Ron Crouch Transport managing director Geoff Crouch and driver Andrew Tuovi comment on Transport for NSW Western Sydney Heavy Vehicle Rest Area engagement report.
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00:00 Our industry has been calling for more truck stops for many, many years and this is a very
00:05 welcome initiative by the Minister in releasing this report which is going to address the
00:09 current shortage that we have.
00:10 Every day there are thousands of our nation's truck drivers going up and down the highway
00:14 delivering the goods that our communities so desperately depend upon in supermarkets
00:18 and everyday shops.
00:20 Having more rest stops is a critical part for the men and women of our industry to be
00:25 able to continue to do their jobs safely and efficiently.
00:28 Not having enough rest stops in close enough distance to each other makes it really hard
00:33 for drivers to manage their fatigue and having an additional rest stop in between Wai Ong
00:37 and Fenton's Nest is going to make a critical part for ensuring the safety of every member
00:42 of the road going community.
00:43 One of the really pleasing parts about this report was the focus on women and the role
00:48 that they play in our industry as truck drivers.
00:50 They play a very valuable role and for them to be able to go and have rest stops that
00:55 have adequate lighting, have suitable facilities and have showers is going to be a critical
01:00 part for their ongoing safety and amenities of the current truck drivers but also going
01:05 to enable the industry to attract more women drivers into it.
01:08 One of the key parts about this report was the input from over 800 truck drivers.
01:12 These are the men and women that are going out there about every single day delivering
01:16 the goods that our nation depends upon and their input would have been absolutely invaluable
01:20 to making sure that the truck stops that are being proposed will meet their actual needs.
01:26 As an interstate truck driver the aim of the game is relocating freight, working away from
01:30 home during the week so heading off to work on a Sunday night and returning home on a
01:35 Friday evening.
01:36 As an interstate driver and covering large distances there's various regulations and
01:43 things to consider as well as obviously your own personal fatigue levels it's very important
01:47 to take regular rest breaks to ensure the safety of yourself and other road users.
01:51 More frequent rest areas and places that are more easily accessible for larger vehicles
01:58 such as this one and particularly some more facilities in regards to say places to be
02:06 able to get a meal or to have a shower particularly now with more and more younger drivers and
02:13 female drivers entering the industry it's a definite attraction to a female driver for
02:18 example if there's facilities to be able to have a shower and have a proper meal as opposed
02:23 to just an area on the side of the road.
02:25 You've got to take into account the size of the vehicle as well so you need to be able
02:29 to get in and out easy enough as well as being able to park and yeah with a vehicle of this
02:34 size you've got to take into account the area that you're going to take into.
02:38 But it can be particularly coming into Sydney hard to find a place and anywhere that where
02:45 there is available space for a vehicle of this size if there's one or two there and
02:51 you're out of room you've sort of got no other options left.
02:54 Again depending on time of day but it tends to fill quite quickly particularly of an evening
02:57 you've got a lot of trucks that do move overnight freight and a lot that do drive throughout
03:02 the night but a vast majority of places delivering to businesses that are only open during the
03:06 day so you're looking for a place to take a rest of the night time.
03:09 It's fantastic to see him being proactive and being able to take on board advice from
03:14 the industry.
03:15 I believe that's very important particularly moving forward.
03:20 [BLANK_AUDIO]