HVIA will be holding a Telematics Working Group meeting in July, which has been prompted by concerns raised recently by members.
Telematics systems now support a number of areas where industry input could be better captured, and communicated to government and regulators, including:
Regulatory Telematics
These are currently targeted at High Productivity Freight Vehicles (HPFVs) utilising schemes such as Telematics Monitoring Application (TMA) via Transport Certification Australia (TCA).
One novel idea already suggested by members is to legislate a regulatory telematics ‘status light’ which can be viewed by regulators via a smart phone app.
If a truck and trailer was pulled over by the side of the road, this app would allow a regulator to see each VIN or registration number and a status that the units were all transmitting live mass and other GPS data.
This would perhaps strike a fair compromise between data privacy, but still ensuring all operators are meeting their TMA obligations to transmit data.
Fatigue Management Opportunities
These applications utilise technologies such as cameras, body monitoring and/or Electronic Work Diaries (EWDs) to manage fatigue-related issues.
Up to 30 per cent of the 210 heavy vehicle fatalities recorded in Australia in 2025 were attributed to fatigue. We recognise that regulators are actively working in this area; however, current fatigue-based driving hour controls do not appear to address the core issue—drivers operating with severe fatigue and reduced capability.
Cyber Security + Data Protection
Future regulations will mandate Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and component suppliers with Electronic Control Units (ECU’s) to meet higher standards. There is a specific working group allocated to this alone and as such this topic won’t be covered in the telematics meeting in July.
The latest HVIA member submission on this topic can be found here. Please contact r.michaud@hvia.asn.au for any concerns on this topic.
We would encourage HVIA members who wish to provide feedback on any of the above topics to attend the Telematics Working Group meeting which will be held over Teams on Wednesday, July 15 at 11:00am.
If you are a HVIA member and have not received an invite to this meeting but would like to attend please email r.michaud@hvia.asn.au.