Roads Minister Duncan Gay has announced another six trucks have been deregistered or stripped of their visiting rights to NSW for attempting to enter Sydney tunnels overheight.
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Minister Gay said the deregistered trucks included three interstate and three NSW registered heavy vehicles.
“We make no apologies for taking trucks off the road, and it will keep happening as long as drivers keep ignoring restricted areas in Sydney’s road network,” Minister Gay said.
“The NSW government has introduced the toughest penalties in the country for overheight and overlength trucks, they hit the driver, the truck and the operator.
“Drivers receive fines of more than $2200 and six demerit points. Trucks can be deregistered for 3 months and operators can be pursued for interupting the network and damage to infrastructure with one case costing the company more than $1million.
“These latest incidents include a B-Double from Queensland and a truck registered in Western Australia which both attempted to enter the Sydney Harbour Tunnel southbound in separate incidents in October.
“In November we also had a Victorian truck and trailer that caused traffic delays after trying to enter the Airport Tunnel.
“These interstate trucks blocked these tunnels for a combined period of about 45 minutes. During a peak hour these incidents have a serious flow-on effect for motorists and businesses.
“On top of that is the NSW truck and dog trailer I detected while I was travelling in the Eastern Distributor northbound in October which damaged tunnel infrastructure including the sprinkler system and caused delays for more than two hours. It has also been deregistered for three months.
“In the Eastern Distributor southbound in October last year was a NSW registered truck with a Victorian registered tipper which was overheight and hit with a combination of deregistration and suspension of visiting rights.
“Finally we had a NSW semi-trailer in the Sydney Harbour Tunnel southbound in the same month that attracted the deregistration penalty.
“These penalties hit rogue operators at their bottom line and we will keep doing it until they steer clear of Sydney’s tunnels.
“Deregistration warning signs continue to be rolled out across Sydney with warning and detour signs now being installed in the lead-up to the M5 Eastbefore Bexley Road exit.
“This gives drivers the opportunity to turn off the route without causing disruptions to other road users.
“NSW is the through state for freight on the eastern seaboard and we see so many interstate registered trucks in incidents on our roads.
We are aso installing signs on our borders with the other states to make our tough regulations and penalties clear to visitors.
“NSW is leading the way in truck safety. Motorists can report any concern with a heavy vehicle to our heavy vehicle hotline 1300 STOP HV or 1300 786 748,” Minister Gay said.
