Regulation of the road freight industry : evidence on the effectiveness of operator licensing.

The paper will examine approaches to the regulation of the road freight sector used in Australia and some other developed countries and discuss available evidence on the effectiveness of the operator licensing schemes that generally apply. The paper has been prepared against a background which has seen a number of important changes in the way the road freight industry in Australia is regulated, since the creation of the National Road Transport Commission in 1992. In addition to the achievement of greater clarity and consistency in traditional prescriptive regulation and on-road enforcement, innovative regulatory approaches introduced in Australia over the last decade have included accreditation-based compliance, the implementation of "chain of responsibility" provisions through "conventional" road transport law and enhanced conventional compliance, through a broader range of sanctions. This approach contrasts with most other developed economies, where a major element of the regulation of road freight is the maintenance of extensive operator licensing. (Author/publisher) For the covering entry of this conference, please see ITRD abstract no. E209537. This paper may also be accessed by Internet users at: http://www.btre.gov.au/docs/atrf_02/program.html