South Australia Class 1 Road Grader Mass and Dimension Exemption Notice 2025 (No.1)

HEAVY VEHICLE NATIONAL LAW

South Australia Class 1 Road Grader Mass and Dimension Exemption Notice 2025 (No.1)

1.       Purpose

This notice grants exemptions from certain mass and dimension requirements under the Heavy Vehicle (Mass, Dimension and Loading) National Regulation (MDL Regulation), for class 1 heavy vehicles that are road graders.

1.        Authorising provision

1.       This notice is made under the following provision of the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL):

1.             section 117 – Regulator’s power to exempt category of class 1 or 3 heavy vehicles from compliance with mass or dimension requirement.

1.       Title

This notice may be cited as the South Australia Class 1 Road Grader Mass and Dimension Exemption Notice 2025 (No.1).

1.       Commencement

This notice commences on 23 November 2025.

5. Expiry

This notice expires on 22 November 2030.

1.       Definitions

1.       Unless otherwise stated, words and expressions used in this notice have the same meanings as those in the HVNL and its regulations.

1.       In this notice:

Guide means the South Australia Class 1 Road Grader Mass and Dimension Exemption Operator’s Guide as amended from time to time.

Pastoral unincorporated area has the same meaning as specified in the Guide.

road grader means a heavy vehicle that is designed for road use and used to perform road construction and road maintenance tasks.

road grader combination means a road grader towing one or more trailers.

roller plant trailer means a special purpose trailer that is a non-powered vehicle fitted with pneumatic tyres, towed by a road grader and is constructed to aid in road construction and/or maintenance tasks.

1.        Application

1.       This notice applies to a class 1 heavy vehicle that meets all the requirements in this section.

1.       This notice applies to a class 1 heavy vehicle that is a:

1.       road grader; or
2.       road grader combination consisting of a motor grader towing:

1.             one or two trailers; or
2.             a roller plant trailer, and no other trailer; or
3.             in a pastoral unincorporated area, any combination of towed trailers up to 53.5m in length.

1.       This notice applies to a road grader mentioned in 2) that has a rear tandem axle group fitted with single tyres.

1.       This notice applies in South Australia.

1.       A heavy vehicle to which this section applies and that complies with the conditions of this notice is an eligible vehicle.

1.       Exemption- Mass Requirements (Axle groups and towed mass)

1.       An eligible vehicle is exempt from the following mass requirements of Schedule 1 of the MDL Regulation:

1.       section 2 (4A) – Masses for towed mass
2.       section 4 – Mass limits for a single axle group.

1.       The exemption in section 1, b) only applies to the extent of the conditional mass limit in section 9.

1.       Condition – Mass (Tandem Axle Group)

The rear tandem axle of an eligible vehicle that is a road grader must not exceed 16t.

1.    Exemption- Dimension Requirements (Length and Width)

1.       An eligible vehicle is exempt from the following dimension requirements of Schedule 6 of the MDL Regulation:

1.       section 3 – Length (combination or single vehicle)
2.       section 7 – Width

1.       An exemption in 1) applies to an eligible vehicle only to the extent that specific conditional dimension limits are provided in section 11 of this notice.

1.    Conditions – Dimensions (Length and width)

1.       An eligible vehicle that is a road grader combination must not exceed 53.5m in length.

1.       An eligible vehicle that is a road grader must not exceed 2.8m in width.

Note:  The width exemption applies only to the road grader. Any trailer towed by a road grader must not exceed 2.5m in width.

1.       For this section, the width of a heavy vehicle must be measured in the same manner as in section 8 of the Heavy Vehicle (Vehicle Standards) National Regulation.

1.    Vehicle conditions

1.        The rear tandem axle group of an eligible vehicle that is a road grader must be fitted with single tyres with section widths of at least 356mm.

1.        An eligible vehicle must be designed for road use and must not be constructed on a conventional truck chassis.

1.        Any road construction equipment towed as part of a combination must not travel with any additional material or items ordinarily used as ballast when the equipment is being used.

