Telematics as an access condition (to Higher Mass Limits (HML) for example) has been around for some time and is being more and more used. The industry can see attempts from jurisdictions to harmonise the access requirements.

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At Unavin we are exposed to a variety of telematics systems in a variety of states and see issues that the telematics providers create for themselves and their customers. Some of these issues are caused by complications that regulators impose.

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Higher Mass Limits - NSW and Queensland 

In New South Wales and Queensland there has been a shift away from the Intelligent Access Program (IAP) to the Telematics Monitoring Application (TMA) for HML access. In Queensland you can no longer enrol HML vehicles in IAP and all IAP vehicles must be changed over to TMA by June 2024. This means that vehicles with TMA can operate at the same mass (HML) in Queensland and NSW and if they have Road Friendly Suspension the same mass into Victoria.   

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IAP Declarations 

TMA is a different level of monitoring to IAP and is designed to bring ease of use by the operator or driver by reducing the declaration burden. IAP requires declaring:

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• The vehicle configuration; and
• The number of axles in the configuration; and
• The total mass of the vehicle or combination including the mass of the hauling unit, and any attached trailers plus any load onboard the vehicle or combination.

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the information contained must be declared at each of the following times:

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• At the start of the journey; and
• Whenever there is a change in the vehicle configuration; and
• Whenever there is a change in the total mass of the vehicle or combination including the mass of the hauling unit and any attached trailers   plus any load onboard the vehicle or combination; and
• Whenever prompted by the Self Declaration Input Device (SDID), if a SDID is available in the vehicle.

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You can see from a compliance management system perspective that managing declarations under IAP is not simple

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TMA Declarations

The NSW TMA requires a self-declaration of vehicle configuration (but not mass), meaning for example if a trailer was dropped off and the configuration has changed from a B double to a single.

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The declaration requirements for TMA vehicles in QLD is whenever:

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• there is a change to the vehicle mass or configuration; or
• if prompted by the SDID.

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What does this mean for the Telematics Provider?

The telematics provider if they are providing IAP and TMA in NSW and QLD will need to have three different user interfaces to accommodate the different declaration requirements.

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What we see in practice however is that where the telematics provider has provided IAP in the past, they have not changed their screens and prompt the operator / driver to input all of the same information as required under IAP.

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Depending on how the Queensland HML exemption notice is read this could mean that the telematics provider is increasing the compliance requirements for their customers.

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The takeaway

HML with TMA in NSW requires declarations to be made only at change of configuration.

HML with TMA in Queensland requires declarations to be made at change of configuration and change of mass (or if the device prompts the driver).

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Make sure that your telematics provider is working to help improve your compliance with these requirements, not just keeps pushing IAP requirements onto you.

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At Unavin we support the use of telematics systems in transport business and we help our customers to get the most out of their systems. We make the telematics data easier to read and work with. Unavin automates many day to day processes while reducing the “noise” that can come from these systems.

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If you want to get the most out of your telematics systems and automate your compliance management contact Unavin today.

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