ALRTA CONGRATULATES ATA COUNCILLORS ELECT BEER AND MINERS
The Australian Livestock and Rural Transporters Association (ALRTA) congratulates John Beer and Lynley Miners on their election to the ATA Council.
It was announced this week that John Beer was elected to the ‘owner driver’ position and Mr Lynley Miners was elected to the ‘small fleet’ position.
ALRTA National President Kevin Keenan said that both candidates will bring a wealth of experience to the ATA Council table.
“The ATA Council is the highest-level industry policy development body in the Australian road transport sector. It is vitally important that the ATA Council has excellent representation from the owner driver and small fleet sectors that together make up the majority of road transport operators,” said President Keenan.
“We believe that the best representatives are those who have genuine industry interests at heart, and who have sufficient secretariat support to successfully interface with their electors,”
“John and Lynley are passionate industry advocates who are actively working to make smaller trucking businesses safer, more productive and free from unnecessary regulatory interference”.
“They are real ‘grass-roots’ operators who know what it takes to run their own small trucking business,” said President Keenan.
Owner Driver: John Beer
John Beer is a Livestock and Rural Transport Industry veteran of over 50 years. He started out as a young driver hauling livestock as well as fencing posts, hay and grain. Together with his wife Melva, he operates his own single-truck transport business J & M Beer Carrying Service Pty Ltd from Romsey in central Victoria.
John is a past President of the ALRTA and the Livestock and Rural Transporters Association of Victoria. In 2015, John was the first recipient of the ALRTA McIver Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Livestock and Rural Transport Industry and in 2016 was a finalist in the ATA Awards for Outstanding Contribution to the Australian Trucking Industry.
Small Fleet: Lynley Miners
Lynley Miners is the current President of the NSW based Livestock, Bulk and Rural Carriers Association, a role he has held since 2016.
Lynley has a deep association with the trucking industry as a successful operator and small business owner. 30 years’ experience driving a truck, growing up on a grazing property in the Snowy Mountains and working alongside his siblings in the family livestock transport business which is still in operation today, under Lynley’s direction, are key to Lynley’s success in this industry.
Holding several voluntary positions including member of the ALRTA National Animal Welfare Sub-Committee, President of the Adaminaby Jockey Club and Director of the Adaminaby Bowling Club, Lynley has a proven track record working productively with a range of industry associations, businesses and government bodies. John beer and Lynley Miners will attend their first ATA Council meeting in Canberra on 5 April 2017.
Mr John Beer Mr Lynley Miners
ALRTA EXECUTIVE MEETS
The ALRTA Executive met via teleconference this week. The meeting focussed on operational issues concerning staffing, management of the ALRTA building and moving our national headquarters into the ATA Building by the middle of 2017. The Executive also considered project options for the Heavy Vehicle Safety Initiative 2017-18.
NHVR LIVESTOCK AND INDUSTRY OPERATIONS GROUP
On 21 March 2017, the NHVR Livestock and Rural Industry Operations Group (IOG) met with senior NHVR staff in Brisbane. Membership of the IOG includes all of our State Presidents as well as the CEO of Northern Territory ATA. Discussions focussed on fatigue, access and effluent control.
The ALRTA will work with NHVR to progress a third AFM template and to establish a trial of an improved local access system, based on the WA Harvest Mass Management Scheme and work being developed by LBRCA.
HEAVY VEHICLE SAFETY INITIATIVE 2017-2018
The ALRTA has proposed two new projects for funding under the Heavy Vehicle Safety Initiative 2017-18.
Project 1: Investigating the Feasibility of User-Pay Loading and Unloading Infrastructure
The aim of the project is to demonstrate an innovative new funding mechanism that overcomes market failures and incentivises rapid infrastructure improvements throughout the road transport supply chain.
The project would construct one new Stock Crate Pivoting Access Landing Frame and then operate it on a user-pay basis. Data would be collected concerning safety and productivity improvements and analysis undertaken on the feasibility of duplicating the user-pay model at facilities around Australia.
Project 2: Incentivising Uptake of Eye-Tracking Fatigue Monitoring and Warning Systems
The aim of the project is to encourage road transport operators to trial eye-tracking fatigue monitoring and warning systems.
While the technology has great promise, uptake has been slow. Few transport operators have been willing to trial eye-tracking technology because the systems are thought complex and too expensive.
Transport operators would apply directly to NHVR for up to 50% of the cost of purchasing and installing eye-tracking systems, up to a maximum value of $4,000 per applicant.
