Diesel trucks made prior to 2003 should be banned in Sydney and Melbourne from 2025, according to a report from a public policy think tank.
The Grattan Institute has proposed the ban as part of a plan outlined in The Grattan truck plan: practical policies for cleaner freight, saying those old trucks contribute to cases of diseases like lung cancer, stroke and pneumonia.
The report shows exhaust-pipe pollutants from trucks kill more than 400 Australians and that many trucks built before 1996 emit 60 times the particulate matter of a new truck.
Those trucks also emit 8 times of poisonous nitrogen oxide than newer trucks.
"The work that trucks do is crucial for our economy and way of life, but we must do more to limit the harm they cause to our health and environment," Grattan Institute transport and cities program director Marion Terrill said.
The report also recommends imposing standards on engines and tyres, and ratcheting up those standards each year, and that the industry should plan to have nearly all trucks on the market be zero-emission 2040.
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The Institute has also advocating for the federal government to rescind regulations which they say "are pointless".
"Trucks make our lives better in so many ways: they deliver parcels to our door, groceries to the supermarket, tools to the hardware store, building equipment to our construction sites, and medical supplies to our hospitals," Ms Terrill says.
"But this report shows why and how Australia should do more to limit the damage they leave behind."
These include the requirement for trucks in Australia be 2 per cent narrower than the global standard, which limits how many less-polluting trucks can be purchased.
The Victorian Farmers Federation roads and infrastructure committee chair Ryan Milgate said that while he would like to read the report in more detail, bans on where trucks could travel to are significant and restrictions would could significantly impact farmers.
"You've not only got trucks that are actually going to Melbourne a handful of times a year but you've got, particularly out of the Wimmera-Malle, a lot of high end grain travelling into the Gippsland region, which means those farmers have got to travel through Melbourne to get there," he said.
Mr Milgate also warned of the expense of new trucks for farmers, and while he did acknowledge that pollutants from older trucks were an issue, purchasing new trucks for most farmer would be expensive and have long wait times.
"I can understand if you were on Footscray Road with trucks coming in from the port with container, you can see where they are coming from with this report," he said.
"But the fact is delays are so bad that you would be really lucky to even get a new truck by 2025 if you purchased one now, notwithstanding the cost and everything involved with that.
Mr Milgate also said many issues needed to be taken into account if a ban of old trucks in metro areas were to happen, including securing a full supply of AdBlue which he said was as critical for the agricultural sector as much as the need to reduce emissions.
"When focusing on agriculture and farmers trucks - many of those aren't just simply coming into Melbourne for a trip, and they are coming in to do a job like delivering produce or hay, so in the end I think we would be a small part of the issue," he said.
"I'm not saying older trucks used in the sector don't pollute, but a blanket ban that quickly, I'd say logistically, would be impossible."
