| Agency overview | |
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| Formed | 15 January 1992 [1] |
| Preceding agency |
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| Jurisdiction | Australian Government |
| Agency executive |
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| Website | www |
The National Transport Commission (NTC), previously known as the National Road Transport Commission, is an Australian statutory body created to develop regulatory and operational reform for road, rail and intermodal transport.
Under Australia's federal system, transport policy and regulatory responsibilities span across Commonwealth, state and territory, and local governments. Differences between these regulatory systems mean that national transport operators can face inconsistent regulations, creating unnecessary inefficiency and cost.
The NTC is focused on reforms which improve the productivity, safety and environmental outcomes of the Australian transport system . Its work includes delivering a National Rail Action Plan to make rail more interoperable, developing an end-to-end regulatory framework for automated vehicles, improving the National Heavy Vehicle law, maintaining the Australian Dangerous Goods Code and maintaining national model laws, including the Australian Road Rules. The NTC also plays a role in implementation planning to ensure reform outcomes are relevant and effective. Recommendations and advice are presented to Australia's transport ministers through the Infrastructure and Transport Ministers' Meeting - for approval by majority vote.
Based in Melbourne, the NTC has six commissioners including a Chief Executive.CEO Michael Hopkins was appointed in 2023.
Australia is a federation that relies on the Constitution to divide power between the Commonwealth (federal) government and the six original States (see federalism in Australia). As the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act [2] did not specify Federal control over road transport, it effectively relinquished full jurisdiction of that area to the States.
In 1952, truck drivers were frustrated by the levies on interstate road transport, which were designed to protect the state-owned railways. They placed a copy of the constitution in a barrow and pushed it by hand between Melbourne and Sydney. This journey took 11 days, 2 days quicker than a parcel mailed at the same time and carried by rail.
Their purpose was to challenge the validity of the New South Wales State Transport Act against "Section 92 of the Constitution which provides that trade, commerce and intercourse between the States shall be absolutely free". [3]
Known as the Hughes & Vale case, they eventually led a successful constitutional challenge in the High Court which opened-up the development of interstate road transport and Australia in general. [4]
Hughes & Vale was a significant turning point for the transport industry in Australia. It was the catalyst for the growth of interstate road transport, which in turn highlighted the limitations of having different road transport regulations between states.
In 1979, 3000 truck drivers staged blockages of major highways at nearly 40 locations in Queensland, Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia to protest against ton-mile taxes and low freight rates. [5] Known as the Razorback Blockade (for a blockage of the Hume Highway at the top of Razorback Mountain, near Picton, New South Wales) truck drivers involved claimed higher charges made them financially worse off. [6] Their efforts were not in vain and ton-mile tax was abolished shortly after the protests. [7]
Apart from charging woes, there was also a demand for a list of reforms such as the establishment of advisory bodies to solve problems in the industry, equal pay for all drivers, licensing to control the number of trucks in the industry and uniform weight and speed limits to be implemented. [8]
Both the Hughes & Vale case and the Razorback blockade were contributing factors to the recommendation in the last report of the Inter-State Commission (ISC) proposing significant changes be made for all vehicle charges, and that a National Commission be created. [9]
At the time, microeconomic reform was a central policy of the Labor Commonwealth government. The cooperation of all six States and two Territories was needed as many of its high priority agendas such as transport, and electricity generation and distribution were State governed. [10]
The assembly of leaders at the Special Premiers Conference in 1991, including the notable support of Premier Nick Greiner of New South Wales, a non-Labor Government, gave bipartisan support to the reform process. [11]
In 1991, the National Road Transport Commission was formally established by an inter-governmental agreement.
Under its enabling legislation, the NTC's role and performance must be reviewed every six years by independent steering committee.
The 2002 review of the National Road Transport Commission Act recommended that the NRTC's role be expanded to include rail and intermodal transport to encourage a more holistic approach to land transport reforms.
Rail transport regulations in Australia are also governed by States and Territories and, like road transport, culminated in a number of inconsistencies across the nation. [12] It was noted rail transport system in Australia was ready for a more formal process of reform parallel to that of road transport and that operators and track owners on the national road network needed consistent processes for safety regulation. [13] High priority issues targeted for rail regulatory reform included the establishment of a framework to improve and strengthen the co-regulatory system including application of mutual recognition, and the development of a national policy on key safety issues such as fatigue, testing for drugs and alcohol and medical fitness of safety-critical rail workers.
In 2004, the National Road Transport Commission was formally renamed the National Transport Commission to accommodate the inclusion of rail and intermodal transport into its existing mandate. Consequently, the existing National Road Transport Commission Act 1991 was replaced by the National Transport Commission Act 2003.
Also included in the 2002 review of the NRTC was a recommendation for the creation of a non-statutory body called the National Transport Advisory Council (NTAC). [14] The proposed function of NTAC was to conduct strategic analyses and give advice to the ATC on strategic priorities for national infrastructure investment, options for pricing of access to road, rail and other transport infrastructure and directions and priorities for modal integration relevant to national freight issues.
The long term intention was for functions of the NTAC to be transferred through to the National Transport Commission after three years if agreed upon unanimously by the ATC. [15] Despite the recommendation, NTAC was never implemented.
A steering committee was appointed in January 2009 to conduct a review and delivered its final report to the Chair of the Australian Transport Council (ATC, the predecessor to SCOTI) in August 2009. The Coalition of Australian Governments (COAG) and the ATC endorsed the recommendations in December 2009.
