:
• The Australian government should
mandate Euro VI emissions
standards at Stage C and equivalent
US and Japan standards for new
heavy vehicle models from 1 January
2024 and all new heavy vehicles
from 1 January 2025, conditional
on offsets to mitigate the cost to
industry
• The Australian government should
not proceed with the proposal to
mandate stage D of Euro VI emission
standards for heavy vehicles
• The Australian government should
maintain all heavy vehicle categories
on the same introduction timeline
for implementing Euro VI emission
standards
• The Australian government should
ensure that the final regulatory
impact statement for mandating
Euro VI emission standards for
heavy vehicles complies with the
Guide to Regulatory Impact Analysis,
and actively include offsets for the
additional proposed regulatory cost
burden on industry
• The Australian, state and territory
governments should deliver vehicle
standard offsets for Euro VI heavy
vehicles, including an additional
500kg axle mass for steer trucks, an
additional 1,000kg axle mass for twin
steer trucks and increasing heavy
vehicle width
• The Australian government should
ensure that the vehicle standard
offsets for Euro VI heavy vehicles
are delivered well in advance of
the implementation of Euro VI as a
mandatory standard
• The Australian government should
extend the vehicle standard offsets
delivered for Euro VI heavy vehicles
to hydrogen fuel cell and battery
electric heavy vehicles
• The Australian government should
implement Japan pPNLT-2017
and USA EPA 2013 as equivalent
international standards to Euro VI
Stage C
• The Australian government should,
in conjunction with states and
territories, initiate reform to regulate
off-road engine emissions.
It has been noted recently that, by
current standards, a Tesla semi truck
would not fit the current criteria and
the maker has made a submission to
the National Transport Commission’s
Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL)
review.
14 APRIL 2021 ownerdriver.com.au