Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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ROAD TRANSPORT REFORM (MASS AND LOADING) REGULATIONS 1995 NO. 56

STATUTORY RULES 1995 No. 56

Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Transport

Road Transport Reform (Vehicles and Traffic) Act 1993

Road Transport Reform (Mass and Loading) Regulations

subsection 7(1) of the Road Transport Reform (Vehicles and Traffic) Act 1993 provides that the Governor-General may make regulations to apply as laws of the Australian Capital Territory and the Jervis Bay Territory covering vehicle standards, driver and rider standards, vehicle operations and traffic rules.

The Road Transport Reform (Mass and Loading) Regulations specify general mass and dimension limits for the operation of heavy vehicles and their loads. The Regulations also deal with the obligations of owners and drivers to ensure that loads are properly secured. The Regulations apply to vehicles with a gross mass greater than 4.5 tonnes and combinations in which a least one vehicle is over 4.5 tonnes.

The Regulations make the owner and the driver guilty of an offence if a vehicle or combination breaches the requirements of the Regulations.

The Regulations set a maximum court fine for an overloading offence at $3,000 for an individual and $15,000 for a body corporate. For other offences, maximum fines are set at $2,000 and $10,000 respectively.

The Regulations will be incorporated into the law of the States and the Northern Territory by means of adopting legislation, in accordance with the Heavy Vehicles Agreement.

The Regulations commence on a date agreed by the Ministerial Council for Road Transport and specified by the Minister by notice in the Gazette.