First parade already cancelled due to lack of numbers....but later on there will be some action...
ABC Online... Police say Canberra is facing gridlock this morning as convoys converge on the national capital to protest against the Federal Government's proposed carbon tax, despite protester numbers being lower than expected.
Eleven convoys of trucks, vans and cars have travelled from across the country over the past few days to take their protest directly to Parliament House.
However, the first of the police-escorted truck convoys to Parliament House was cancelled this morning due to lack of numbers.
The anti-government protest was due to arrive in three waves along the main thoroughfare of the national capital.
Two other convoys are still due to roll through Canberra this morning.
Canberrans are urged to expect significant delays today and tomorrow along Northbourne Avenue, the Tuggeranong Parkway, the Gungahlin Drive Extension and the Monaro, Barton and Federal Highways.
Earlier organiser Mick Pattel denied the number of trucks was lower than organisers hoped, saying the number of vehicles in the protest was deliberately kept down.
"The idea was to minimise it because, look, it was just going to be too difficult, even with 60 vehicles behind you it was incredibly hard to manage in terms of getting parking, in terms of getting fuel, getting food. We realised that we could actually collapse in on ourselves just by the sheer weight of numbers, and by the time we got to Canberra I really think it would have been a mess," he said.
Federal Opposition Leader Tony Abbott is expected to address the rally today.
Mr Pattel says he wants the Coalition to move a motion of no confidence in Parliament.
"If the motion is put then there's a fair chance we may see someone cross the floor and vote with them to go back to the polls," he said.
But Mr Pattel acknowledges it is a long shot.
"If that doesn't happen we've made our point to the Government," he said.
The petition Mr Pattel has circulated calls for a double dissolution, which is impossible under the Constitution because conditions have not been met.
Cyclists will also rally today arguing truck drivers are wrong to say a carbon tax would hurt them because it is not being imposed on diesel.
The Australian Trucking Association (ATA) says the convoy will do nothing to help the trucking industry.
The association's Bill McKinley says the rally will change nothing.
"The danger of protests like these, which are well-meaning, is it reinforces the stereotype of the trucking industry as cowboys who are not worth dealing with," he said.
"On behalf of our members, the ATA gets excellent results including a two-year exemption from the carbon tax.
"We don't believe this convoy will be as effective as the work that we do everyday."
