FUEL volatility remains the most immediate and destabilising challenge for transport businesses, Victorian Transport Association chief executive Peter Anderson says.
The VTA has opened its 2026 State Conference under the theme Freight Never Stops, highlighting both the resilience of the freight and logistics sector.
Mr Anderson said while decarbonisation was the long-term pathway, fuel volatility remained the most immediate and destabilising challenge for transport businesses.
“Fuel prices no longer move on supply and demand alone; they move on geopolitical instability, speculative trading, and global uncertainty,” he said.
“A 10–20 cent spike per litre can wipe out margins overnight. Operators simply cannot absorb that risk — not when margins are already razor thin.”
He stressed the essential role of the fuel levy as a transparent and defensible mechanism.
“The fuel levy is not optional — it is critical to the survival of operators,” he said.
“It ensures legitimate cost recovery and protects cashflow. Without it, operators risk collapsing under cost shocks they cannot control.”
Mr Anderson also criticised freight customers who misrepresented freight costs or resisted surcharge mechanisms.
“Transport accounts for about 12–13% of the cost of goods sold — fuel is only a fraction of that,” he said.
“Operators must not be forced to subsidise transport for the rest of the supply chain.”
Mr Anderson also spoke about so-called “sham contracting” and described it as “a growing internal threat to industry integrity”.
“Sham contracting gives rogue operators a 30% cost advantage — and that is crippling compliant businesses who operate legally and safely,” Mr Anderson said.
“It is undermining legitimate operators, eroding safety, and contributing to the black economy.”
Mr Anderson said the Australian Taxation Office had reported a surge in tip-offs relating to sham operations in road freight, and regulators were now escalating enforcement.
Addressing broader economic themes, Mr Anderson said productivity was “non-negotiable”.
“We cannot double the number of trucks, drivers or congestion — the maths simply doesn’t work,” he said.
“We need better road access, stronger bridges, modern intermodal hubs, and more high‑productivity vehicles.”