In 2009, 287 truck drivers lost their lives working Australia wide in the Transport Industry.
There has been a study done by a Sydney Uni Professor and a former High court Judge into the reasons why there has been so many deaths. For detailed information on the relationship between a safe rate and their deaths (How many Australian soldiers died in Vietnam in one year?) contact Wayne Mader of the Secretary of the TWU Vic Tas Branch.
Please take this seriously and don’t blow it off because of the 1% of arrogant truck drivers.
If it matters, I am an owner driver in the excavation industry for 15 years. My rates have been cut by 17% in the last 12 months to the point where I have to patch mechanical problems myself at home instead of getting the repairs done by a qualified mechanic.
There are worse off owner drivers than me with big repayments who have been sucked in by unscrupulous agents who control our industry.
The problem is just not for the interstaters but the whole transport industry from 1 tonne vans/trays to B Doubles.
One last point I would like to make is that if there is so many drivers being killed, what is the effect on the community ie car drivers also killed, the serious injuries suffered by both truck and car drivers, increases in insurance and so on.
To conclude do we really get our consumables [groceries building materials parcels beer etc ] cheap?