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In short:
The WA haulage industry says it was blindsided by new road train signage rules that came into effect on July 1.
The WA government says the updated signage will help motorists make safer decisions when overtaking road trains.
What's next?
Trucking companies have a grace period of six months to update their vehicle signage before the new regulations are enforced from January 1, 2025.
Western Australia's road train operators say they have been blindsided by new signage regulations that could cost the industry millions of dollars.
Instead of the standard "long vehicle" sign attached to the back of haulage trailers, road trains will now have to display signs that show how long the vehicle is in metres and what that equates to in car numbers.
The new signage laws, which came into effect on July 1, are designed to alert motorists to the length of road trains, some of which stretch to 50 metres or more, so they can make safer overtaking decisions.
The industry said the changes were an Australian first and would mean drivers of road trains more than 22 metres long would have to carry several different metal signs, as truckies often chopped and changed the make-up of their trailers.
State trucking lobby not aware of changes
Cam Dumesny, chief executive of the Western Roads Federation, which represents transport companies across the state, said members had no idea the new regulations were coming into effect.
"All of a sudden a notification comes out on the web … suddenly our members are ringing," he said.
In announcing the regulation change last week, acting WA Transport Minister John Carey said truck drivers would be given a six-month grace period.
Mr Dumesny said the group first heard of a trial in 2022 but had not been contacted by the state government since.
He said, under the rules, some truck drivers would need to carry four different signs and change them depending on how many trailers they were hauling.
"[There are] 70,000 heavy vehicles in WA and we get six months," he said.
"If you've got a couple of hundred trucks in a fleet … [that] could be worth $200,000 to $300,000 in signs.
"You might do a task and change trailer combinations, so trucks will have to take all these signs with them."
Mr Dumesny said since the announcement last week, truck drivers had called transport signage providers, who were also unaware of the changes.
Will signs make roads safer?
A Main Roads WA press release last week said the existing "long vehicle" and "road train" signs gave little information to motorists on the length of a road train.
Mr Carey said the introduction of the rules followed a successful trial.
"There was great feedback following the successful trial last year and I look forward to the rollout in coming months," he said.
"We rely on road trains to keep our economy moving and we know how intimidating it can sometimes be to try to overtake one.
"This way, other drivers have the information in front of them regarding how long the vehicle is, which helps them to make a more informed decision when overtaking."
Main Roads WA declined a request from ABC Regional Drive for an interview.
Pilbara heavy haulage driver and trainer Heather Jones said she was also blindsided by the new regulations and questioned how they would make the roads safer.
"It will cost each truck driver an extra couple of thousand dollars," she said.
"I've been driving up and down these highways for 35 years, I can tell you most motorists don't look at the back of your truck at any time, not even for indicators when turning let alone for a sign."
Ms Jones said money could be better spent on advertising campaigns targeting city motorists travelling in regional areas on how to overtake road trains.
Burden for business
Livestock and Rural Transport Association of WA president Darran Bairstow said it was a financial burden on the industry during already tough times.
"I know it'll cost me about $14,000 to change all my trailers over to meet the new signage requirements … for my business that means I need to turn over more than $200,000," he said.
"To be honest, we can't see how there'll be any net safety benefit in changing signs."
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