Heavy vehicle regulator publishes results of nationwide waste and construction safety blitz

The National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) carried out over 4,500 inspections of heavy vehicles during Operation Sapphire, where faulty brakes were identified as the primary safety issue throughout the month-long compliance effort.

According to Paul Salvati, the Chief Operations Officer of NHVR, Operation Sapphire was conducted from May 19 to June 15, targeting critical safety hazards related to heavy vehicles in the construction and demolition waste sectors.

“The aim of this operation was to clean up unsafe practices within two of the nation’s busiest transport sectors – and unfortunately, we have uncovered a number of significant safety risks during this four-week initiative,” Mr Salvati said.

“The primary concern was mechanical non-compliance, with 3,074 defective components identified during the operation and whilst the majority of these were minor issues, 113 were classified as major and mainly for faulty brakes.

“A single truck with failed brakes is all it takes to turn a routine workday into a disaster, and this is 113 times where we could have seen potential tragedy occur on our roads.

“When a fully loaded truck can’t stop effectively – lives are on the line.”

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