An immediate review of PBS standards is to take place and there is one to be carried out every seven years by the NHVR. All of the new technologies which have appeared since the scheme began ten years ago are to be considered. There is also a call to look at the ongoing tyre issues for PBS operators.
When looking at the Performance Based Standards scheme it is clear there are detailed changes to be made. Amendments to the scheme are needed just in terms of the time which has elapsed since the initial structure was laid out. Technical changes like the widespread adoption of stability systems along with EBS across many more trucks means some of the stability parameters called for in the standards can be met electronically and not physically by the design of the truck.
It is a no brainer to say PBS vehicles are more productive than comparable conventionally designed vehicles, this is one of those facts which seems to get lost in the other arguments around the whole scheme. Overall, 7,000 vehicles have been approved.
The concept of Performance Based Standards was always regarded as a great idea, since it came into existence it has failed to live up to the grand expectations many in the industry had for it and it has been hard moving PBS forward. Diesel News looks at the latest review of the scheme.
With Performance Based Standards we started off with a fantastic idea. We Australians are very good at great ideas. Then came the part where drilling down to the details created the basic tenets of the scheme and how it would work.
This week’s Global Heavy Vehicle Leaders summit threw up a great illustration of the PBS access schmozzle and its implications for both trucking operators and the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator.
In a conference situation a trucking operator, Paul Cootes, who is frustrated with the road blocks to getting a final sign off from local road managers to allow access for PBS tippers, took the opportunity to get stuck into Sal Petroccitto, NHVR CEO, about the slowness of the access decision-making. Read more
By Diesel Magazine sister publication, Prime Mover magazine.
There has been a distinct shift in sentiment surrounding the high productivity Performance-Based Standards scheme since its introduction 10 years ago, as innovative design becomes the norm. Read more
In the news from Diesel this week we have seen Prixcar Buys Rival, a Milestone for Volvo and a DP World Surcharge. Read more
This week in Diesel News, Routes Opening to PBS, Start Date for New Laws, Fatigue Exemption and RFNSW on Safety and CoR.
PBS port access improves
The New South Wales road network is now open for Performance Based Standards (PBS) Level 2B container operators to apply for access permits to transport containers in and out of Port Botany. Read more
Among the stories doing the rounds on Diesel News this week have been Linfox Awards, Port Rail Shuttle, PBS Trial and Driver Expenses, plus TruckSafe, Port Botany and the Grain Harvest Scheme.