Road Transport Operators Line Up For Trucking Industry Summit

More than 200 transport operators have already registered for the Trucking Industry Summit in Christchurch on Saturday 30 July jointly organised by National Road Carriers (NRC) and NZ Trucking Association (NTA).

“We are delighted with the level of interest,” says NRC COO James Smith. “Places are filling so fast we may have to extend the conference room to cater for everyone. In previous years we have had 150 to 200 attendees in total.”

NTA CEO Dave Boyce says the summit will address the industry’s major challenges including the driver shortage, poor road conditions and the Road User Charges (RUC) review. “I am sure there will be some robust discussions and this summit is the perfect way to include the whole industry.”

Minister of Transport the Hon. Michael Wood will open the summit, National transport spokesperson Simeon Brown will speak on his party’s road transport policies and the Hon. Simon Bridges, Chair of NRC’s newly formed Transport and Logistic Advisory Group, will give an update on its work.

“We are pleased there is a high level of interest in the summit from government agencies as well as the industry. We had more Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency people wanting to present than there were speaking slots available,” says Smith.

The summit has five accompanying discussion documents covering Workforce Strategy, Road to Zero, Safe Roads, Productivity, and Decarbonisation. For each of those, NTA and NRC have set out the challenges and their response. Open-floor discussions will take place throughout the day to ensure attendees have a voice.

Smith says the summit is designed for practical, busy truck company operators for whom time and money are at a premium. Attendees need only take a day away from their businesses, and the registration fee is just $75 plus GST.

“The summit is heavily focused on what operators can do now. With decarbonisation, for example, there are too many aspirational statements of where we would like to be in 20 years’ time. People want to know what’s currently happening - to start preparing their businesses for 2030.”

Attendees will hear from Brendan King, General Manager TR Group, which owns New Zealand’s biggest fleet and has been researching and experimenting with electric trucks for 10 years. Brendan will speak from an operator’s perspective about the barriers and challenges.

Smith says a question for many truck company owners is “What will happen to my diesel trucks?” Z Energy will talk about what they are doing with biofuels to lessen carbon emissions for diesel engines. Hiringa Energy will talk about the latest developments with hydrogen as a transport fuel.

“There is no single solution for these challenges. People often look for the one thing that will fix it all, but it doesn’t exist.”

Another big focus of the summit will be road safety with Police Assistant Commissioner Bruce O’Brien presenting Commercial Vehicle Safety Team (CVST) Road to Zero policies for heavy vehicles. Summit attendees will have the opportunity to comment on how Road to Zero can be better aligned to actions.

TruckSafe Australia Chair Paul Fellows will talk about the Australian Trucking Association self-accredited business and risk management system that improves the safety and professionalism of trucking operators. The accreditation is based on a set of minimum standards a trucking business should meet for it to be a safe, responsible operation.

“It’s a packed programme,” says Smith. “The conversations will extend well beyond the event, and we are enabling attendees to provide their thoughts on-line so everyone can have their say.”

© Scoop Media