Table of contents for Issue 334 in Owner Driver

SOCIAL MEDIA has proved to be a boon in global society. Australians have slowly embraced it, notably Facebook, since the years leading up to 2010. It’s proved a convenient way to keep in touch with friends and family, especially those living around the globe. Almost every business of note has a Facebook page, using the outlet to make corporate announcements, or simply to let staff share photos and interact with each other. There’s many a trucking company, as well as truck manufacturers, equipment suppliers and the various associations that use the platform as a form of advertising. In some instances Facebook has overtaken actual company websites in importance. However, its negative side has evolved over the ensuing years. It has become a platform for heated political debates, slanderous comments and…

THE TRANSPORT WORKERS’ UNION (TWU) has entered into an agreement with owner-driver and small fleet operator body the National Road Freighters Association (NRFA) “to fight for an industry that is safe and sustainable”. The memorandum of understanding (MOU) will allow both organisations to work together on issues of interest but they will remain independent, continuing to represent the interests of their members and raise issues particularly pertinent to their membership. The MOU has as its core principles: Universal application of binding, enforceable and safe and sustainable rates Independent tribunal to determine and enforce binding standards in conjunction with industry stakeholders Client accountability throughout transport supply chains Transport workers and transport operators given opportunity to contribute to a collective voice Enforcement mechanisms to ensure standards are effectively realised Adequate training and…

INCREASING evidence of what amounts to incitement to murder immigrant truck drivers has spurred a backlash from the Australian Trucking Association (ATA) and government. The racist calls attacking mostly truck drivers of Indian background urge the cutting of truck air lines; an act that would put other truck drivers along with road users generally in mortal danger if acted upon. These horrifying elements of the trucking industry has prompted the ATA and the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) to call out racism wherever it occurs and celebrate industry’s diversity. The ATA and the NHVR made the call following reports of targeted attacks on immigrant truck drivers and racist comments on trucking social media pages. ATA chair David Smith says freight workers from diverse backgrounds had always made a massive contribution…

I GOT A call from a mate who said, with all the issues about now, he was going to ring one mate a night to simply ask, “How’s things?” and it was my turn. We had not spoken for some time and while we were both busy and coping (a personal observation of course and subject to outsider comment), I told him I thought it was a terrific idea and was he happy for me to push it a bit. I explained that each Christmas I used to ring a few mates and ask how they had been going, but two years ago, out of a dozen or so blokes I rang in one week, two had been very close to suicide and it was only their children and thinking…

NATROAD wants the Productivity Commission’s recent recommendation about heavy vehicle accident investigation fast tracked by government. The need for action to go deeper into causes of heavy vehicle crashes has been an issue that NatRoad has promoted for many years. The Productivity Commission found that transport regulation and industry practice would benefit from an improved understanding of the systematic causes of safety incidents. NatRoad’s long-held view is that a dedicated authority such as the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) should be given the power to promptly and fully investigate serious truck accidents and to share the results and recommendations publicly. That role should also encompass better research on trends and causal factors. Currently, both data and research are inadequate to formulate benchmarks to properly measure ways to improve road safety.…

LETTER TO YOU Bruce Springsteen Sony/Columbia www.brucespringsteen.net Although Letter To You is credited to Bruce Springsteen, it’s actually “the boss” with his regular outfit, The E Street Band, including wife Patti Scialfa, playing together for the first time since 2017. Recorded “live” at his home studio over five days, Springsteen delivers these 12 tracks in his usual inimitable style. Three songs were actually written back in the ’70s, including the uplifting ‘Songs For Orphans’, the lyrics just as significant today as then. The album’s opener ‘One Minute You’re Here’ has Springsteen at his quiet, serious best as he sings of loss, but he’s back in full-blown rock mode on ‘Ghosts’, a song about guitars and the buzz of performing live. Oddly enough, ‘House Of A Thousand Guitars’ starts off with…