1.    Condition – Purpose of travel

1.       An eligible vehicle may only operate for the purpose of:

1.       Undertaking activities involved with road construction and maintenance; or
2.       Travel from a place of road construction or road maintenance operation to another place of road construction or road maintenance; or
3.        For a road grader as a single vehicle only, to travel between a place of repair and the nearest depot or base.

1.    Condition – Travel restrictions

1.       An eligible vehicle may only travel during the daytime.

1.       An eligible vehicle exceeding 19m may not operate in the Adelaide Metropolitan Area or the Adelaide Hills Area.

1.       In this section, the terms Adelaide Metropolitan Area and Adelaide Hills Area have the meanings specified in the Guide.

1.    Disapplication – Schedule 8 of the MDL Regulation

1.       Pursuant to section 39(5) of the MDL Regulation, the following conditions in Part 1 of Schedule 8 of the MDL Regulation relating to a class 1 eligible vehicle are disapplied:

1.       Section 18 - Prohibition on towing other vehicles
2.       Section 26(1) – Maximum mass of a pilot vehicle

1.       The disapplication in (1)(b) relating to maximum mass of a pilot vehicle only applies to pilot vehicles escorting road grader combinations under section 17(8) of this notice.

Note: The disapplication of section 26 is intended to allow a heavy vehicle accompanying a road grader or road grader combination to act as a pilot assuming it meets all other criteria for being a pilot vehicle.

1.    Condition – Road grader towing roller plant trailer

A road grader must not tow any trailer in addition to towing a roller plant trailer.

1.    Conditions – Areas and Routes (Networks)

1.       An eligible vehicle complying with the conditions of this notice is authorised to operate on areas and routes stated in this section.

1.       An eligible vehicle must not exceed the maximum length specified for a given area or route in this section.
2.       For the purposes of section 119 (1)(a) of the HVNL, an area or route stated in this section is a stated area or route to which this notice applies.

1.       In this section a reference to a network is a reference to a map or stated route pursuant to section 119(2) of the HVNL.

1.       An eligible vehicle that is a single grader up to 12.5m long may operate on the following areas and routes:

1.       State roads on the 40t Special Purpose Vehicle Network; and
2.       roads managed by a Participating Road Manager as specified in the Guide

1.       An eligible vehicle that is a combination up to 26m long may operate on the following areas and routes:

1.       State controlled roads within the boundary of a Participating Road Manager on the 26m B-Double Network; and
2.       roads managed by a Participating Road Manager as specified in the Guide.

1.       An eligible vehicle up to 53.5m long may only operate on:

1.       roads that are part of a Pastoral Unincorporated Area; and
2.       the Barrier Highway, Eyre Highway and Stuart Highway.

1.       An eligible vehicle up to 53.5m long operating on the Barrier Highway, Eyre Highway and Stuart Highway is subject to the following conditions:

1.       A pilot vehicle must accompany a road grader combination that is longer than 26m.
2.       The pilot vehicle must display a “Slow Vehicle” sign, which meets the size, design, colouring and placement requirements of Schedule 8, Part 3 Division 2 of the MDL Regulation and as described in the Guide.
3.        The pilot vehicle must have a GVM not exceeding 12t.
4.       The operator of a pilot vehicle must comply with the requirements relating to pilots and escorts prescribed in the following document:

Escorting Guidelines for oversize and overmass vehicles and loads in South Australia published by the South Australian Department for Infrastructure and Transport

1.       Regardless of any access granted under this section, an eligible vehicle must comply with any conditions or restrictions applied by a Participating Road Manager to a given area or route set out in the Guide - Appendix A Non-participating Road Managers, Participating Road Managers and Road Manager Conditions.

1.   An eligible vehicle operating on the areas and routes authorised by this section must comply with any of the following conditions prescribed for that area or route:

1.       Road conditions pursuant to section 160 of the HVNL; and
2.       Travel conditions pursuant to section 161 of the HVNL; and
3.        Vehicle conditions pursuant to section 162 of the HVNL.

1.   In this section, the term Participating Road Manager has the meaning as specified in the Guide.

Jose Arredondo

Manager Network Access Policy

National Heavy Vehicle Regulator