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The NHVR is reminding operators of heavy vehicles transporting grapes to pay attention to their mass, loading, fatigue and work and rest hour requirements under the Heavy Vehicle National Law.
The reminder comes after grape spillage was found at major intersections and heavy vehicles transporting grapes inspected by NHVR’s Safety and Compliance Officers were found to be non-compliant.
Mass and load requirements
Grapes, like all harvest goods, must be secured to meet the loading performance standards.
Operators risk grapes spilling onto the road if a vehicle’s load isn’t adequately managed and restrained. Any spillage caused by changing gears, braking, or turning indicates the load was not properly secured.
Do not load grapes too close to the top of the tipper trailer or bin, to ensure no spillage occurs during transport. The juicier the grapes, the lower the load level needs to be. Juicier grapes may need to be baffled or covered to help with containment.
Operators can apply to be accredited under National Heavy Vehicle Accreditation Scheme Mass Management module, which allows nominated vehicles to operate at Concessional Mass Limits (CML). The operator’s management system will incorporate policies and procedures to ensure trucks are not overloaded.
Read more about mass and loading
View the Mass Management Accreditation Guide
Fatigue
Transporting grapes often occurs at night when drivers may experience fatigue. Delays accessing the loading and unloading sites contributes to a driver’s work hours, and this extra time can put pressure on drivers to speed or exceed their work and rest hour requirements.
It’s important for operators to factor rest breaks into driver scheduling and put the correct procedures in place to ensure the safety of the driver and other road users.
Record keeping requirements
Primary producer operators or record keepers who have drivers working under a work diary exemption are required to record all driver work and rest information for any trips within 160 kilometres of their base.
Click here to read more about local area work diary requirements