ISUZU HAS added an F Series offering, with a focus on greater payload and capacity, to its tipper line-up. Already covering an expansive gross vehicle mass (GVM) range from 4,500kg through to 11,000kg, the Isuzu Trucks tipper range recently introduced a significant step-up in the form of the FSR 140-260 tipper, with a GVM of 14,000kg (derated to 12,000kg upon request), and a gross combination mass (GCM) of 20,000kg. Isuzu Australia Limited (IAL) national sales manager Les Spaltman says the recent addition to the tipper range is a direct response to customer feedback. “We’re extremely proud to promote this F Series model within our already expansive Ready-to-Work tipper range,” he says. “As always, we spoke directly with our customers, and the key message was clear – greater payload, greater capacity…

WE AGAIN face the grim reality of trucking being Australia’s deadliest industry, and we again see no response from the federal government. According to new SafeWork statistics, 174 workers were killed while working in trucking between 2015 to 2019. In 2019 alone, we lost 58 transport workers, tragically killed while just trying to do their jobs. That’s more than one person killed every week. These statistics are appalling, but not shocking. We know that our industry is riddled with problems that make our jobs more dangerous than they need to be. What’s alarming is that the government remains silent on these many workers killed and has no plan to prevent more needless deaths on the road. Transport Minister Michael McCormack even suggested recently that road upgrades will put us on…

SHADOW ASSISTANT Minister for Road Safety and Labor Senator for Western Australia, Glenn Sterle, has climbed back in behind the wheel of a truck to deliver a road train full of pre-loved and unwanted furniture from Perth to Kununurra to support local families in the East Kimberley. Before entering Parliament Glenn was a furniture removalist. His regular run was between Perth and Darwin. “It’s been a long time since I have driven the 3,000 kilometres to Kununurra,” Sterle says, prior to his departure on October 26. Sterle says he was happy putting his boots on to support local Aboriginal families in the East Kimberley, as well as the important work being done by the Revive Recycling Centre in Kununurra. Established in mid-2017 by East Kimberley Job Pathways (EKJP) (owned in…

ANC (Australian National Carriers) says it is on the cusp of a major growth on the back of a spike in e-commerce. With new client partnerships “locked in” and further growth predicted, the privately-owned last-mile delivery group says it needs “hundreds of new contractor owner-drivers around the country” to meet the Christmas rush – and into next year. ANC, which provides full-service last mile delivery, plus complex deliveries with assembly and installation, states that it is preparing for an increase in deliveries of almost 50 per cent nationwide over the next three months and beyond. “ANC is growing, and we are looking for contractor drivers to grow with us,” ANC MD James Taylor says. “A continuing rise in deliveries throughout 2020 and a number of new client partners using our…

THE ROAD safety ‘industry’ – “No sir, it’s all about safety; it is definitely not about the revenue.” So why is it that New South Wales’ Highway Patrol management has gone to such lengths to camouflage their vehicles? One would need the eyes of a hawk to recognise the approaching vehicle as law enforcement transport. It’s not until one can see the flank or rear that the decals highlight its purpose. And of course all of our many governments need every scrap of income they can possibly get. One reason that has brought this desperate need for cash is the total absence of any effort by the public sector to be frugal or even responsible about the costs it imposes on the public purse. Of course, being the lucky country,…

DAYDREAM The Buckleys Petrol Records/Universal www.thebuckleys.net Aussie country trio The Buckleys (siblings Sarah, Molly and Lachlan) recorded their debut album Daydream with Grammy winning producer Chad Carlson. As expected, they’re big on harmonies, and deliver a mean country rock sound on ‘Money’ and ‘Crazy Like You’. They hint at their hippy Byron Bay roots on ‘Woodstock 69’, and there’s a blues-pop feel to ‘Feeling The Love’. ‘Til You Can’t Go Back’ is a serious lesson in life and love, and the pace is slowed for the catchy ‘Breathe’. ‘Glad You Did’ is a perky, upbeat track, reminiscent of The McClymonts’ sound, and the title track ‘Daydream’ is another cheerful positive number. It’s no surprise that, thanks to streaming services, The Buckleys are already making an impact internationally. CUTTIN’ GRASS VOL 1…

