New trial to increase truck travel time by an estimated one minute
Another new vehicle speed trial has kicked off on Melbourne’s Monash Freeway.
The 18-month trial involves reducing the speed of trucks to 90km/h along a 10-kilometre section of the freeway – between Huntingdale Road and Jacksons Road.
The reduced truck speed trial now covers a total stretch of 20 kilometres along the freeway, with a similar trial already underway between High Street in Ashburton and Glenferrie Road in Toorak.
Part of the Victorian government’s Dynamic Speed Trial, the purpose of the trial is to determine the effectiveness of reducing the speed limit for trucks to improve road safety.
Roads and roads safety minister Luke Donnellan says while reducing speed will increase the travel time, the move can in fact help reduce the number of crashes involving trucks and cars.
Reducing the speed of trucks will increase the distance between trucks and other vehicles, which, in turn, will help reduce tailgating and allow cars to navigate more safely around trucks and reduce the likelihood of rear-end and side-swipe crashes.
“Around 80 per cent of all crashes on the Monash are either rear end crashes or side swipe crashes – so we’re looking at innovative ways to make Victorian roads safer,” Donnellan says.
“Reducing the speed of trucks on the Monash will only increase their travel time by one minute, but make it safer and boost the reliability of the freeway.”
A supporter of vehicle speed trials, Victorian Transport Association (VTA) CEO Peter Anderson reiterates that such initiatives can ultimately help improve productivity and safety across the sector.
“The Victorian Transport Association has a long history of working with governments and statutory authorities on initiatives that produce safety benefits for motorists and productivity gains for freight operators,” Anderson says.
“We support the Monash Speed Trial because we believe speed reductions here have the potential to create productivity and safety improvements for operators, which is good for business.”
The second leg of this experiment involves banning trucks from the right hand lane in order to determine the effectiveness of the two measures together.
However, the second phase will commence based on the success of the current trial.
The Monash Freeway is also subject to another speed trial that allows drivers to increase speed from 80km/h to 100km/h based on live traffic conditions.