Qualification details
Title
New Zealand Certificate in Commercial Road Transport (Specialist Driver)
(Level 4) with strands in Transportation of Logs, Heavy Haulage
Transportation, Livestock Transportation, Dangerous Goods Transportation,
Waste Transportation, General Cartage, and Groundspreading
Version
1
Qualification type
Certificate
Level
4
Credits
50-70
NZSCED
030515
Engineering and Related Technologies » Automotive
Engineering and Technology » Automotive Vehicle Operations
Qualification developer
MITO New Zealand Incorporated
Next review
December 2021
Approval date
February 2016
Strategic purpose statement
The purpose of this qualification is to provide the commercial
road transport industry with people who have the skills and
knowledge to safely and competently operate heavy rigid
vehicles or heavy vehicle combinations, to ensure the safe and
efficient movement of freight within specific industry sectors.
This qualification is targeted at new or existing heavy vehicle
drivers who intend to gain skills and knowledge beyond those
required to be a licence holder or general heavy vehicle operator.
Learners will benefit by having a qualification that enables
improved job performance and enhanced employment
opportunities in the field of commercial road transport.
This qualification does not permit the holder to drive a motor
vehicle on New Zealand roads without a current relevant driver
licence issued by the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA).
Graduate profile
Graduates of this qualification will be able to:

Outcome Statement
use advanced skills and expertise for safe and fuel-efficient
driving and expertly perform driving manoeuvres and tasks
for a heavy rigid vehicle or heavy vehicle combination
Graduates of the Transportation of Logs strand will also be able
to:
Qualification Reference 3091
© New Zealand Qualifications Authority 2016

comply with specialist health and safety, legislative, loading,
planning and operational requirements for transporting logs

transport logs by heavy vehicle.
Graduates of the Heavy Haulage Transportation strand will also
be able to:

comply with specialist health and safety, legislative, loading,
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planning and operational requirements for heavy haulage
transportation

transport overweight and overdimension loads.
Graduates of the Livestock Transportation strand will also be
able to:

comply with specialist health and safety, legislative, loading,
planning and operational requirements for livestock
transportation

transport livestock.
Graduates of the Dangerous Goods Transportation strand will
also be able to:

comply with specialist health and safety, legislative, loading,
planning and operational requirements for dangerous goods
transportation

transport dangerous goods.
Graduates of the Waste Transportation strand will also be able
to:

comply with specialist health and safety, legislative, loading,
planning and operational requirements for waste
transportation

transport waste.
Graduates of the General Cartage strand will also be able to:

comply with specialist health and safety, legislative, loading,
planning and operational requirements for general cartage

transport general cartage loads.
Graduates of the Groundspreading strand will also be able to:
Education pathway

comply with specialist health and safety, legislative, loading,
planning and operational requirements for groundspreading

transport and spread fertiliser.
This qualification builds on the New Zealand Certificate in
Commercial Road Transport (Heavy Vehicle Operator) (Level 3)
[Ref: 3089].
This qualification may lead on to other driving qualifications, such
as the:

New Zealand Certificate in Commercial Road Transport
(Senior Driver) (Level 5) [Ref: 3093]

New Zealand Certificate in Commercial Road Transport
(Operations Management) (Level 5) [Ref: 3092].
Graduates may also complete a business management
qualification.
Employment pathway
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Graduates of this qualification will have the skills and knowledge
to be employed as heavy vehicle combination or heavy rigid
vehicle drivers with specialised skills relating to the sectors of the
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industry represented by the strands.
Qualification specifications
Qualification award
This qualification may be awarded by MITO New Zealand
Incorporated as the qualification developer and the industry
training organisation arranging training leading to the qualification
under section 5 of the Industry Training Act 1992.
This qualification may also be awarded by an education
organisation accredited under section 250 of the Education Act
1989 to deliver an approved programme leading to this
qualification.
The formal document certifying the award of this qualification will
display the NZQF logo and may also include the name and/or
logo of the awarding education organisation.
Evidence requirements for
assuring consistency
To demonstrate how graduates are achieving the qualification
graduate profile outcomes, TEOs are required to produce their
own evidence in a high level report.
Evidence will include the following:
 employer surveys to determine if graduates of the
qualification meet the graduate profile outcomes

