2BOverview

TRANSPORTStepping Into The Future

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Truck Stop

The Hume Highway/Freeway is Australia’s most important and

notable interstate highway, which runs for 880 kilometres inland

between Sydney in New South Wales, and Melbourne in Victoria.

For many decades now, the Hume Highway has been the main inland

link between the two largest cities in the Australian.

Importance of …The HUME

It is part of the AusLink National Network – a major Australian

initiative designed to improve planning, decision-making and funding

for Australia’s national land transport infrastructure. This is a vital

link for Road freight to transport goods to and from Australia’s two

largest cities.

The AusLink network and its connections to the broader transport

network are the passenger and freight backbone of Australia and are

the focus of the Australian Government’s planning and funding

responsibility. The smooth and efficient operation of this network is

a crucial element to integrate all transport modes and support

economic development.

A key component of the AusLink process is the development of a

strategy for each corridor within the network. These corridor

strategies take a broad view of the operation of the transport

corridor; and look at both freight and passenger movement, plus

making highways safer.

Over the past twenty years, the Federal Government has outlaid

billions of dollars to ensure the highway is of a suitable standard for

freight and traffic. Of the 880 km. length of the highway, the

majority of the corridor is dual carriageway or ‘Freeway’ standard in

NSW, with mostly two lanes in either direction.

[In total, $1,398 million has been budgeted for the NSW section for completion by 2012, to raise the highway to ‘Freeway’ status]

The Sydney-Melbourne corridor is vital to the Australian economy.

And the Hume Highway provides an essential road link that services

freight and passenger flows between Sydney, Melbourne and

Canberra – which also serves regional centres such as Albury-

Wodonga, plus Wagga Wagga and interstate through traffic to and

from South Australia and Queensland.

Stepping Into The Future Page 3

The route in Victoria is categorised as ‘Freeway’ by VicRoads.

However, some of the route is of similar design to the duplicated

sections in New South Wales.

Speed Limits:

Like most roads in Australia, the Hume Highway is speed-limited. As

such, The majority of the highway from Sydney to Melbourne is 100

or 110 km/hr. All of the 280-km rural section of the highway in

Victoria is dual carriageway.

Function of the Hume:

To transport the bulk of Australia’s freight in a fast, cost-effective

and safe manner between the two most-densely populated cities.

To provide a safe, efficient means for motorists travelling Australia’s

most populated route.

Road Duplication:

The objectives of the Hume Highway duplication are to strengthen

the major transport link connecting Australia’s two major cities and

to improve safety and travel conditions.

At present, it is not feasible for a truck driver to pull off the highway

to a smaller service town service town which has been bypassed by

the freeway.


With the modernisation of the highway the infrastructure to support

heavy trucks means now that the service people have to attend the

vehicle - as in a lot of cases. However, the freeway restrictions

prevent larger vehicles driving into workshops for repairs.

Benefits of the Hume:

The Hume Highway being duplicated to dual carriageway along its

entire length has enabled a greater array of large vehicles. The

semi-trailer configuration on the highway now is 20% ‘Single’, and

80% ‘B-Double’, allowing an increase in productivity and savings to

the transport industry.

The completion of the duplication and all the bypasses, will open the

way for the ‘B-Triples’ to be used between Melbourne and Sydney,

which will enhance productivity and reduce costs. The current

configuration of the semi-trailers is now probably 15% ‘Singles’, 50%

‘B-Doubles’ and 35% ‘B-Triples’.

The benefit of the duplication is that it will allow drivers to travel

between Melbourne and Sydney much more safely, and with reduced

travel times.

Even so, long-haul drivers are still required to make their compulsory

stops – with Tarcutta being the mid-point along the way.


Map of Hume Freeway and Service areas by Major Towns

TARCUTTA

Just south of the junction of both the Snowy Mountains Highway and

the Sturt Highway, Tarcutta is the ‘half-way point’ on the Hume

Highway between Sydney and Melbourne.

Due to its position of being located almost exactly half way between

Australia’s two largest cities, it has been a popular stopover and

change-over point for truck drivers making their way between the

two cities.


