Road managers
Accessibility tools
Industry and government are encouraged to use Freight PASS, a web app designed to help users compare the productivity, asset impact, safety and sustainability trade-offs of different heavy vehicle configurations.
The National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) released the updated tool earlier this year to allow users to compare a range of outcomes when different vehicle types are used to undertake a particular freight task.
Chief Safety and Productivity OfficerMatt d'Abbs said the tool was particularly useful at a time when economic pressures were impacting operators and supply chains across the country.
“With Freight PASS, users can compare potential diesel consumption, vehicle operating costs, travel time, crash likelihood, climate change impacts, pavement wear and other factors to better understand how vehicle choice can affect the economy, road assets, environment and safety,” he said.
“We know industry and government are facing increasing challenges right now, requiring operators and road managers to be more agile than ever.
“While industry and government must continue to balance safety, sustainability and productivity trade-offs, Freight PASS is designed to empower users with a greater knowledge of different vehicle impacts.
“For example, the tool can help to understand how less vehicles transporting a greater quantity of freight can have positive environmental and safety outcomes.”
For road managers, Freight PASS offers improved insights for local government infrastructure, such as the pavement wear and emissions impact of a heavy vehicle over cumulative trips.
Road managers can modify vehicle details in Freight PASS to make clearer comparisons between axle groups, mass distribution and tyre dimensions.
Additionally, the tool can help operators fill information gaps to identify vehicle designs better aligned with road manager considerations before applying for an access permit.
In the long term, Freight PASS can assist the transition to more productive and technologically advanced heavy vehicle fleets.
“The current fuel shortage has highlighted the importance of an optimised freight task balanced against road asset management and Freight PASS can help users better understand transport system implications to perform the freight task,” Mr d'Abbs said.
“Vehicle choice has an effect on costs, and while the current climate is putting productivity in the spotlight, the NHVR has designed Freight PASS to assist with these decisions into the future.
“The tool can support a forward-focused heavy vehicle industry by empowering road managers and operators to access better insights into productivity, safety and sustainability metrics.
“At the end of the day, more robust data and information enables better-informed decision making.”
Freight PASS is free for all users and can be accessed via NHVR Go.