Lesley & Erich on the road again.

[Vik351]

Lesley I do very much doubt it is/was classed as a truck. If that IS the case I would fight it.
If you are talking about the freeway entrance going down from Stirling etc then I'd reckon the fine may be for speeding ON THAT DAY.
There are 'special' speed limit signs that can be activated & changed at the drop of a hat.
Fog
Accident
Roadworks
Vehicle breakdown etc etc
These 'live' signs can be altered from 15kph to 80kph etc or anywhere in between.
I'd ask for clarification before I paid it but I'm guessing the incident was before they went to the West? Probably already paid?

Note: The legislation is very specific about the laws only applying to vehicles classed as a truck or bus. They do not apply where the Gross Combination Mass (GCM) of a vehicle towing another vehicle such as a trailer, horse float or caravan may exceeds 4.5 tonnes in total. While such vehicle combinations are not captured by the new laws, it is important to remember that drivers should always drive according to the prevailing road conditions to ensure they can descend the SE Freeway safely.
[ENDQUOTE]

https://dpti.sa.gov.au/infrastructure/r ... r_overview

I live next to the freeway toll gate just about and I never go home in the Luxobarge via the freeway from T1's, if it looks like a truck,you will get pinged for not dooin 60 kph down the hill, Tea Tree Gully keeps ya awake too is the way to go...

Make a useless rd for heavy trucks , then ping the public for usin it...!!! only in SA...

vik...

[Dot]

So if rigs over the 4.5T are classed as a "truck and heavy vehicle" does that allow the use of truck / heavy vehicle rest areas? Now it is getting confusing.

[BernieQ2]

The numscull that thought that up... didn't think it through.. tipicull .
Bernie .

[Vik351]

So if rigs over the 4.5T are classed as a "truck and heavy vehicle" does that allow the use of truck / heavy vehicle rest areas? Now it is getting confusing.

NO... so they can ping ya for that too...

Dont ask me about tolls... MH, Caraven = B Double charge not bad eh...???

vik...

[Newcastle George]

From Vic's link:

"Definition of a Truck or Bus
A Truck is a motor vehicle with a Gross Vehicles Mass (GVM) overof more than 4.5 tonnes, regardless of the body type of the vehicle (excluding tractors, trams and buses).
The GVM is not the Tare Mass. It is the GVM recorded and relied on for registration purposes. Refer to your registration papers for the GVM of your vehicle, check via the EzyReg app or call Service SA on 13 10 84.

A Bus is a motor vehicle that seats more than 12 adults including the driver."

"Examples of vehicles that may be subject to the new laws based on GVM or seating capacity include:

Emergency service vehicles
Animal transport vehicles
School and tour buses
Cranes
Drilling rigs
Sweepers
Tip trucks
Tow trucks
Large utilities
Vans and motor homes
Chauffeur vehicles
Taxi buses"

George

[T1 Terry]

So if rigs over the 4.5T are classed as a "truck and heavy vehicle" does that allow the use of truck / heavy vehicle rest areas? Now it is getting confusing.

NO... so they can ping ya for that too...

Dont ask me about tolls... MH, Caraven = B Double charge not bad eh...???

vik...

Did you really think a govt dept would make a rule/law that has a fine attached that didn't benefit the govt revenue? The current SA govt issue fines that should never have been issued in the hope people will just pay it. If you challenge it then a prosecutor will look at the chances of winning and the potential cost if they loose and which ever looks like the least financial risk is the path they will take. Honesty and a fair go don't even get a look in, revenue raising is the goal.

T1 Terry

[Vik351]

A WA bloke got pinged for goin down the hill in one of those fancy Yank "Pickups" $K+...

Had to put it on TV to get off... Terrence is 1/2 right, they will fight it even if there is a slight chance of a win...

vik...

[T1 Terry]

A WA bloke got pinged for goin down the hill in one of those fancy Yank "Pickups" $K+...

