Heavy vehicle access changes in Riverland and Outback good for freight productivity, Knapp says
The South Australian Freight Council (SAFC) has commended the South Australian and federal governments for a number of recent heavy vehicle access changes across the state.
The changes, which concern the Riverland and Outback, are “a significant package of Heavy Vehicle access improvements” according to the industry body’s executive officer Evan Knapp, “which will significantly increase freight productivity in the affected regions.”
Under the new guidelines, PBS 3A, double road trains and 35-metre B-Triples will have access from north Adelaide to the Riverland and the Victorian border via the Horrocks Highway, Sturt Highway, Kingston Road, Bookpurnong Road and Stanitzki Road.
Access will be further improved, Knapp says, with further upgrades underway to the Sturt Highway, including bridge widening, strengthening and over-taking lanes, to allow heavy vehicles up to 36.5-metres long to travel the full length of the highway to the border.
For the Outback, the changes allow PBS Level 4A vehicles and triple road trains to travel the Strzelecki, Birdsville and Oodnadatta Tracks.
The vehicles will also be able to operate from Lyndhurst to Orroroo via the Outback Highway, Flinders Ranges Way and RM Williams Way and also travel on all current PBS Level 3A/36.5 metre road train routes in outback South Australia.
There are restrictions however, with longer vehicles required to stick to a maximum speed of 70km/h on unsealed roads, only travel in dry conditions (where roads aren’t wet or holding pooled water), slow to 25km/h when approaching other vehicles to reduce dust and give way to all on-coming traffic at stock grids.
The SAFC also advises that all other road, travel or vehicle conditions specified in the National Class 2 Heavy Vehicle Road Train Authorisation (Notice) 2015, including the SA Schedule, apply.