Transport Certification Australia (TCA) has highlighted the availability of an updated Australian bridge standard, leading the way for enhanced access to drive productivity.
The Australian Standard for bridge assessment (AS 5100.7:2017) – which was developed in conjunction with Austroads – reportedly incorporates reduced traffic load factors for vehicles monitored with TCA-certified telematics apps – namely, the Intelligent Access Program (IAP) and On-Board Mass (OBM). AS 5100.7:2017 is the national standard for assessing bridge infrastructure, forming part of the national Bridge Design series.
“AS 5100.7:2017 highlights how the availability of reliable and accurate vehicle location, mass and configuration information – provided through certified telematics apps – can enable improved productivity outcomes,” said TCA Acting Chief Executive Officer, Gavin Hill.
“The availability of certified telematics apps allows road managers to make access decisions which can increase mass loadings of heavy vehicle combinations.
“Fundamentally, AS 5100.7:2017 provides the ability to ‘re-engineer’ the use of bridges, by relying on trusted sources of telematics information.
“The updated standard also notes that load factors can be further reduced, provided a vehicle speed limit is specified.
“With this in mind, TCA recently introduced a Low Speed Guidance app – as part of the
National Telematics Framework – which measures vehicle speed using GPS at low speeds.
The new app allows road managers to obtain reports on heavy vehicle speed when crossing speed-restricted bridges.
“The ability to optimise the use of bridge infrastructure using certified telematics apps in this way can unlock heavy vehicle access arrangements, which would not otherwise be possible,” he said.
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