Had to put it on TV to get off... Terrence is 1/2 right, they will fight it even if there is a slight chance of a win...

vik...

If you are going to go all out on the $$ side you need to make it a test case before the high court, otherwise they will back out at the last minute before the court hearing so you can't ask the magistrate to award costs.

[Swisslulu]

A SA friend share this from the “Common Sense Legislation for the South Eastern Freeway in Adelaide” FaceBook page. I sent it to our friends.

BREAKING NEWS! IT'S SUCH A SHAME THAT IT TAKES SO MUCH TIME, EFFORT AND ANXIETY FOR COMMON SENSE TO APPLY. 1 DOWN, 100'S TO GO!!

LAWYER SUCCESSFULLY CHALLENGE
‘HEAVY VEHICLES’ SPEEDING FINE
ON SOUTH EASTERN FREEWAY

John Lewis from Lindbloms Lawyer has successfully challenged the Government legislation regarding speeding fines for ‘heavy vehicles’ on the South Eastern Freeway on behalf of a client who was driving a ‘minibus’.

On 1 May 2019, the South Australian Government introduced new legislation restricting the speed of ‘heavy vehicles’ traveling down the South Eastern Freeway.

The new law limits ‘heavy vehicles’ to a maximum speed of 60kmph between Crafers to the intersection of Portrush, Cross and Glen Osmond Roads.

Mr Lewis stated that:

“whist this legislation was well intentioned, it has had significant unintended consequences for drivers of small minibuses, vans and larger utility vehicles including the Ford F350 and Dodge RAMs”.

“Therefore under the law if you exceed the 60kmph speed limit driving these vehicles, you may be treated the same as if you were driving a B Double truck”.

“This law unfairly targets normal law abiding people who are not driving heavy trucks or large buses, which is unacceptable.”

In September 2019, Mr Lewis’ client hired a 12 seat minibus and was driving west on the South Eastern Freeway. He was travelling well under the prescribed speed limit of 90kmh.

In January 2020 his client received an expiation notice of $1,096, 6 demerit points and loss of license for 6 months.

Mr Lewis said:

“This was a devastating outcome for my client, who required his license for his employment”.
“Although the Government has since amended the law that a 6 month licence disqualification does not apply for a first offence, the new law is not retrospective, and therefore the penalty remained in place for my client and anyone else who allegedly offended under the old law".

After being instructed by his client to challenge the penalties, Mr Lewis wrote to various agencies including the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure and SAPOL.

After several weeks of liaison and communication on behalf of his client, SAPOL advised Mr Lewis’ client on 19 March that they were withdrawing the expiation notice, demerit points and license disqualification.

“This is a win for the little guys, and common sense has finally prevailed”.

“This legislation was poorly drafted and I have no doubt that it has impacted on many other people who do not drive heavy vehicles, and who are just going about their business”.

“I congratulate SAPOL on their attitude and being prepared to overturn the expiation notice.”

Stephan Knoll, Steven Marshall, Frank Pangallo MLC, Peter Malinauskas, Tom Koutsantonis MP, South Australia Police

[T1 Terry]

You have seen a win as far as the SAPOL withdrawing the notice, but if it's anything like NSW, it doesn't mean SA's equivalent of the RTA (or whatever combination of letters they use now) will necessarily follow through and remove the points or reinstate the licence, nor does I mean that the revenue collection mob will let go of the potential money grab. The system in NSW is designed in a way that once the actual offence enters the system, it can not be nullified but rather the only method of ending the saga is for the penalty to be paid and the suspension served, even though there was now no official offence.
Sound crazy, you bet it is, but many truck drivers have lost their job, licence, insurance no claim bonus and in some circumstances, no hope of future employment. A passenger bus driver with a "Drive Dangerous" offence in the system can not get a public passenger bus licence again for X number of yrs, the fact the charge was thrown out of court meant nothing, the offence still appears on the RTA records and all bus, trucking and insurance companies use that to make their decisions.

T1 Terry