a range of workplace evidence demonstrating that graduates
meet the graduate profile outcomes.
Evidence may include :
 any other relevant evidence as appropriate.
Further information on the consistency process can be found on
the NZQA website.
Minimum standard of
achievement and standards for
grade endorsements
The minimum standard of achievement required for award of the
qualification will be the achievement of all core graduate
outcomes in the graduate profile and one of the strands.
Other requirements for the
qualification (including regulatory
body or legislative requirements)
The New Zealand Certificate in Commercial Road Transport
(Heavy Vehicle Operator) (Level 3) [Ref: 3089] (or equivalent
skills and knowledge) is the recommended entry criteria for this
qualification.
People intending to enter this qualification must hold at least a
full Class 2 driver’s licence.
General conditions for the programme leading to the qualification
General conditions for
programme
Programmes must ensure that candidates for each strand
provide evidence of safe, lawful, careful and efficient operation of
the appropriate heavy vehicle, namely:
˗
˗
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a heavy vehicle combination for the strand in Transportation
of Logs
a heavy vehicle combination for the strand in Heavy
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˗
˗
˗
˗
˗
Haulage Transportation
a heavy vehicle combination for the strand in Livestock
Transportation
either a heavy rigid vehicle or heavy vehicle combination for
the strand in Dangerous Goods Transportation
either a heavy rigid vehicle or heavy vehicle combination for
the the strand in Waste Transportation
either a heavy rigid vehicle or heavy vehicle combination for
the the strand in General Cartage
a heavy rigid vehicle for the strand in Groundspreading
Drivers must have the right licence for the type and weight of
vehicle being driven. In some cases special endorsements will
be needed. Current rules for driver licencing can be accessed at:
http://www.nzta.govt.nz/licence.
Programme content must include safe, lawful, careful and
efficient transportation and reflect current legislation, regulations
and industry standards, including the following and their
amendments:
˗ Health and Safety at Work Act 2015;
˗ Heavy Motor Vehicle Regulations 1974;
˗ Land Transport Act 1998;
˗ Land Transport (Road User) Rule 2004;
˗ Land Transport Rule: Heavy Vehicles 2004;
˗ Land Transport Rule: Vehicle Dimensions and Mass 2002;
˗ Land Transport Rule: External Projections 2001;
˗ Land Transport Rule: Heavy Vehicle Brakes 2006;
˗ Land Transport Rule: Tyres and Wheels 2001;
˗ Land Transport Rule: Work Time and Logbooks 2007;
˗ Road User Charges Act 2012;
˗ Road User Charges (Rates) Regulations 2014;
˗ Traffic Regulations 1976
˗ NZTA: Official New Zealand truck loading code (ISBN 9780-478-38012-5)
˗ NZTA: Vehicle dimension and mass permitting (VDAM)
manual (ISBN 978-0-478-44500-8)
˗ WorkSafe NZ: Approved Code of Practice (ACOP) for
safety and health in forest operations (ISBN 978-0-47840174-5) for the strand in Transportation of Logs
˗ Log Transport Safety Council (LTSC): Industry Standards
for the strand in Transportation of Logs
˗ KiwiRail: Information for Operators Of Over Dimension &
Over Weight Loads agreement for the strand in Heavy
Haulage Transportation
˗ Ministry of Primary Industries: Codes of Welfare issued
under the Animal Welfare Act 1999 for the strand in
Livestock Transportation
˗ National Stock Effluent Working Group: Industry Code of
Practice for the Minimisation of Stock Effluent Spillage from
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˗
˗
˗
˗
˗
˗
Trucks on Roads for the strand in Livestock Transportation
Land Transport Rule: Dangerous Goods 2005 for the strand
in Dangerous Goods Transportation
HSNO (Personnel Qualifications) Regulations 2004 for the
strand in Dangerous Goods Transportation
Hazardous Substances (Tank Wagons and Transportable
Containers) Regulations 2004 for the strand in Dangerous
Goods Transportation
Wasteminz: Liquid and Hazardous Waste Code of Practice
for the strand in Waste Transportation
Local authority regulations and bylaws, including
acceptance criteria for the transfer station as a waste
disposal site for the strand in Waste Transportation
Fertiliser Association of New Zealand: Code of Practice for
Nutrient Management (With Emphasis on Fertiliser Use) for
the strand in Groundspreading.
Additional guidance relating to some or all of the graduate profile
outcomes is published on MITO NZ's website.
Conditions relating to the Graduate profile
Qualification outcomes
Conditions
1
Programmes must include one of the following pairs of unit
standards:
Use advanced skills and
expertise for safe and fuelefficient driving and expertly
perform driving manoeuvres
and tasks for a heavy rigid
vehicle or heavy vehicle
combination
Unit standard 18079 and unit standard 26776
OR
Unit standard 17972 and unit standard 26777
20 credits
Transportation of Logs strand
2
Comply with specialist health
and safety, legislative,
loading, planning and
operational requirements for
transporting logs
25 credits
3
Transport logs by heavy
vehicle
15 credits
Heavy Haulage Transportation strand
4
Comply with specialist health
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Programmes must include the following:
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and safety, legislative,
loading, planning and
operational requirements for
heavy haulage transportation
Unit standard 23436
Unit standard 23889
Unit standard 23894
25 credits
5
Transport overweight and
overdimension loads
Overdimension vehicles and loads must fall within categories 1, 2
and 3
25 credits
Overweight vehicles and loads must require a permit
Livestock Transportation strand
6
Comply with specialist health
and safety, legislative,
loading, planning and
operational requirements for
livestock transportation
Programmes must include the following:
Unit standard 18117
Unit standard 19165
25 credits
7
Transport livestock
25 credits
Dangerous Goods Transportation strand
8
Comply with specialist health
and safety, legislative,
loading, planning and
operational requirements for
dangerous goods
transportation
25 credits
9
Transport dangerous goods
15 credits
Waste Transportation strand
10
Comply with specialist health
and safety, legislative,
loading, planning and
operational requirements for
waste transportation
25 credits
11
Transport waste
10 credits
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General Cartage strand
12
Comply with specialist health
and safety, legislative,
loading, planning and
operational requirements for
general cartage
25 credits
13
Programmes must include the following:

