Driving heavy vehicles safely

All parties in the chain of responsibility must take some action to comply with the speed laws.

Some steps that must be taken include:

• ensuring work practices do not contribute to or cause on-road breaches
• undertaking training to make sure employees understand their obligations within the chain of responsibility
• conducting audits or spot-checks of equipment and systems for compliance, for example, monitoring on-board speed devices
• reviewing contracts and commercial arrangements to make sure they do not directly or indirectly encourage breaches of speed law
• putting contingency plans in place regarding operational issues within speed Laws, such as loading and unloading or managing traffic delays.

Safe-T-Cam is a network of cameras that monitors the movement of heavy vehicles on South Australian roads.

The cameras are on major arterial roads and record, verify and store information about heavy vehicles, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The cameras help to detect drivers who:

• drive a heavy vehicle that is unregistered and uninsured.fail to take required rest breaks specified by driving hours regulations
• travel between any two or more Safe-T-Cam sites in less than the allowable time under speed and fatigue laws
• attempt to avoid detection at camera sites
• drive a heavy vehicle that is unregistered and uninsured.

You are required to retain all driver records for three years and produce them when requested by an authorised officer. Failure to produce driver and operator records when requested is an offence.

Penalties will also apply for offences originating in New South Wales and detected in South Australia.

Safe-T-Cam camera locations

Travel times calculator

Use the travel time online calculator to determine the minimum time allowed for travel between Safe-T-Cam sites.

Contact

Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure
Safe-T-Cam
PO Box 125 Rundle Mall
ADELAIDE  SA  500 

Phone - 1300 660 279, Monday to Friday 8.30 am to 5.00 pm
Fax - 8260 0435
Email - DPTI.SafeTCam@sa.gov.au

Unless they have a work diary exemption (either through a notice or permit), all drivers of fatigue regulated heavy vehicles who drive 100km or more from their home base or operate under basic fatigue management (BFM) or advanced fatigue management (AFM) must carry and complete a work diary to record their work and rest times

A fatigue-regulated heavy vehicle is a vehicle with a gross vehicle mass (GVM) of more than 12 tonnes. This includes a vehicle combination having a GVM of more than 12 tonnes. A bus of more than 4.5 tonnes GVM and fitted to carry more than 12 adults, including the driver is also a fatigue-regulated heavy vehicle.

A work diary is evidence that a driver's work and rest hours are compliant with the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL) and that their fatigue is being managed. Drivers are not allowed to drive or work more than the maximum work hours or rest less than the minimum rest hours set out under the HVNL.

Further information about the national driver work diary requirements and work/rest requirements is available from the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) website.

Where to get a diary

The National Driver Work Diary can be purchased at all Service SA Customer Service Centres, some rural police stations and several Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure Regional Offices at Crystal Brook and Port Augusta. The National Driver Work Diary fee is located at Other motoring fees

The NHVR website contains a complete list of all locations to purchase a work diary, both within South Australia and interstate.

Replacing a diary

If your work diary is lost, stolen or destroyed (or it is filled up before you can get a new one) you must notify the NHVR or the local road transport authority in the state or territory you are working in - eg the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure in South Australia - within two business days.

Drivers working in areas without access to a work diary sales outlet have a maximum of seven business days to replace their work diary.

Until issued with a new work diary, drivers must continue to record all work and rest time using a supplementary record sheet and carry it like a work diary. A supplementary record can only be used up to a maximum of seven business days - by the end of this period drivers must be using a work diary