PBS Tier 1 Notice – what you need to know

On 27 Oct 2021, a national gazette as part of the Heavy Vehicle National Law was published that will allow for some PBS vehicles to operate without a permit, up to their Tier 1 mass limits. This comes after years of pressure from stakeholders, virtually since the inception of PBS, about the difficulties of obtaining road access for PBS vehicles. Advantia has also released a free online calculator which will enable all operators to calculate their eligible mass under this Scheme.

The Notice now means that eligible vehicles, will be allowed to operate immediately, subject to the conditions on the Notice. Some conditions of the Notice apply to all jurisdictions, and some are specific to each jurisdiction. All relevant details have been summarised below.

Requirements for all jurisdictions

• Vehicle must obtain and carry a valid PBS Vehicle Approval (VA).
• The vehicle must comply with the Tier 1 mass limits stipulated on the VA.
• If the vehicle contains any quad axle group, the group(s) must not exceed 21 tonnes.
• The vehicle must not exceed 4.6 metres in overall height.

This Notice does not apply to a PBS vehicle that:

• has been issued an exemption under Section 8 or Section 9 of the General Regulation
• has as part of its Vehicle Approval, an ADR exemption permitting additional axle groups or split axle groups
• has a tri-axle drive group.

Requirements for each jurisdiction for mass and length

Where N/A is stated, the Notice cannot be used.

Where N/A is stated, the Notice cannot be used.

The tables clearly show there are significant opportunities made available to industry for PBS Level 3A vehicles, and above, in NSW and SA with Tier 1 mass options greater than 68.5t and up to 150t available! For the 36.5m AB-Triples featured in this story, this means as soon as the PBS Vehicle Approval is issued and the conditions of access in the Notice are met, the combination can be put to work at up to 110 in NSW and SA! Whilst the productivity gains vary across jurisdictions and combinations, for all PBS combinations eligible to operate under the Notice, a huge regulatory and time burden has been lifted by removing the Permit issuing requirement following issue of the PBS Vehicle Approval to begin operations.

Additional requirements for each jurisdiction

ACT

• Must overlap with HML network
• A-doubles may only use the Level 2B network

NSW

• A-doubles may only use Level 2B, 3A, 3B, and 4A networks
• Vehicles operating at up to GML/CML must enrol in the Road Infrastructure Management (RIM) intelligent transport system
• Vehicles operating above GML/CML and up to HML must enrol in the Intelligent Access Program (IAP) or Telematics Monitoring Application (TMA) intelligent transport systems

SA

• A-doubles may only use Level 3A, 3B, and 4A networks
• Combinations that include a twin-steer hauling unit may only use Level 3A network

TAS

• Must overlap with HML network

VIC

• Allowable vehicle types
  • Prime mover and semi-trailer
  • B-double
  • Rigid truck
  • Truck and pig
  • Truck and tag
  • Truck and dog
• (A-doubles, and any other vehicle type not listed above, currently not allowed)

QLD

• Not currently participating in the Notice

As can be seen, each jurisdiction has adopted this Notice in a different way, so the benefit will be different depending on the operation. Advantia is optimistic about future developments in this space. The NHVR plans to roll out another Notice within the year to further improve access certainty for PBS combinations and further alleviating the strain on operators.

To give operators even greater certainty with their operation, Advantia is proud to announce a free Tier 1 mass limit calculator. If you want to know what you can operate at under this Notice, to try it now!

FREE Tier 1 Mass Calculator

More links about the Notice are below

https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2021G00810

https://www.nhvr.gov.au/C2021G00810