Mr WETTENHALL (9 Oct 2007) (5.18 pm): I rise to speak in support of the Transport Legislation Amendment Bill and to speak principally on the taxi and limousine provisions of the bill which are going to have great benefits in the Cairns area. But before I comment on those, I will make a couple of observations about the heavy vehicle provisions. As has been said by other members in this debate, the amount of freight that is going to be carried on our roads by heavy vehicles over the next decades is expected to increase very significantly. I am very pleased that this bill creates a modern, flexible and adaptable framework for the regulation of that industry and for provisions that will ensure compliance with the road safety provisions. That is going to have a very important and direct impact on areas right throughout the state. It is a very important provision of the bill.

Most specifically of interest to people in Cairns will be the provisions that will allow peak demand taxi services to be adopted. In Cairns there have been a number of major events over the past two or three years where patrons of those events have experienced difficulty in obtaining taxis. That has caused significant problems for the event managers but also for the police and for existing taxi operators in dispersing those crowds. It has become something of a problem. I hope that the new provisions that allow for service contractors to place extra services at those major events and at peak times will be investigated and analysed thoroughly by those contractors and, should the commercial conditions exist, that they will take up the opportunities that are provided by this legislation to provide those peak services. If that is the case, not only will it enable patrons of those events to get home quicker and safer but also it will certainly be of benefit to the event managers, the police and other bodies and authorities who, at present, are faced with the difficult task of managing large numbers of people who attend major events-sometimes for most of the day-and who are eager to either get home or move on to the next part of the day's activities and are having difficulty doing so. So the provisions do enable contractors to provide services in a flexible and adaptable way for those events.

There are also provisions in the bill that enable special purpose limousine licences to be issued for special events such as weddings, school formals and events of that nature. As everyone knows, Cairns is a fantastic place to live, it is a fantastic place to visit and it is a great place to get married. I got married in Cairns and I am very proud to say that. Let there be more marriages in Cairns. One of the terrific things that people can do when they come to a place like Cairns is hop into one of those magnificent old vehicles that are now going to be able to be operated legally under the provisions of this bill. That is going to be another drawcard for visitors who come to Cairns not only to experience our magnificent reefs and rainforests but also to tie the knot and to mark that most special of occasions in a special vehicle. That is a terrific innovation. It is a recognition of the fact that there is a demand for those services and it provides a legal framework for the development of those services.

Also of particular benefit to Cairns will be the introduction of the regional limousine licences. It is very interesting to note that already there has been a significant uptake of those licences. In the far-north Queensland regional limousine service area there have been 14 of those. There is a significant demand for them. They provide an important adjunct to the provision of the standard taxi services. They are popular. They are well used, and the framework that is established under the bill will enable the development of that component of the industry in an orderly way and is to be highly commended.

Also of importance in the bill is the new penalty provisions that will apply in the event that contractors are in breach of their service conditions. The previous penalty provisions were quite obviously too low to be an effective deterrent. Whilst I am not aware of any defects in the contractors' provisions in the Cairns area, certainly it is going to be an incentive for operators to comply with their service conditions. That is going to enhance public confidence in the efficiency of the services that are provided and will enhance the efficiency of the services provided themselves. That is a very welcome addition in the provisions of the bill. In summary, these provisions really are going to improve the level of service for patrons of the taxi and limousine and special limousine services throughout the state. I think that they will be of particular benefit to the people of Cairns. I am very happy to rise to speak in support of the bill.