Issue Date:  -  Friday, 29 July 2005

Port Hedland and Broome roadblocks catch lawbreakers

A joint roadblock exercise in the North-West led by WorkSafe and involving ten government agencies has found that some transport companies are still not complying with the State’s fatigue safety laws.

WorkSafe WA Commissioner Nina Lyhne said today that the roadblock exercise last week had proved to be an excellent example of a number of government agencies working together to achieve their goals.

“No less than ten agencies participated in the roadblock campaign to check on compliance with many different sets of legislation,” Ms Lyhne said.

WorkSafe, WA Police and Main Roads took the lead in roadblocks at Broome and Port Hedland, with WorkSafe checking the drivers of heavy vehicles for compliance with fatigue safety laws, the Police conducting breath testing and licence checks and Main Roads checking mass and length permits.

“In Broome, these three agencies were joined by officers from the Federal Police, Customs, Immigration, Fisheries, Roadwise, CALM and Centrelink who each addressed the concerns of their respective agencies. 

“WorkSafe’s inspectors reported that there had been an improvement in compliance with the fatigue regulations since their last campaign in February.

However, they were still required to issue five Prohibition Notices and will follow up on other issues with 42 different transport operators, so there is still work to be done in this area.

Prohibition Notices are issued when an inspector sees a serious and imminent danger to employees, and the activity must then cease until the hazard no longer exists.

A comprehensive Code of Practice for the management of fatigue has been in operation in WA since 1998.

Regulations governing fatigue management for commercial vehicle drivers have been in place since July 2003, when an updated Code of Practice was also released.

“The regulations are there to ensure that commercial vehicle drivers get enough rest so they can drive safely and avoid endangering their lives and the lives of others on the roads,” Ms Lyhne said

“Last week’s campaign showed some people are still breaching the laws, but we see these roadblocks as a successful way to enforce the fatigue regulations and intend to continue conducting them.

It is essential that we get the message through that the human body has limitations and adequate rest and sleep is needed to safely undertake long-distance driving.”

Further information on fatigue and copies of the Code of Practice can be obtained by telephoning WorkSafe on 9327 8777 or on the website at www.safeyline.wa.gov.au.

Media contact:  Caroline De Vaney 9327 8744 or 0408 927563 (media enquiries only).