New South Wales Consolidated Regulations

HEAVY VEHICLE (MASS, DIMENSION AND LOADING) NATIONAL REGULATION (NSW) - SCHEDULE 7

SCHEDULE 7 – Loading requirements and loading performance standards

section 38

1 Loading

(1) A load on a heavy vehicle must not be placed in a way that makes the vehicle unstable or unsafe.

(2) A load on a heavy vehicle must be secured so it is unlikely to fall or be dislodged from the vehicle.

(3) An appropriate method must be used to restrain the load on a heavy vehicle.

2 Loading performance standards

(1) A load on a heavy vehicle must be restrained by a load restraint system that--

(a) prevents the load from moving in relation to the heavy vehicle (other than movement allowed under subsection (2)) in the circumstances mentioned in subsection (3); and

(b) at a minimum, is capable of withstanding the forces that would result in the circumstances mentioned in subsection (3).

(2) A load may move in relation to the heavy vehicle if--

(a) the vehicle's stability and weight distribution are not adversely affected by the movement; and

(b) the load does not become dislodged from the vehicle.

Examples of load movement that may be permitted under subsection (2)--:

• a load contained within the sides or enclosure of the heavy vehicle that is restrained from moving horizontally may be able to move vertically

• a load of very light objects, or a loose bulk load, that is contained within the sides or enclosure of the heavy vehicle may be able to move horizontally and vertically

• a bulk liquid load contained within the sides or enclosure of the heavy vehicle

(3) For subsection (1), the circumstances are that the loaded vehicle is subjected to--

(a) any of the following, separately--

(i) 0.8g deceleration in a forward direction;

(ii) 0.5g deceleration in a rearward direction;

(iii) 0.5g acceleration in a lateral direction; and

(b) if friction or limited vertical displacement is relied on to comply with paragraph (a)--0.2g acceleration in a vertical direction relative to the load.

(4) However, the heavy vehicle's load restraint system is taken to comply with subsection (1) for a journey if--

(a) a mass or dimension exemption is in force for the vehicle for the journey; and

(b) the vehicle complies with the mass or dimension exemption; and

(c) an engineer has given a certificate--

(i) describing the load restraint system; and

(ii) certifying that the load restraint system is suitable to safely restrain the load, taking into consideration the nature of the load and the conditions reasonably expected to be experienced during the journey; and

(d) the driver of the vehicle keeps a copy of the engineer's certificate in the driver's possession during the journey.

Note : Mass or dimension exemptions are dealt with in Division 2 and Division 3 of Part 4.5 of the Law.

(5) In this section--

"chartered engineer" means an individual who has been awarded chartered status by Engineers Australia.

"engineer" means a chartered engineer or a registered professional engineer.

"g" means gravitational acceleration and is equal to 9.81m/s 2.

"registered professional engineer" means an individual who is registered as a professional engineer by the Association of Professional Engineers Australia.