Austroads has released its key findings from the recent survey surrounding the management of overseas licensed heavy vehicle drivers off the back of responses provided by over 1900 individuals.
The survey, which closed on July 12, 2024 will help inform potential areas for policy change around the nation in conjunction with state and territory associations.
Key findings of the survey included:
- 85 per cent of respondents said that a person should not be able to drive a heavy vehicle while on an overseas licence. In contrast, only 25 per cent said that a person should not be able to drive a car while on an overseas licence.
- 17 per cent of people said that it is acceptable to drive a rigid but not a combination heavy vehicle for personal (therefore not work-related) purposes. This compares to only 10 per cent who said that it was acceptable to drive a rigid but not combination vehicle for work-related purposes.
- 36 per cent of people said that a person transferring from an overseas licence should first hold an Australian car licence for a period before being able to obtain any heavy vehicle licence.
- 50 per cent of people said a person who passed all the Australian learning and assessment requirements should be able to transfer from an overseas licence and obtain either a rigid or heavy combination licence.
A key area of concern raised in the survey were the application of road safety culture and driving etiquette, with Australia cited as placing a high value on safety through the support of road rules and laws, which may not be universally shared by drivers used to driving on roads of other countries.
The knowledge of Australian road rules, conditions and roads, especially long-distance rural haulage and fatigue laws, is also perceived as a key safety issue by survey respondents.
Quality of training and driver skill development in overseas countries and English language skills were also seen as potential major safety concerns.
The next step in the production of policy surrounding overseas licensed driver policy is for Austroads to liaise with Australia’s states and territories, with opinions supported by these bodies to be further investigated and substantively assessed, with legislative change potentially required to implement most policy changes.
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