Terms and conditions of cartage

Overseas market access requirements (OMARs) for
perishable products

Cross-docking.
Transport general cartage
loads
5 credits
Groundspreading strand
14
Comply with specialist health
and safety, legislative,
loading, planning and
operational requirements for
groundspreading
25 credits
15
Transport and spread fertiliser
Programmes must include unit standard 19374
5 credits
Transition information
Replacement information
This qualification replaced the:

National Certificate in Transportation of Logs by Road
[Ref: 1464]

National Certificate in Heavy Haulage (Transportation)
[Ref: 1354]

National Certificate in Goods Service (Heavy Vehicle Driver)
[Ref: 1228]

National Certificate in Transportation of Waste and
Recoverable Resources (Liquid and Hazardous Waste)
[Ref: 1226]

National Certificate in Transportation of Waste and
Recoverable Resources (Solid Waste) [Ref: 1232]

National Certificate in Commercial Road Transport (Ground
Spreading) [Ref: 1018].
The last date for entry into programmes leading to replaced qualifications is 31 December 2017 when the
replaced qualifications will be designated expiring.
The last date to meet the requirements of the replaced qualifications is 31 December 2019 when the
qualifications will be discontinued. From that date no results can be reported against the replaced
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qualifications.
People currently working towards any of the replaced qualifications must complete its requirements by
31 December 2019, or transfer their results to the replacement qualification.
It is anticipated that no existing candidates will be disadvantaged by these transition arrangements.
However, anyone who feels that they have been disadvantaged may appeal to MITO at the address
below. Appeals will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
MITO
PO Box 10803
Wellington 6011
Telephone
Email
0800 88 21 21
info@mito.org.nz
Website
www.mito.org.nz
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