WA Government makes revision to controversial road train signage laws

WA truck drivers no longer have to abide by contentious safety signage laws that came to effect earlier this year, following the State Government’s revision of the rules. On July 1, Main Roads announced all road trains over 22 metres long would need to display graphic signs that show the length of the vehicle, and how many car lengths it equates to. The trucking industry had a six month grace period, and the laws would not be mandated until January 1, 2025. However, the Government recently revealed the the new signage will no longer be mandatory, and road train operators can choose between the existing ‘Long Vehicle’ and ‘Road Train’ signs or the new graphic signs. “The new RAV (restricted access vehicle) warning signs are optional but offer several benefits, including providing more information to other road users, helping them decide if it is safe to overtake the road train or long vehicle,” a Main Roads statement read. “The signs also educate drivers about the length of road trains using clear images and car graphics for comparison.” The Government’s decision to back away from mandating the signage came after widespread criticism from the trucking industry, which said the signs would be ineffective and too costly. The Government also drew on consultations with industry held through the Heavy Vehicle Road Signage Reference Group, chaired by Parliamentary Secretary to the Deputy Premier Meredith Hammat, and created directly in response to the criticisms. The group included eight representatives from different areas of the transport industry, including the Western Roads Federation, Livestock and Rural Transport Association of WA, and the Transport Workers Union. Dumbleyung trucker and immediate past president of the LRTA WA Darren Bairstow said he, along with the rest of the industry, were glad the new graphic signs would not be mandated. “Common sense has come to play, and they (the Government) made the right decision,” Mr Bairstow said. “Us at the LRTA WA, and the rest of the industry, is pretty happy with the outcome.” He said the new rule would have come at a major cost to operators, and referred to a quote he received to have all his current ‘Road Train’ signs switched over to the graphic signs of $1000 per trailer. Mr Bairstow also said there were logistical problems to the proposed signage laws. “There’s a lot of road trains in Western Australia that are made up from different trailers, and they get set up as bigger road trains and then broken down to smaller road trains, so there was some logistical issues around it all too.”