Key recommendations which were endorsed included:[ citation needed ]
The commission's early projects led to major gains in many areas of road transport, particularly in the heavy vehicle sector. Widely praised early reforms delivered included charges, registration, dangerous goods, licensing, vehicle standards and mass and access. The delivery of the Australian Road Rules in 1999 represented a major reform initiative touching both the light and heavy vehicle sectors.
Some of the reform projects currently being undertaken or commencing in 2023 include:
- National Rail Action Plan and rail reform to improve interoperability, harmonisation of standards and components and develop a skilled workforce for the future - Heavy vehicle national law review to improve safety and productivity - Review of the Australian Road Rules - Release of new medical standard for rail safety workers - Preparations for the safe introduction of autonomous vehicles onto Australian roads - Heavy vehicle charges determination and development of a forward-looking cost base - Reporting on carbon dioxide emissions from Australian light vehicles - Encouraging women into transport careers through the National Women in Transport initiative.
2023- New appointment, Michael Hopkins CEO
Dangerous goods (DG), are substances that when transported are a risk to health, safety, property or the environment. Certain dangerous goods that pose risks even when not being transported are known as hazardous materials. An example for dangerous goods is hazardous waste which is waste that has substantial or potential threats to public health or the environment.
The Gerogery level crossing accident was a vehicle-train crash that occurred at Bells Road on the Olympic Highway, where it crossed the Main Southern railway in Gerogery, New South Wales, Australia. The crash occurred on 27 January 2001 at 16:07 and resulted in five fatalities in a car that was struck by a Melbourne-bound XPT service travelling at 160 kmh. Although the train derailed in the impact, there were no deaths to the train passengers or crew. The crash site extended for more than 1 km south of the level crossing, with vehicle, train and rail track debris found throughout. There had been a continuing series of crashes at the level crossing prior to the fatal crash, resulting in the local road and rail authorities installing perceptual countermeasures such as warning signs and enhanced road markings in attempts to provide more information to drivers of the crossing location and characteristics and to influence vehicle approach speeds.
Transport in Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia, consists of several interlinking modes. Melbourne is a hub for intercity, intracity and regional travel. Road-based transport accounts for most trips across many parts of the city, facilitated by Australia's largest freeway network. Public transport, including the world's largest tram network, trains and buses, also forms a key part of the transport system. Other dominant modes include walking, cycling and commercial-passenger vehicle services such as taxis.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) is Australia's national transport safety investigator. The ATSB is the federal government body responsible for investigating transport-related accidents and incidents within Australia. It covers air, sea and rail travel. The ATSB is an independent Commonwealth Government statutory agency, governed by a Commission and is separate from transport regulators, policy makers and service providers.
Road transport is an element of the Australian transport network, and contributes to the Australian economy. Australia relies heavily on road transport due to Australia's large area and low population density in considerable parts of the country.
John Randall Sharp is an Australian former politician who served as a National Party member of the Australian House of Representatives representing the Division of Gilmore from 1984 to 1993; and the Division of Hume from 1993 to 1998. Both Divisions are in New South Wales.
The Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government in the Government of Australia is a position currently held by Catherine King following the swearing in of the full Albanese ministry on 1 June 2022.
The Transport Integration Act 2010 is a law enacted by the Parliament of the State of Victoria, Australia. The Act is the prime transport statute in Victoria, having replaced major parts of the Transport Act 1983, which was renamed as the Transport Act 1983.
The Transport Legislation Review is a policy and legislation review project conducted by the Department of Transport in the State of Victoria, Australia between 2004 and late 2010. The aim of the project was review of transport policy and laws and generation of new policy and legislation as a platform for better transport across the State.
The Department of Transport (DOT) was the government agency responsible for the coordination, integration and regulation of the transport system in the State of Victoria, Australia. The department generated planning, policy, and legislation for transport in Victoria. As a result, the department drove the integration of Victoria's transport land and water transport systems and the delivery of public transport, road and port services and associated activities across the State. The department's stated mission was "Building a safer, fairer and greener transport system for all Victorians to create a more prosperous and connected community."
The Rail Safety Act 2006 is a law enacted by the Parliament of the State of Victoria, Australia, and is the prime statute regulating the safety of rail operations in Victoria. The Act was developed as part of the Transport Legislation Review conducted by the Department of Transport between 2004 and 2010 and is aimed at preventing deaths and injuries arising from rail operations.
The Director of Public Transport was the head of the Public Transport Division (PTD) of the Victorian Department of Transport. PTD was the government agency responsible for promoting, providing, coordinating and regulating public transport in the state of Victoria, Australia between August 1999 and June 2013. The Director of Public Transport was created as a statutory office supported by staff of the Department of Transport.
The Chief Investigator, Transport Safety is the independent Government agency responsible for investigation of safety-related trends and incidents in the rail, bus and marine industries in the State of Victoria, Australia.
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The Australian Dangerous Goods Code is promulgated by The Advisory Committee on Transport of Dangerous Goods. The most current version is the seventh edition, 7.7 released in 2020 and mandated from October 1, 2021. Read in conjunction with accompanying national and State laws, the document creates a significant level of standardisation for the transportation of dangerous goods in Australia.
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The Transport Act 1983 was the main statute establishing government transport organisations and regulating land transport activities in the State of Victoria, Australia for 27 years from mid-1983 to mid-2010. The act was used as the vehicle for changes to transport organisational arrangements and transport regulation activities pursued by Victorian governments over that period.
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