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The NHVR has welcomed today's release of the PBS assessment discussion paper by the National Transport Commission (NTC).
NHVR CEO Sal Petroccitto said the Assessing the effectiveness of the PBS Scheme paper highlighted the enormous safety and productivity benefits of PBS vehicles.
"It's almost 10 years since the scheme began, so it's time to look at the future for PBS and ensure these vehicles continue to make a significant contribution towards managing the growth in the Australian freight task, " Mr Petroccitto said.
"The work of the NTC will support the work already underway by the NHVR to identify future PBS program improvements including many of the issues highlighted in the report.
"We have seen dramatic growth year-on-year in the uptake of high-performance vehicles and I look forward to working with the NTC and the heavy vehicle industry to ensure that growth continues. "
The PBS scheme was implemented in 2007 by the NTC, offering the heavy vehicle industry higher productivity and safety through innovative and fit-for-purpose vehicle design. It has been managed by the NHVR since 2013.
Findings outlined in Assessing the effectiveness of the PBS Scheme show PBS vehicles:
- were involved in 46 per cent fewer major crashes
- had a reduction of 440 million km in truck travel and saved at least four lives in 2014-2016
- delivered 24.8 percent productivity gains across all commodities
- delivered a 6.2 per cent gross tonne-km saving for 2016
- saved about $65 million in road maintenance expenses
- saved 94 million litres of fuel in 2016 and reduced CO2 emissions by 250,000 tonnes.
The report also highlighted that complexity and cost of the approval process and access uncertainty were the biggest barriers for PBS vehicles.
Mr Petroccitto said the NHVR would release further details of future PBS work programs in the coming weeks.
NHVR contact: Andrew Berkman | 0429 128 637