The South Australian Government has announced fast tracked heavy freight reforms increasing the allowable truck mass for certain configurations and expand higher mass access across the state.
The main change is an increase in maximum truck mass by up to 13%, to a maximum of 77 tonnes. This is being enabled through revised axle configurations and expanded route access on South Australian roads.
The reforms are being implemented via updates to NHVR National Network Maps, with approximately 100 additional routes opened to qualifying higher mass combinations.
The reforms are intended to reduce fuel use, lower freight costs, and maintain supply chain resilience during ongoing high fuel prices and international disruption.
For fleets already operating under Higher Mass Limits (HML) or Concessional Mass Limits (CML), there is no increase to existing axle group limits or gross mass limits beyond current HML or CML tables.
Bridge formula limits and road manager override powers are unchanged.
This reform does not create a new mass tier above HML, and fleets already at HML or CML do not automatically gain additional payload purely through higher allowable mass.
However, the primary benefit for accredited fleets is expanded access and flexibility, not higher mass.
Specifically, around 100 new approved truck routes are being added in South Australia.
In addition, existing HML and CML vehicles may now legally operate at their current mass settings on roads that previously required permits and detours.
For HML/CML fleets, this does not raise total mass, but it allows the same legal mass to be distributed across more axles.
Premier Malinauskas stated the reforms can deliver up to 18% lower fuel use per tonne of freight, primarily by enabling fewer trips for the same freight task.
In practical terms, the reform unlocks productivity already embedded in existing accreditation, rather than redefining mass limits themselves.
ACAPMA
