Demystifying the 100km radius rule for truckies

I have often been asked by truck drivers about what’s commonly referred to as the ‘100 k radius’.

Every so often a driver will also tell me they didn’t need to complete their work diary page because they were not outside the radius.

Or it’s the other way around; they were giving me work diary pages because they thought they were outside radius, but they actually weren’t.

Understanding and interpreting fatigue legislation in the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL) isn’t easy. This article is not intended as legal advice, please seek legal advice if needed.

For drivers of fatigue-regulated heavy vehicles (weighing over 12 tonnes, combinations over 12-tonne, or fatigue regulated buses designed for over 12 adults, including the driver), the HVNL fatigue provisions apply.

What exactly is this ‘100 k radius’, and how can you check where that starts and finishes?

The Heavy Vehicle National Law covers what the radius is in the following clause:

289
What is 100km work and 100+km work

(1)
The driver of a fatigue-regulated heavy vehicle is undertaking 100km work if the driver is driving in an area with a radius of 100km or less from the driver’s base.

(2)
The driver of a fatigue-regulated heavy vehicle is undertaking 100+km work if the driver is driving in an area with a radius of more than 100km from the driver’s base.

(3)
To remove any doubt, it is declared that the driver of a fatigue-regulated heavy vehicle to whom subsection (2) applies—

(a)
is taken to be undertaking 100+km work even while the driver is driving in an area within a radius of 100km or less from the driver’s base; and

(b)
if the driver is required to record information in a work diary under this Part, must record particulars of the journey in the driver’s work diary from the beginning of the journey.

This simply means that if you’re outside a 100km radius from your driver base, you need to complete your work diary, and if you’re inside the radius, you don’t.

If you are in Basic Fatigue Management (BFM) or Advanced Fatigue Management (AFM), the radius is irrelevant – you must complete your work diary every time you drive the truck under those hour rules.

It’s also important to remember that a radius is only halfway across a circle, like this:

This all seems fairly simple, and it probably is now that you’ve read what the actual law states, but you’d be surprised how many drivers don’t know this.

Often, they listen to other drivers who seem to know what they’re talking about, or they’ve been told by someone in management who sounds like they know what they’re talking about.

But the downside is that even those with the best intentions can miss an important part of the interpretation. And, let’s face it, who really wants to read legislation in a rest break (actually, that might be considered work, but let’s talk about that in the next article!)

Now that you understand what the 100-plus km radius is (and is not), how can you accurately measure where that magic line is on a map?

The 100-plus km radius is related to the driver’s base, so making sure that you have this written in the front of your work diary is the first important thing to check. Then, you can use one of these apps or websites to help you:

For Apple:

Radius: Distance From Me 

For Android:

Radius Around Me

For the internet:

calcmaps.com/map-radius

If it is the first time using one of these tools, be sure to check that the measurements are in metric (kilometres), not imperial (miles).

Once you put in the address and select a 100km radius, a circle will show up on your screen.

You should be able to zoom in to see the exact point where you need to start keeping your work diary.

If the location you’ve set on the map isn’t quite right, you might be able to use your finger to tap and ‘drag’ the centre point to the right location.

Of course, there are some exemptions for the ‘100 k radius’ rule, and these can be found on the NHVR website, towards the very bottom of this page: nhvr.gov.au/law-policies/notices-and-permit-based-schemes/national-notices.

If you still aren’t sure whether you should complete your work diary page or not, then a good little motto that a professional driver once told me was: “When in doubt, fill it out!”

• Jodie Broadbent is the founder of Know the Road, which provides consulting auditing and training services for road freight supply chain partners.