Ms Catherine King (Ballarat, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for Health and Ageing) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to strongly object to the member for Wide Bay's motion. As parliamentary secretary for road safety, I want to spell out some of the inevitable consequences of the motion before the chamber. The member for Wide Bay's motion in essence will leave taxpayers to foot a bill of $700 million for wear and tear of our roads that are caused by heavy vehicles. While the government are investing in our national road infrastructure, what we are seeing again is an opposition who want to rip funding out of road infrastructure.

The truck industry is growing, and unfortunately the number of road crashes involving trucks is rising with it. Over the past 10 years, the number of kilometres travelled by commercial heavy vehicles around the country has increased by more than 20 per cent, and those of us who live in regional and country areas certainly know that the number of heavy vehicles that we see on roads that were never designed to take these vehicles is growing. Truck drivers are driving longer hours and longer distances with shorter deadlines.

During last year alone, over 200 people died from crashes involving articulated and heavy rigid trucks. The statistics show that in the majority of circumstances these crashes occur on our national highways, which is why in the budget we announced a $140 million extension to the Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program. The program improves safety and productivity for users of heavy vehicles. While we have invested to support the safety of our nation's road users by investing in road infrastructure, those opposite want to take away $700 million of funding to maintain and improve our roads. That is the consequence of the motion before the chamber.

Under our Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program, we have already seen 236 projects delivered in its first four years. The importance of investing in new and upgraded rest areas cannot be overlooked in that process. Just last sitting I attended a parliamentary breakfast for TruckWeek hosted by the Australian Trucking Association. The guest speaker for that breakfast was Lisa Sharwood, a senior researcher who is undertaking her PhD at the moment, from the George Institute. She presented her finding on the frequency of sleep apnoea amongst Australian truck drivers. Her study found that more than 40 per cent of truck drivers could have significant sleep disorders which could significantly increase their risk of crashing. She clearly articulated significant risk factors faced by this Australian cohort of truck drivers. She clearly articulated the need for preventative measures: physical health checks; oxygen assistance at night to assist night breathing; diet; and preventative measures on smoking—and the need for proper rest breaks. I look forward to her research being published. Members opposite who were at the breakfast would have heard the clear evidence about the importance of rest for truck drivers and the impact of fatigue on road safety, particularly in a cohort that has a higher incidence of sleep apnoea than the general population. In order for truck drivers to rest, you need rest stops. To build rest stops, you have to have money for road infrastructure.

Let me tell those opposite some of the road safety statistics. From 2001 to 2006 almost 50 Australians died on our roads from heavy vehicles in the member for Murray's electorate; another 44 in the member for Barker's electorate. In Riverina there were 36; in Wannon, 35; in Parkes, 33; in Gippsland, 28—the list goes on. Even in the electorate of the member for Wide Bay we have seen the tragic death of 26 people who were involved in heavy vehicle crashes between 2001 and 2006.

It is for reasons such as this that we have doubled the funding dedicated to the Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program. What we see from the member for Wide Bay is a motion to disallow the increase of the road user charge—a charge which recognises the importance of industry paying its way in road infrastructure. The member has again shown his lack of vision for our nation's infrastructure and an absence of support for the Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program. Where does the member think the $700 million is going to come from for road infrastructure? The Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program has for the first time seen funding dedicated to rectifying the unacceptable lack of safe, modern roadside facilities along our nation's highways.

The government is taking many other steps to reduce the number of road deaths across Australia. We continue to invest more money in road infrastructure than any other government in this nation's history and, as it stands, the road budget is at a record $28 billion over six years. This includes more building of truck stops and rest areas, and it is the largest investment in road infrastructure since the creation of the national highway network itself. We are continuing to inject more funding into the Black Spot and Roads to Recovery programs, and we are continuing to implement the action items in the National Road Safety Strategy to reduce the number of road crashes involving heavy vehicles.

The steps in that strategy include: the implementation of antilock braking systems and load proportioning brake systems for heavy vehicles, considering increasing heavy vehicle cabin strength, electronic stability control and lane departure warning systems for heavy vehicles, increasing the effective application of chain of responsibility legislation to prosecute heavy vehicle speeding offences, and harmonising legislation to assist cross-border enforcement. This is in addition to the Road Safety Remuneration Bill that the government introduced into this House, and that was another example of the lack of support for safety on our roads shown by those opposite.

It is unacceptable that while only three per cent of our nation's vehicle fleet are heavy vehicles, heavy vehicles are involved in 20 per cent of road deaths. It is unacceptable that over 200 deaths each year are the result of crashes involving heavy vehicles, with speed or fatigue being a major factor in a large proportion of these cases. Once again I appeal to those opposite to vote against this motion—particularly those National Party members in this House when the number of fatalities in their electorates involving heavy vehicles is so significant. More people die in crashes involving heavy vehicles in their electorates than in any others. The member for Wide Bay's motion contradicts the heavy vehicle charge principles that were supported under the Howard government back in 2004 and again in 2007. It is another example of members opposite putting negativity over common sense. I urge all members to support the safety of road users and vote against this motion.

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