The legal framework for regulating road transport safety: chains of responsibility, compliance and enforcement

Abstract

This paper describes, analyses and compares two regulatory regimes which cover the road transport industry – occupational health and safety (OHS) legislation, and the National Road Transport Commission’s (NRTC) proposed model road transport legislation. The central questions examined in the paper are (i) what obligations do these laws impose, and upon whom (that is, what has to be complied with, and by whom); and (ii) what enforcement tools or mechanisms are provided to enforce the provisions. I begin briefly by describing what I will call the “traditional” approaches taken by Australian governments to OHS and road transport regulation, and then explain and compare current OHS legislation and enforcement tools with existing Dangerous Goods and Driving Hours regulations, and the proposed NRTC model road transport legislation, which includes enforcement mechanisms. Show more