Labor urges NSW Government to broaden law aimed at protecting roadside workers

NSW motorists should slow down to 40km/h when passing tow trucks and breakdown assistance vehicles — not just ambulance and police — according to Labor.

Labor wants tow-truck drivers and other roadside workers included in the trial. Picture: Richard Jupe

NSW motorists should slow down when passing tow trucks and breakdown service assistance vehicles — not just ambulances and police — to protect everyone who works on the road.

And Labor says it’s “on the Minister’s head” if the Berejiklian government doesn’t support its “Slow Down, Move Over” legislation in parliament tomorrow, forcing drivers to reduce speed to a maximum of 40km/h when passing all first-incident responders.

From September 1, the government will start a one-year trial of the laws — but they do not include tow-truck drivers, RMS incident vehicles or NRMA roadside assistance vehicles.

Motorists would have to slow down to 40kmh to get around incidents where tow-truck operators were working. Picture: Tony Gough

Opposition roads spokeswoman Jodi McKay slammed the government’s current legislation as a “half-baked” proposal that did not go far enough.

“What we have said is that all first-incident responders must be included in this rule change,” she said.

“The government can support that tomorrow — the Minister can stand up and do the right thing.

“If she doesn’t, I will say this is on the Minister’s head because all first-incident responders must be included in this rule change.”

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NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury said the government’s proposal was “nothing short of a bureaucratic failure”.

“We have this bizarre situation where a law will be introduced on September 1 which goes halfway to dealing with the safety issue we’re trying to address,” he said.

“It will be enforced over a 12-month period complete with fines and demerit points and then the community will be expected to look at how and if that law is then changed.”

A law trial that aims to protect police and ambulance workers working by roads doesn’t go far enough, NSW Labor and the NRMA say.

Mr Khoury said that approach “not only defies best practice, it defies common sense”.

“It’s very simple — we need to adopt the measures that have been adopted in Western Australia. We know it’s worked,” he said.

Peter Frazer, who set up the Safer Australian Roads And Highways (SARAH) Group after his daughter was killed on the Hume Highway in 2012, said all road workers must be protected.

“Six years ago we started the Slow Down Move Over push in NSW,” he said.

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“It was because of two people being killed on the Hume Freeway — my own beautiful daughter Sarah Fraser and a tow-truck driver.

“We want to make certain that our police and emergency services and roadside assistance and tow truck drivers are protected.”

The legislation will be debated in the Legislative Assembly tomorrow.

Originally published as Labor urges NSW Government to broaden law aimed at protecting roadside workers