NSW Nationals Leader Andrew Stoner will hit the road with Mills Transport to get an understanding of the trucking industry
By Brad Gardner | May 28, 2010
NSW Nationals Leader Andrew Stoner will hit the road with Mills Transport next week to get an understanding of the trucking industry.
Stoner, who is also the opposition spokesman on roads, was invited by Mills to travel in one of its B-doubles on the Pacific Highway on May 31.
Stoner will travel from Port Macquarie to Sydney and says the trip is important in helping him realise the daily operations of trucking companies.
“I believe that truck drivers play a vital role in the State’s economy and we need to ensure they are able to transport their loads with the best efficiency, without compromising their safety and the safety of other motorists,” Stoner says.
He has also used the event to criticise the NSW Government’s investment in the Pacific Highway, saying projects are riddled with cost blowouts.
“If the State Government had honoured their commitment to upgrade the Pacific Highway, then we’d be seeing far less accidents,” Stoner says.
He claims truck drivers are unfairly used as “the scapegoat” for heavy vehicle accidents because a lack of investment in the road network has played a role.