The ACT will lead a national push to get states and territories to adopt tougher rules to get unfit drivers off the road, following a devastating and potentially avoidable crash that killed a four-year-old boy Blake Corney.
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The push has already led to the National Transport Commission launching a review of the way heavy vehicle drivers are screened for sleep apnoea, diabetes and heart conditions.
ACT Transport Minister Chris Steel said he would call on his counterparts to consider rolling out sleep apnoea testing requirements for heavy vehicle drivers in line with rules already in place for train drivers, which mandate a more rigorous medical assessment.
Following the start of an ACM campaign to improve truck safety across the country, in honour of four-year-old Blake, who was killed in an major rear-end collision on the Monaro Highway in 2018, Mr Steel said he would use a regular national meeting of transport ministers to advocate for change.
"I continue to offer my deepest condolences to Blake's family, and will actively communicate with them on the government's response," Mr Steel said.
Blake's parents Andrew Corney and Camille Jago said implementing the recommendations was achievable and would reduce the number of dangerous drivers on the road.
The ACT government is yet to prepare its response to the coronial inquest into Blake's death, but Mr Steel said the territory had already taken action.
Chief Coroner Lorraine Walker recommended requirements for doctors to alert licensing authorities when they suspected their patients had a condition that meant they were not safe to drive.
The driver who crashed and killed Blake, Akis Livas, likely had sleep apnoea for about five years while he was behind the wheel of heavy vehicles. His doctor knew the man was unfit to drive, but there was no requirement to alert authorities.
Mr Steel said people applying for a new heavy vehicle licence in the ACT, or transferring their licence from another state, would now need to undergo a medical examination and provide it to the ACT's licensing authority.
"We have also amended the application form for upgrades to a heavy vehicle licence to include a self-declaration of medical fitness and added a question on sleep disorders to the drivers licence medical health assessment form, as a prompt for health professionals," he said.
BLAKE'S LEGACY CAMPAIGN:
- Why you should care about the big safety problems with our heavy vehicles
- 'I'd much prefer Blake to be here and not to have a legacy'
- 'I don't accept that': the huge cost to our society of road trauma
- About one in seven fail Hume Hwy truck safety checks
- Changes are being urged to how trucks are permitted to operate in urban environments
ACM's campaign, Blake's Legacy, is calling for the national adoption of Ms Walker's recommendations, which include more stringent medical assessments and reporting, along with the quick uptake of modern safety technology.
Mr Steel said the recommendations were being reviewed and the response would be completed in the coming months.
"I have also been advocating through the national Infrastructure and Transport Ministers Meeting for stronger heavy vehicle fitness to drive guidelines, including at the most recent meeting in February," Mr Steel said.
"This has resulted in the National Transport Commission being charged with a review into the screening of heavy vehicle drivers for sleep apnoea, diabetes and developing cardiovascular disease."
Mr Steel said he had specifically asked his counterpart ministers and the commission to consider the Australian Trucking Association's proposal to introduce the same testing requirements for heavy vehicle drivers that already apply to train drivers.
That assessment includes an objective screening matrix that measures a person's body mass index, comorbid hypertension and type-2 diabetes to determine whether a sleep study is needed.
Train drivers must also undergo a cardiac risk assessment and a diabetes screening test.