The National Road Transport Association (NatRoad) has expressed deep disappointment with the findings of the 2023 NSW Independent Toll Review and says the concerns of the transport industry have been ignored in the report.
Chief among NatRoad’s concern is the proposal to increase the heavy vehicle toll multiplier from three to 3.5 times higher than light vehicle tolls – a move evidence suggests is baseless and unnecessary.
The report’s executive summary stated any changes to Sydney’s heavy vehicle toll regulations would be made in tandem with the Freight Policy Reform Program, however NatRoad CEO Warren Clark says the heavy vehicle sector’s concerns have fallen on deaf ears.
“The trucking industry has not been listened to,” NatRoad CEO Warren Clark says.
“This report is a setback for trucking businesses, which operate on extremely tight margins. This suggested increase in the toll multiplier to 3.5 is unjustified and mocks the essential role of trucking in our economy and supply chain.
“Our industry simply cannot absorb these unfair and unnecessary costs, nor can we simply pass them on to customers.”
“In addition, the recommendation to apply a toll to Sydney Harbour crossings for trucks using the new higher multiplier further exacerbates the financial burden on truck operators.
“These moves are in stark contrast to the fairer tolling system the report claims to call for.”
NatRoad has made the following points in regard to the increase in the toll multiplier.
- The report overlooks substantial evidence that the current truck toll multiplier is unsupported by data.
- A 1.5 times multiplier is sufficient to recover the cost of heavy vehicle road wear while still generating additional revenue. NatRoad’s recommended two times multiplier is more than reasonable and equitable. Ramping it to 3.5 times is simply using the trucking sector as a cash cow.
- Over 90 per cent of trucking operators are small and family businesses with profit margins averaging just two percent. Increasing the multiplier to 3.5 times places an undue burden on these operators, who already struggle with limited ability to pay and pass on costs. In a time when the sector is struggling to find drivers, this action could put the supply chain into crisis.
- The 2022 NSW parliamentary inquiry into road tolling found it already inequitable to charge trucks three times as much as cars, especially where trucks are compelled to use toll roads.
NatRoad did voice its support for various aspects of the report’s findings alongside its call for the toll multiplier to be reassessed.
It has advocated for a trial of peak/off-peak tolls for heavy vehicles to encourage more efficient use of toll roads and the need for greater consultation and transparency with a variety of stakeholders.
Upon the release of the report NSW Roads Minister John Graham said Sydney’s current toll trajectory is unsustainable.
“The result is now a combined burden of $195 billion to be paid out to 2060 and a city that is more divided,” Graham said.
“Sydney is a place in which people make choices about where they work based on the need to avoid paying tolls. The problem grows each year.
“Toll reform is critical for Sydney and this is a once in a generation chance to address this issue.”
Sydney is currently the most heavily tolled city in the world.
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