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The Government will continue to prioritise progress on supply-side Heavy Vehicle Road Reform while testing demand-side alternative options to replace heavy vehicle registration fees and fuel-based charges through the National Heavy Vehicle Charging Pilot (National Pilot).

No decisions have been made to change the way heavy vehicle charges are currently collected and current arrangements will remain in place while the National Pilot is underway. Decisions to implement a new way of collecting heavy vehicle charges may be part of a potential future stage of reform and will be informed by the real-life experience of industry following a full evaluation of the National Pilot.

Heavy vehicle operators who volunteer to participate in the National Pilot will report road use data and receive a mock invoice comparing existing PAYGO charges against alternative charging scenarios.

The National Pilot will be delivered in two stages between 2019 and 2021:

1. Small Scale On-Road Trial – commenced mid-July 2019
   
   Up to 11 operators are contributing 111 heavy vehicles to participate in this six month trial. This stage will test whether existing telematics technology already installed in the vehicles can measure mass and distance effectively.

   The following organisations are participating in the Small Scale On-Road Trial:

   • Bridgestone Australia Ltd
   • Buslines Group Pty Ltd
   • Conroy Removals Pty Ltd
   • Coolibah Quarries
   • De Bruyn's Transport
   • EROAD (telematics provider)
   • John West Logistics Pty Ltd
   • J R Bulk Liquid Transport (Blu Logistics)
   • Nuline Charter Pty Ltd
   • Simon National Carriers
   • D & S Smith Haulage Pty Ltd
   • Toll Group
   • Transport Analytica (service provider)
   • Volvo Buses (telematics provider)
   • Volvo Trucks (telematics provider)
2. Large Scale On-Road Trial – Proposed commencement in early 2020
   
   Up to 100 businesses and 1,000 heavy vehicles are expected to be involved in this second trial which will progress for 12 months. The trial will test a wider range of data collection methods, in addition to telematics technology to encourage broader participation across all sectors of the heavy vehicle industry. Over the coming months, additional businesses from a variety of sectors will be invited to participate.
   
   If you are interested in participating in the Large-Scale On-Road Trial, contact the National Pilot team on 1800 065 113 Monday to Friday between 9am – 5pm AEST or email National.Pilot@infrastructure.gov.au

Participation in both the Small and Large Scale On-Road Trials of the National Pilot is voluntary and no money will be collected for road charges as part of the National Pilot.

• National Heavy Vehicle Charging Pilot—Fact Sheet PDF: 171 KB  and Frequently Asked Questions PDF: 419 KB 

Developing the Foundation for the National Pilot

Significant planning took place during 2018-2019, to develop the foundation PDF: 127 KB  for the on-road trials. The Department, all levels of governments, industry and expert consultants collaborated to model different charge options, work through options for charge collection, define data requirements and collect baseline information to develop, and support the evaluation of the National Pilot.

Business Case Program for Location Specific Trials

During 2018-19, the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Cities and Regional Development also ran a separate Business Case Program for Location Specific Trials

Contact the National Pilot team