ATN speaks to a truckie with 35 years of experience, as she recounts her struggles with female accessibility at vehicle rest areas
For all the advancements in technology and equipment in the trucking industry, many say there are still simple things that need addressing.
Long a male-dominated industry, there has been a steady change across recent years. A Bureau of Infrastructure report estimated that 77 per cent of transport workers were male in 2016, with not much movement since then.
Efforts are being made to change this. Major companies are offering transport scholarships for women, advocacy groups are being created and training courses are seeing a significantly higher uptick in female enrolment.
But one veteran driver says simple amenities for women like toilets at rest stops are still being ignored.
Tara has been on the road for almost 35 years, doing interstate drives between Melbourne and Adelaide and all across Australia. These days, she’s semi-retired, but still does changeovers at Nhill.
Self-described as “old school” but “starting to slow down a bit”, Tara is as experienced and weathered as any driver across Australia.
“I’ll put it like this. Nhill Highway was actually a highway with a single lane each way when I started,” she told ATN.
But her “pet peeve” has been a lack of accessibility for women at vehicle rest areas.
Across her years, Tara says she has encountered several difficulties when the facilities aren’t available to her and other female drivers.
“My big thing is facilities are built but there’s nothing available for women,” she says.
“There’s more and more women getting into the industry, a lot more than when I started. They opened the Nhill trailer exchange, but there were no women’s toilets.
“There was a disabled and a whole heap of men’s toilets and that was it. I jumped up and down. Half the time you can’t use the disabled toilets because it’s either blocked up or there’s a man in it.
“On several occasions, I’ve been there for three and a half hours, and someone has locked the door to the toilet and you can’t get into it.”
These aren’t just concerns from Tara alone. Many female drivers and workers within the transport industry share these sentiments.
As recently as July this year, supply chain consultancy TMX Global published an industry study focusing on female perception of truck rest stops.
It found that many women do not stop at rest areas if they don’t feel safe, with accessible amenities playing a major part in that response.
Other factors found in the study such as poor lighting, unenclosed shower facilities, a lack of security and the risk of vandalism to vehicles prevent them from stopping at or using existing rest stops.
Most survey respondents, which included both male and female drivers, say they primarily stop at rest areas due to fatigue and to use the bathroom.
It’s issues like these, Tara says, that are preventing more women from taking up jobs within the transport industry.
“The women truck drivers, they’re out there to do a job,” she says.
“They don’t expect any special treatment at all. They just expect a bit of courtesy and a bit of respect.
“I do think issues like these make it harder for them. I know that there are women that are having these issues, and I do come across them. Why should I have to go against the men, at this point?
“The Nhill trailer exchange, it is busy. I have to make sure no one’s around so I can go and use the toilet.
“They moved the changeover bay out of town because the trucks are too noisy. That’s fair enough. I have no problem with that.
“What I do have a problem with is that if I have to go into town, I have to leave my truck behind me in the middle of the street. No resident wants that.”
The location of rest areas has been another issue raised by truckies.
The federal government announced the Heavy Vehicle Rest Area Initiative (HVRAI) in July, encouraging truckies to have their say.
It committed more than $140 million over 10 years for the construction of new and upgraded rest areas, headed by senator Glenn Sterle.
Submissions have been welcomed for the implementation of new rest areas as well as any issues with the condition of current rest areas.
In New South Wales, there was overwhelming feedback around the amount of rest stops, with 65 per cent of participants in a Transport NSW report also describing the rest areas as either ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’ in quality.
While there will soon be a new heavy vehicle rest area in Western Sydney, truckies like Tara feel like there are many areas that have still been overlooked.
“I’ve been to most places, I’ve been all over Australia just about driving,” she says.
“Everything needs a bit of maintenance. We just want to do our jobs. I don’t think that’s too much to ask.”