Cut speed limits, restrict trucks to one lane: Fox

Trucks should be kept to one lane on freeways and the speed limit should be pegged back by 10km/h, according to trucking magnate Lindsay Fox.

The Linfox founder floated the ideas during a radio interview on
December 13 to promote his campaign to have black boxes installed
in trucks to monitor driver fatigue and speed.

Speaking to 774 ABC Radio, Fox believes the speed limit for trucks
should be 10km/h lower than the limit set for other
motorists.

“They all should be kept in one lane so they follow in convoy the
same as they do in Europe,” he says.

“To do this, you will eliminate a tremendous amount of activity
where people try and drive through separate trucks that are in
three separate lanes on any freeway.

“I believe that would make a huge difference to both the traffic
flows and the aspects of people changing lanes and getting hit by a
truck.”

Fox, who says he has been pushing for the installation of black
boxes for the past 10 years, has met with police agencies in
Victoria and New South Wales to talk about the national accident
rate.

He used the radio interview to take a shot at governments for their
approach to road safety, claiming they “talk about safety but don’t
act on it”.

“The reluctance of the government is the word ‘change’,” he
says.

Black boxes are used in Linfox’s fleet and record driver speed and
work hours.

Fox spruiked black boxes during his appearance on tabloid news program
A Current Affair last month. He says the boxes, which cost $1,500
each, will reduce accidents.

The Australian Logistics Council (ALC) wants black boxes made
mandatory for line-haul operations, but the Australian Trucking
Association (ATA) does not support making them compulsory.

It says businesses can achieve safety gains with or without
telematics.

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