The project will create an opportunity for influential transport operators to experience eye-tracking technology, ‘jump starting’ take up within their businesses and potentially more broadly across the industry.
EFFLUENT CONTROL UPDATE
We are ‘all systems go’ for our study tour of New Zealand 26-29 April 2017. The more information we obtain the more obvious it is that the effluent management system across the ditch is light years ahead of over here.
This week ALRTA representatives met with NHVR to discuss opportunities for collecting data to produce maps and decision making tools for selection of ‘in transit’ effluent disposal locations. We have also supplied NTC with detailed information about the operation of the livestock supply chain and how this relates to the chain of responsibility.
On top of that, we have consulted with our state associations and provided NTC with detailed comments on a proposed new livestock section of the National Load Restraint Guide. The new section forges new ground in several ways and it is extremely important to get the balance right. There will be a further round of public consultation on the proposed changes later in the year.
ALRTA IS RECRUITING
The ALRTA is advertising for a part-time National Marketing Officer to join our team in Canberra. The role is a multi-skilled position supporting the marketing and sponsorship functions of the National Secretariat. Examples of day-to-day tasks include:
- Promotion of the ALRTA via website, newsletters, mail outs and social media.
- Negotiating new sponsorship partnerships with trade suppliers.
- Maintaining existing sponsor relationships including delivery of contractual commitments.
- Liaising with affiliated state associations on day-to-day sponsorship arrangements.
- Organisation and promotion of events including joint National-State conferences.
- Maintenance of a national membership database.
- Assisting with media and communications strategy.
Other skills and experience in managing an industry association are also desirable including: administration, accounting, member services, information technology, research or policy development.
The position will suit a highly organised individual with excellent oral and written communication skills plus great attention to detail. An enthusiastic and positive disposition is vital.
Applications close at 5pm, Friday, 7 April 2017. To find out more about the specifics of the role please call the ALRTA Executive Director, Mathew Munro, on 0421 082 489 or mathew@alrta.org.au.
The formal job ad can be found here.
ALRTA FAREWELLS TANYA BALLAT
The ALRTA farewells our current marketing and sponsorship guru, Tanya Ballat, who re-joined our team in September 2016 for a six-month stint. In that time, Tanya has tightened up our sponsorship arrangements, greatly improved our social media presence and helped to deliver a fantastic joint National-State Conference in Toowoomba Queensland.
Tanya will be on deck for another two weeks. ALRTA thanks Tanya for her service over several years now and we wish her all the best into the future.
LBRCA ANNUAL CONFERENCE: ONE WEEK AWAY
The LBRCA annual conference where we will celebrate 30 years as an independent industry association is less than one week away.
According to the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) the heavens will open to rays of sunshine and comfortable temperatures for the two-day event – This is a vast difference to what the local community in Dubbo has experienced over the past week. Severe thunderstorms, heavy rainfall, large hailstones, damaging winds and road closures due to local flooding.
“We are really encouraged by the interest from industry, government and our strong membership”, says LBRCA President Lynley Miners.
Over 250 delegates attending the 2017 LBRCA annual conference at Dubbo will be treated to an impressive line-up of speakers in a series of focused interactive sessions including:
- Melinda Pavey MP: NSW Minister for Roads, Maritime and Freight
- Michael Kniepp: Dubbo Regional Council
- Graham Sinclair: Temora Shire Council
- Tony Donoghue: Coolamon Shire Council
- Bill Estevez: NHVR
- Ben Maguire: ATA
- Mathew Munro: ALRTA
- Frederic Horst: Transport for NSW
- Trish Grunert: RMS NSW
- Roger Fletcher: Infrastructure NSW/Fletchers International
- Kieran Gardner: Graincorp
- Tony Williams: SafeWork NSW
- Owen Driscoll: NTI
- Scott Merriman: BPW Transpec
- Paul Weiss: Transtech
A number of other key advisers will take part in the conference in addition to LBRCA executive members including Graeme Hoare, Mick McCulloch, Paul Pulver, Jock Carter, Wade Lewis and Scott McDonald.
“All conference sessions are being facilitated by the very experieced Brett Peterkin with topics including freight strategy and funding, effluent, chain of responsibility, low volume access, safety and new initiatives in our industry hot on the agenda”, says LBRCA President Lynley Miners.
Not yet registered for the annual conference? Complete a Registration Form and return to the Secretariat by Wednesday 29th March 2017.