ITS LIVERY will be missing in future Supercars series but Penske pledges it isn’t going anywhere as far as trucks are concerned. While US-based Team Penske has pulled in its horns on the track, Penske confirms its long-term commitment to the Australian and New Zealand markets through its on- and off-highway businesses. “Since Team Penske partnered with Dick Johnson to form DJR Team Penske several years ago, we have seen tremendous success on the track and in the boardroom,” Penske Australia & New Zealand president Randall Seymore says. “We thank DJR Team Penske for helping to make Penske and our brands household names, and we look forward to remaining Dick Johnson Racing’s biggest fans.” Since establishing its footprint in the Australian and New Zealand markets in 2013, Penske insists it…

FOLLOWING REPORTS of NSW’s heavy vehicle average speed camera program expanding to 11 new locations, the National Road Transport Association (NatRoad) urges a level playing field that includes light vehicles. NatRoad CEO Warren Clark cites a new Productivity Commission (PC) information paper in backing average speed enforcement through the New South Wales camera network to be extended to include light vehicles. Through the use of average speed enforcement cameras, compliance of heavy vehicles with speed limits has been estimated to have reduced the number of heavy vehicle crashes by 29 per cent and there has been a substantial reduction in fatal crashes and serious injury crashes since its introduction in New South Wales, data highlights. According to the Productivity Commission report, this represents a saving through reduced fatalities and serious…

IT PLAGUES every community, every industry and doesn’t discriminate on race, creed or gender. Mental health is an issue that needs urgent attention and workers in our industry are among the most vulnerable. Truck drivers are at risk of mental health problems because of the long hours away from family, financial pressure, stress, social isolation and the high incidence of death and injury. The financial pressure from the top of the supply chain creates an environment where operators and drivers are continually being pushed in their daily lives, their trucks and their labour sweated to breaking point. A major study by Monash University into the health of truck drivers soon to be published shows 50 per cent of drivers surveyed experienced some form of psychological distress. The study shows particular…

THERE’S A GREAT deal of frustration with work diaries. Many drivers feel trapped, forced to complete and carry a record that is later used as proof to impose fines. I’m sure most drivers wouldn’t feel so frustrated if the system was straight forward, but often the prosecutions are for honest mistakes made in the context of a difficult system. It’s no surprise in this context that some drivers try to find ways to protect themselves. Often the solutions aim to find a loophole in the rules so that the diary either doesn’t need to be completed or so that it can’t be relied on. Most of these plans don’t work. In fact many of them are offences in themselves. Some of the suggested work arounds I’ve heard lately are: Don’t…

I’VE BEEN doing this for a bloody long time and still hearing the same frustrating talk about not enough drivers or operators participating or being involved. In the last edition of Owner//Driver, Ken Wilkie talked about the gap between decision makers and those who do the work of transport, the drivers. There’s a theme in almost every edition, if not in all transport publications and industry conversations. It’s that gap between the people behind the wheel and all the others that write policy, enforce laws, run companies and those who influence and participate in the decision making. Why? It’s the costs of being involved in my opinion. Zoom meetings are all the go. I’ve been on plenty of them lately, talking to WorkSafe Victoria for example on agricultural safety with…

KUMHO has launched a new premium heavy duty truck steer tyre, which it says is suitable for a wide range of truck operating conditions in regional and long distance operations. Kumho says its new Kumho XS 10 is a genuine premium truck steer tyre designed to provide safe driving in wet, icy and dry conditions. According to Kumho, the XS10 also offers an extended mileage capability due to its wide tread and shoulder design, while a special tread compound results in improved handling. Stone ejectors within the groove pattern are said to increase the tyre’s re-treading ability as well as delivering longer life and better casing durability. Kumho boasts that, taking everything into consideration, the XS10 offers increase in tyre life of up to 15 per cent when compared with…