Hall of Fame
George eventually became bored with retirement and returned to truck driving for a further three years, finally giving it away when he was 74 years old
GEORGE SAVAGE
I
nducted into the 2021 Shell Rimula National Road Transport Wall of Fame is George Savage. George was born in Subiaco, Western Australia in January 1939. From a very young age, all George wanted to do was drive trucks. He started his working life as an apprentice mechanic but only lasted for two months. George quickly moved to Browns Transport and Scrap Metal in Perth and after two years, the company sent him to Kalgoorlie to cart and load scrap metal onto trains bound for Perth. When George turned 17, he obtained a special license to drive Ford and Diamond T rigid trucks and two years later, he was eligible to drive semi-trailers. At first, he drove an International KB with a 30 foot trailer and then a Commer Knocker with a 40 foot McGrath trailer. George then moved on to long distance work, carting Main Roads machines and material to Derby with backloads to Perth of empty 44-gallon drums and scrap. An opportunity came along to cart freight to the US Naval Base in Exmouth and George drove a new International
AB184 towing a bogey trailer for this job. Following this, George drove interstate runs for various companies including Mayne Nickless, Swanline, Ashburton, Teasdale and finally, Vaughan Transport.
When George started working for Vaughan Transport in Midvale he became part of a great team and that is where he stayed until he retired 23 years later, at age 67. However, George eventually became bored with retirement and returned to truck driving for a further three years, finally giving it away when he was 74 years old. George and his wife, Joan, have been married 62 years after meeting in the Claremont Hotel in 1958. They have raised a family of five daughters.
WATM • January/February 2022
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