With the improvements to the Hume Highway (which cuts travelling

time from Sydney to Melbourne to less than a day), the town’s

importance to the average motorist has diminished. However, to the

long distance semi-trailer driver, Tarcutta’s location is crucial to

streamlining movement of freight between the two cities.

For decades, Tarcutta has been a popular stopover point for truck

drivers making their way between the two east coast cities of

Melbourne and Sydney.

It has also tragically seen more than its share of accidents,

with many drivers killed on the Hume Highway.

A plaque on the town’s established monument is dedicated to ‘the

memory of truck drivers who have been accidentally killed while

performing their duties in the transport industry’. The monument is a

frightening reminder of how many drivers have lost their lives on the

Hume Highway.

As Tarcutta is the midway point on the main highway route between

Melbourne and Sydney, it is a common changeover point for drivers

and trucks conveying loads between the two cities.

At present, truck drivers arriving both south from Sydney and north

from Melbourne unhitch their trailers – for the Melbourne driver to

take the re-hitched load from Sydney south on the last leg to

Melbourne, and the Sydney driver to take the load which has come

north from Melbourne, on the last leg north to Sydney.


This is currently carried out in the middle of the Tarcutta township

and at other locations close to Tarcutta (ie: on the side of the road).

It is this practice that has resulted in an acknowledged need for the

facility at both the local, state and federal government levels in terms

of road safety and driver fatigue.

In 2008 the Local, State and Federal governments provided

additional parking for 40 trucks in the middle of the Tarcutta

Township. But this is a short-term solution to a growing need.

Road transport has gone from being unregulated to a sophisticated

part of the national economy, which has brought with it a range of

mandatory regulations covering management and Occupational

Health and Safety. Over a period of time, due to the high number of

fatalities, the authorities have introduced maximum driving standards

to all drivers and companies.

Driver Rest Requirements and the Law:

The current practices for interstate drivers: Melbourne and Sydney

based companies have purchased trucks with sleeper facilities. This

allows drivers to take their rest periods to comply with the driving

times required by statutory authority.

See attachment: Road Traffic Authority. (Sept 2008 Pub 08.30.08)

“New Regulations to Manage Driver Fatigue, Standard Hours”


Many companies have at their depots, driver sleeper rooms where a

driver can get a proper rest in his ten-hour compulsory break. The

new facility at Tarcutta will provide driver sleeping quarters where

drivers can meet their legal rest requirements.

This will allow companies when ordering new trucks (running

between Melbourne and Sydney) to be purchased without sleeper

requirements. This will have a dollar saving of about $15,000 per

vehicle for future Truck-fleet purchases – depending upon the

manufacture

Overall Benefit:

On completion of the freeway and the bypasses, the location of the

Truck Stop at Tarcutta will mean that drivers can leave either Sydney

or Melbourne and be in Tarcutta within five hours of their shift. And

technically, can have three-four hours rest at Tarcutta before their

return to Sydney or Melbourne.

These state-of-the-art Facilities will ensure that drivers will get

undisturbed rest breaks.




NEW TARCUTTA SITE & FACILITIES


Fuel Facility: The fuel facilities will supply a range of:

Diesel

Bio-diesel

Petrol fuels

LP Gas

LNG Gas (natural gas that has been converted temporarily into

liquid form for ease of storage and transport, and is

predominantly methane.)

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In conjunction with BOC Gases and vehicle manufacturers, this site

will become a major outlet in the future for re-fuelling LNG fuelled

trucks. BOC has indicated that they will consider establishing a batch

plant in Wagga Wagga, NSW for LNG. This would also service the

local companies, in pursuant of a greener footprint

(Reference Drawings DA101, DA102 and DA103)

Tyre Shop:

This facility will provide a range of services to companies that run the

interstate vehicles. In Melbourne and Sydney, there is always a

problem in arranging tyre checks or replacement tyres within the

normal working day due to trucks not being in the relevant depots

inside normal work hours. The tyre shop will allow companies to

program tyre changes, repairs or replacements within the journey of

the vehicle.

This facility will offer companies a changeover of their wheel during

the driver’s rest period or the swap of wheels that may have received

punctures on their trip.


