On The Road Aussie Trucking Podcast

281. Australian Trucking News and Opinion With Mike Williams and Trev Warner

280. In The Weeds with Mike. This week its a pure opinion bit. My guest didn't work out for the week so I've elected to give you basically one big Something To Talk About and you can argue amongst yourselves! I have a bit from Colin Dyne in WA and another bit from the old interstater. Both were on Facebook and both make solid points in my opinion. Take care out there and I'll catch you later.

279. Australian Trucking News and Opinion with Mike Williams and Guests. No fancy editing this week. I'm on the road and so I don't have all my recording and editing e=gear with me. This is as raw as it gets! Trev and I kick round a few trucking subjects and please support the Lets Get Rural Christmas raffle. https://www.raffletix.com.au/letsgetural-xmas25

278. In The Weeds with Mike and Trev. General Industry View on the Heavy Vehicle (Mass, Dimension and Loading) National Amendment Regulation 2025The 2025 amendments to the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL), including the specific updates to mass, dimension, and loading rules under the accompanying regulations, have elicited a cautiously positive but predominantly disappointed response from the Australian trucking and road freight industry. Stakeholders, including major bodies like the Australian Trucking Association (ATA) and the National Road Transport Association (NatRoad), view the package as a modest step forward in simplifying compliance and enhancing safety, but criticize it for falling short of the "first principles" reform promised after the six-year review process that began in 2018. The changes—such as slight increases to general mass limits, easier Higher Mass Limits (HML) declarations, and more flexible loading via Safety Management Systems (SMS)—are seen as productivity boosters, yet the overall package is lambasted for lacking ambition, particularly on access reforms and fatigue management flexibility. Key Issues the Industry Has with the 2025 HVNL Amendments(Mass, Dimension & Loading + broader package)# Issue What the industry says 1 Lack of ambition / watered-down reform After 7 years of review, the final package is seen as “incremental tinkering” rather than the promised “first-principles rewrite”. Many big ideas from 2018–2024 consultations were dropped or heavily diluted. 2 Productivity gains are too small Minor mass/dimension increases are welcomed but described as “barely noticeable”. No meaningful lift in general-access limits or widespread Higher Productivity Vehicle rollout. 3 Access reform largely abandoned The original goal of eliminating 90 % of permits by 2028 is gone. Operators still face slow, inconsistent permit processes across councils and states. 4 Fatigue management flexibility removed Plans to reduce the number of work/rest options and give more genuine flexibility were scrapped late in the process, leaving the old rigid hours largely intact. 5 Accreditation & SMS changes risk more red tape The new “alternative compliance” and mandatory SMS requirements are complex and costly for small operators; many fear it will add paperwork rather than reduce it. 6 Regulations still not finalised The primary law has passed, but the detailed mass, dimension, loading and fatigue regulations are still being drafted. Industry is nervous about last-minute surprises and insufficient consultation time (some want minimum 42 days). 7 Implementation timeline too tight Mid-2026 start with staged rollout leaves only ~6–12 months for fleets to retrain drivers, update systems, and renegotiate contracts. 8 No clear accountability or KPIs No legislated forward work program or measurable targets (e.g., permit reduction, safety outcomes), so industry doubts further improvements will actually happen.

277. Australian Trucking News and Opinion with Mike Williams and Guests. No guest this week sorry I've been a bit time poor! I have a bit on length laws and how that affects sleeper sizes. (I know, old news right!) I've stitched in my weekly bit with Chris Smith on 2SM Sydney and Jason is in for the news and STTA. enjoy the show. BTW I do get a bit fired up during news.

276. In the Weeds with Caleb Bryce.

275. Australian Trucking News and Opinion with Mike Williams and Guests. This week on the show Trev and Mike start talking about Chain Of Responsibility and end up in the weeds talking about how long it takes to get a road approved, funded and constructed. you will be blown away by how long some of our road projects have been in the works for! Mikes weekly bit with Chris Smith on 2SM talking about how fast we should be going on our roads, EV's and how they should pay their way etc. Dougie in with the news plus a really thought provoking STTA.

274. Mike gets into the weeds this week with Rob Free. The NHVR has kicked off a new podcast called 'Whats Your 20" Rob Co-hosts the show with another experienced driver Sarah as they do interviews and present information to the Australian road transport industry.

273. *SPECIAL* Mike with Guest Fiona Booth. This is a conversation recorded on Sunday 23rd November 2025. I don't often break from convention and throw in an extra show but this one is important because it's time sensitive. We only have a short time to put in submissions to the NTC about reforms to the NHVAS and I'm amazed we've got to this point without widespread outrage. Please have a listen and put in a quick submission. It's not that hard to do.

272. Australian Trucking News and Opinion with Mike Williams and Guests. This wee Mike talked with Chris Smith on radio 2SM about the issues with Australia's fuel stockpile and the consequences of running out of fuel. plus a bit about "Moolies" (WTF). Trev comes int to chew the fat on some trucking issues and Caleb joins in with Mike for the news.