Chain of Responsibility

The chain of responsibility is a policy concept used in Australian transport legislation to place legal obligations on parties in the transport supply chain or across transport industries generally. The concept was initially developed to apply in the heavy vehicle industry in regulated areas such as speeding, fatigue and mass, loading and dimension. It has since spread to other transport sectors, particularly in Victoria where it has been applied in laws which apply to the rail, bus, marine and taxi industries.

The chain of responsibility concept initially developed out of a recognition that unlawful behaviour by truck drivers is influenced and often controlled by the actions of other parties. Concerns arose that transport laws had often focussed on the actions of drivers while failing to sufficiently recognise and regulate the actions of other key parties. Chain of responsibility laws therefore seek to provide that these other parties cannot encourage, create incentives for, demand or allow drivers to undertake unlawful actions.

In recent years, the chain of responsibility concept has been widely used as a basis for the reform of transport laws in the State of Victoria. A major review of policy and legislation in that State, the Transport Legislation Review, has led to the concept being adapted for use in a number of new statutes including the Rail Safety Act 2006, the Bus Safety Act 2009 and the Marine Safety Act 2010.

Victoria faced the problem of ageing and inadequate transport legislation which failed to reflect modern policy. During his second reading speech for a new rail safety statute in Victoria, the then Minister for Transport explained that -

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