Taking into account the current vehicle traffic, there will be in excess

of 10,250,000 wheels per month go past the site. Tarcutta will be

the only site on the highway that will be offering this type of service.

Statistically, if there was one sixteenth (1/16) of one per cent (1%)

required puncture repairs, this would equate to in excess of two

hundred (200) tyre repairs per day. Allowing for twenty (20)

minutes for each repair requires 8.5 tyre fitters to be employed per

day.

This does not take into account, tyre replacement or general

servicing of tyres.

(Reference Drawings DA501 and DA502)

Workshop:

This will provide staff to carry out road-service repairs for minor jobs.

Where a vehicle requires major repairs, it will be towed to the

workshop.

The workshop will offer the following services:

Acting as an outlet for Enzed Hydraulics.

Provision of their range of servicing for hydraulic hoses/power

steering hoses (as well as airline repairs and replacements).

Provision of a range of services under the Shell banner:

o ‘A’ and ‘B’ inspections which will include approved oil

o changes using Shell vacuum methods and oil analysis.

o Provision of brake calibration between the truck and

trailers.


To support the transport companies’ vehicles travelling the Hume

Highway, the Workshop will hold the following spare parts:

Alternators

Starter motors

Belts

Range of air valves

Turbo’s

Lights and fittings

Air bags

Batteries

Examples of the type of support the workshop offers:

Assistance when the vehicle has flat batteries, workshop

provides a jump start.

If a driver forgets to disconnect the trailer light plugs, the

Workshop will repair.

Because of the benefits of having the workshop facility at the

changeover location, this will enable work to be carried out

during the driver’s rest period.

(Reference Drawings DA501 and DA502)

Truck Wash:

The truck wash facility has been designed to wash four (4) ‘B’ Triple

combinations, and pre-wash four (4) ‘B’ Triple, concurrently under

the one roof. With each wash taking 30 minutes each, companies

will be able to book a vehicle in so that a wash is carried out in the

drivers’ rest times.

(Reference Drawing DA601 & DA602)


Call Centre:As part of the Australian Roadside Services facility, the Call centre

will provide:

A national presence to the Transport Industry.

An Australia-wide breakdown service.

A national database of vehicle history, makes and models.

Acting as the Management Centre for the Tarcutta Truck Stop

… Transport firms will be able to book in their vehicles for

service, tyre replacements, and up-dates on vehicles’ arrival

and departure times.

(Reference Drawing DA201, DA202 and DA203)

First Aid:The Centre will have its own First Aid facilities to accommodate all

the workers’ needs. This will include future potential of having a

nurse on site at given hours.

(Reference Drawing DA201, DA202, and DA203)

Drivers’ Accommodation:

The drivers’ accommodation block comprises:

32 single rooms

5 double rooms with own shower (these rooms are designed for

drivers who are accompanied by their partners).

Common shower and toilet facilities.

Common coffee and tea facilities at four (4) locations.

(Reference Drawing DA401 and DA402)


Shops:Provision has been made for four individual shops:

Retail outlets.

Take-away food outlets.

Shops, which will specialise in servicing and supporting local

interests (artists’ work, souvenirs, etc).

(Reference Drawings DA201, DA202, and DA203)

Display Area and Large Shop:

Below the Call Centre, there is facility for a large retail outlet that

could provide a range of spare parts and accessories for both the

truck industry and general public.

The floor’s display area can be used for truck manufacturers to

display their latest vehicle.


Restaurant:

The Restaurant will cater for:

Sit-down and take-away meals for drivers.

Sit-down and take-away meals for the general public.

Breakfast facilities for drivers staying overnight.

Breakfast facilities for the general public staying overnight.

A viewing area – upper level provides viewing of truck arrivals

and departures.



Drivers’ Amenities Blocks:

There will be two (2) amenities blocks, each comprising six (6)

individual toilet and shower rooms, located in the truck parking area.

(Reference Drawing DA701, DA702, DA801 and DA802)

Caravan Park: Provision for fifteen (15) caravan sites for short and term and/

or overnight travellers.

Amenities block will contain Male and Female toilets, showers

and laundry facilities.


2BOverview

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