NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi has begun screening for potential driver work-time breaches in real time at commercial vehicle safety centres, with the new assessments coming into force today.
The change means trucks flagged for possible breaches of work-time rules will be directed into a commercial vehicle safety centre, where New Zealand Police can check driver logbooks and carry out compliance inspections.
NZTA says the screening process uses data from vehicles passing through one or more safety centres within a set period to assess whether a driver may have breached fatigue management rules.
The assessments screen for drivers who may have worked more than 5.5 hours without taking a 30-minute break, exceeded 13 hours of work without a 10-hour break, failed to start a 10-hour break in time to complete it within a 24-hour work period, or worked more than 70 hours without taking a 24-hour break.
Vehicles that are known to have driver changeovers, or that operate under an approved Alternative Fatigue Management System, are being whitelisted to avoid being unnecessarily directed into a safety centre. NZTA says whitelisted vehicles may still be stopped for other compliance concerns.
The agency says the data has already been used to inform investigations and audits, but adding work-time assessments to automatic, real-time screening allows enforcement action to be taken sooner.
The work-time screening will be introduced at all commercial vehicle safety centres as they become operational, giving regulators a broader picture of potential work-time breaches as vehicles travel across the country.
