The battle of the bulge has been won by the wool industry as the width concession for wool bales was expanded to 2.7m.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Dubbo business owners Mark Coogan and Robert Holmes had felt the pinch from previous fines for wool bales exceeding a width of 2.5m.
NSW Minister for Roads Duncan Gay, Dubbo MP Troy Grant and Minister for Western NSW Kevin Humphries yesterday visited the Coggan Wool facility and Robert Holmes Transport north of the city to announce the changes.
“This was one of the easiest decisions I have ever made,” Mr Gay said.
“What I have done is taken
the width of bales on trucks
back to where it has been for 100 years.”
Mr Humphries said that since the amendment of road transport laws in 2005, many growers and carriers had been hit with crippling fines and penalties for even minor breaches of wool bale
loads exceeding 2.5 metres in width.
He recognised the current dimensions and structure of many wool bale packs, as well as the wool baling process, contributed to wool bale loads exceeding that width limit.
“As every wool grower and carrier knows, when placed and restrained tightly on a truck, wool bale loads can deform or ‘bulge out’ beyond 2.5 metres in width,” Mr Humphries said.
The decision was hailed by Mr Gay as a win for farmers and rural industries in NSW.
“This makes cartage of wool safer,” he said.
“The loads are stacked better, they have better integrity and at 2.7m it is not a worry to anyone.”
“It means the industry can once again feel assured that they can grow their product and get it to the port in a safe, timely way without facing fines.”
About 70 per cent of Mr Holmes’ business is carting wool and he has no control over how the bales are pressed on the farm.
Mr Holmes lost $6500 in fines since November when the RTA began to enforce the former maximum length.
Dubbo woolbroker Don Macdonald agreed that transport operators could only work with the bales they were given.
The problem being a combination of old wool presses and people not taking enough care to square the bale properly.
Measures such as flashing lights and warning signage for trucks carrying wool have been added to maintain road safety.
