In a number of forums recently, officers associated with the COAG Road Reform Project (CRRP) have implied that fuel consumption does not reflect road wear in heavy vehicles, and this is a failing of the ATA’s fuel based charges models. Our modelling shows this is not correct.

The ATA understands the CRRP review is about reform that promotes efficiency in the whole of the economy. This is why having signals to encourage efficiency in how the freight task is undertaken is important. The CRRP paper’s discussion of “assessment of strategic fit” places as the primary goal the alignment of prices to actual costs imposed on the road network so that incentives exist to “optimise vehicle configuration choices in order to minimise costs and thus lead to more efficient use of the road network”. Therefore, the ATA is pleased to demonstrate that fuel based charges send the right signals about road wear and vehicle configuration optimisation.