29 October 2014

‘Legends’ of the road feature in road safety campaign

Justin Cruickshank is a Waikato trucking ‘legend’ whose road safety tip for fellow drivers features in the second phase of a regional education campaign launched today.

The first series of Waikato Truck Legends in 2012 incorporated road safety messaging and truck specifications in a series of 10 collector’s cards which proved to be so popular drivers called for a second series to be produced.

The 2014/15 limited edition series features trucks from some of the Waikato’s top companies, as well as safety tips from their drivers.

The Waikato trucking companies featuring in this series have been selected by industry regulators in recognition of their high performance in health, safety and driving. Each company has then chosen one of their own ‘legendary’ drivers to provide a safety tip which is featured on their card with a photo of the truck and its specifications.

The new Volvo livestock truck Mr Cruickshank drives for Otorohanga Transport is on the first ‘Waikato Truck Legends’ card, and has been released today.

Justin’s message is: “Smooth and efficient drivers make safer trips – think of your load as valuable livestock.”

The 34-year-old from Otorohanga has been driving trucks for 14 years and explains: “I do about 100,000km a year, maybe a bit more, and there are a lot of hazards to look out for.

“To me, it’s important to always be thinking about the animals, because the stock we carry are worth a lot of money so we’ve got to look after them and drive smoothly. You need to think about the others on the road and your own safety too.”

Waikato Regional Council’s road safety coordinator, Monique Haines, said truck drivers took on board the messages from the first campaign and this time round there has already been a lot of interest. Going on the last campaign the cards will be highly sought after.

“Many heavy vehicle drivers are doing the right thing to make our roads a safer place and to minimise the crash risk. In the long term, as a result of this campaign, we’d expect to see an increased knowledge of driver safety, leading to reduced trauma on Waikato roads,” Mrs Haines said.

“With only 1000 copies of each card on offer, it is expected they’ll quickly become popular trading items, as drivers and truck enthusiasts try to collect the whole set.”

Truck drivers wanting to collect the series will need to get in quick! For more information or to order cards, go to the Reduce the Risk website, www.reducetherisk.co.nz. A new card will be released every three weeks over the next six months.

The ‘Waikato Truck Legends’ campaign – led by the Waikato Regional Road Safety Education Group – is the result of close collaboration between truck drivers, operators, regulators, industry associations and road safety educators.

ENDS

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