Announcement date
24 Feb 2022
Link to announcement
www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2022L00211/Download
www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2022L00213/Download
Problem being addressed
Road trauma caused by heavy vehicles costs the Australian economy approximately $1.5 billion each year, borne by the general public, businesses and government. Technologies such as Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) and Electronic Stability Control (ESC) can decrease the frequency of such collisions and hence reduce this market failure. Despite the availability of effective safety technologies, the fitment of AEB in heavy vehicles is still low (6% of new heavy vehicles in the Australian market). The low fitment rate and the number and severity of rear-end crashes indicates a need for intervention.
Proposal
The Department has prepared a Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS) to provide both non-regulatory and regulatory options to increase the fitment of AEB systems to new heavy vehicles supplied to the Australian Market. These included means such as the use of market forces, education campaigns, codes of practice, fleet purchasing policies, as well as regulation through the Australian Design Rules (ADRs) the Road Vehicle Standards laws (RVSA).
Assessed RIS outcome
Good practice
Reasons for Outcome
The analysis in the RIS meets the Australian Government’s requirements for regulatory impact analysis. The Department has found the most significant net benefits are to be gained by mandating AEB fitment for new heavy vehicles.