Road Safety Amendment (Automated Vehicles) Bill 2017

Mr J. BULL — I am pleased to have the opportunity to speak on the Road Safety Amendment (Automated Vehicles) Bill 2017. This bill comes from a government that knows how to get things done. The Andrews Labor government promised not to waste a single day in office. We on this side of the house know and understand this great gift of government and the importance of working hard each and every day for this great state.

Automated vehicles of course require a well-maintained, well-serviced network of roads. and when it comes to the roads that these vehicles will be driving on, and have in the very early stages already started driving on, we know that we are upgrading a significant network of roads right across the state, whether that be the CityLink-Tulla widening project, which is hugely important to my electorate, the M80 ring-road, the West Gate tunnel project, the north–east link or the western roads package — the list goes on. When we talk about these vehicles of the future we certainly know that there will be 50 less level crossings to deal with, thanks to the Andrews Labor government.

The world we know is moving at a rapid pace. Other members have made contributions on this fact and we know that every day technology becomes smarter and more advanced.

In our quest to develop these new technologies, though, we must always endeavour to maintain safety and provide the infrastructure and the framework around these technologies to create a safer community. If we are to take, for example, the evolution of medicines — and I was reflecting, in some of the research for this bill, on the advancing technologies that we have seen right through the medical profession — we know that millions of people are benefiting from things like pacemakers, things like vaccines, advances like defibrillator units and surgical procedures which 50 years ago could not have been dreamed of.

I was also reflecting on my first car. I purchased it for —

Mr Pearson — Was it a Torana?

Mr J. BULL — It was a Torana, member for Essendon. I may have mentioned it before. I think you also may have —

Ms Ward interjected.

Mr J. BULL — It was a Sunbird, member for Eltham. It was a 1975–76 Sunbird. I think I picked it up for around $1500 in Sunbury. It had a big red engine, no power steering and no cruise control. It had a choke, so you had to pull the choke out to start it in winter, no reverse sensors and no rear camera. It did not have heated seats, but in summer I tell you what, they were hot — as hot as the member for Essendon. There was no keyless entry. If you think about the incredible advances, that was just 30 to 40 years ago. If we think about some of the vehicles that —

Ms Ward — Thirty to 40 years ago! Did you get you licence when you were two?

Mr J. BULL — Here we go. I will ignore the interjections from my own side, believe it or not. If we think about 30 to 40 years ago, the cars that existed then through to the cars we are lucky enough to have today — not to mention crumple zones and a whole range of safety technologies that assist us — we certainly know there are great options and great opportunity in this space. However, we know that due to fatigue, driver error and of course alcohol and drugs we lose far too many people on our roads. If automated vehicles do have the potential to save lives, to help the environment through smarter technologies and to provide a safer way of getting to work and getting home, then why would we not look at developing them? That is exactly what the Andrews Labor government is doing, not to mention, as the minister mentioned before, those huge economic benefits that will be provided through the rollout of these vehicles.

Setting the context, we know that in November 2016 the Transport and Infrastructure Council supported the testing and development of automated driving technology on Victorian roads. We know that in December 2016, so not long after, the Minister for Roads and Road Safety, who is in the chamber at the moment, launched a future directions paper setting out how Victoria will continue to support the development of autonomous vehicles. This included supporting trials of automated vehicles, with any level of automation, including where a driver is not present in the vehicle.

It is certainly true to say that this is an ever-changing and rapidly developing industry. It is an industry for which we need legislation and regulation that provides a framework for safe on-road testing and the development of automated driving technology which enables this technology to be developed for local traffic conditions. The bill will position Victoria as a leader in automated driving technology, which will help create investment opportunities and generate more jobs — which the minister did also mention in his contribution. It will also enable the impacts of automated driving technology on Victoria’s legal framework and transport network to be assessed.

There are a number of details of this bill that members have mentioned. I will in the time that I have got remaining briefly mention those. We know that the bill amends the Road Safety Act 1986 to establish a performance-based permit scheme which authorises the testing and development of automated driving technology on public roads. The bill requires applicants who wish to conduct testing in the development of an automated driving system (ADS) — which has already been mentioned — on Victorian roads to make an application to VicRoads for approval. It enables the responsible minister to issue guidelines or policies setting out the minimum criteria to be met to obtain a permit for such trials and enables VicRoads to require the trial applicant to demonstrate that the ADS test driver trial or vehicle has met the requirements in the relevant guidelines.

It is certainly fair to say that this will be a changing dynamic for VicRoads to deal with. This legislation sets out a number of those requirements, which will assist VicRoads in allowing these trials to occur, and a review process to help us understand what areas we need to improve, what are the opportunities in this space and what are the ways that we can improve going forward. We know that the legislation will enable the existing offences under the Road Safety Act 1986, and the regulations made under it, and the Crimes Act 1958 to apply. It will also enable the police to prosecute trial permit-holders who do not comply with the conditions of the trial permit and will enable VicRoads to cancel, suspend or vary any such trial permit.

In here, late yesterday evening, the member for Caulfield spoke about the need for us to get moving with this. I do find it somewhat startling that the member for Caulfield, who did not get a whole heap done in four years in government, is lecturing those on this side of the house on getting things done. What we need is high-tech, safe and modern advances in technology — those that have the capacity to change the way in which we live and change the way in which we work. This is an important first step in automated vehicle rollout, and I look forward to seeing these vehicles evolve, possibly with the Sunbird. Maybe the Sunbird could come back and make a cameo appearance, and the member for Essendon and I could go down the Tulla together. I would like to commend the bill to the house.