In August 2026, the Department of Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Water released its consultation paper for the 2026-27 Safeguard Mechanism review.
The Safeguard Mechanism covers the 208 facilities in Australia emitting more than 100,000 tonnes of CO2-e each year.
The paper considers two changes that would increase the number of trucking businesses covered by the mechanism, principally based on the argument that the mechanism could distort competition between non-bulk road and rail freight.
The ATA submission reviews how freight customers really decide between road and rail, and the limited options available to trucking businesses to reduce their emissions.
It points out that attempting to address the non-existent competitive distortion between road and rail would create genuine competition issues between the trucking businesses covered by the mechanism and smaller businesses that are not covered.
The proposed changes would also push up the cost of living for households and costs for exporters.
The submission recommends that the Government should not implement either change.
It also recommends that the Government’s subsidies for rail freight should not continue beyond the end of the current TRACK pilot.