Tribute for popular truckie

Theft a number two concern

Reports continue to reach Spy about the theft of paper from toilets at rest areas.

Having frequented numerous such facilities myself in recent times I have seen the problem firsthand.

At many you will find such paper on the floor and even whole rolls missing.

There was one incident at a rest area where a truckie challenged some young foreign tourists who walked out of toilets with entire rolls.

He was abused even after warning them it was theft and he could easily take their van registration number and ring the cops.

Some of these toilet rolls are secured by bolts but those who steal them just unroll it and take that away.

Nungarry Rest Area is located beside the Princes Highway in NSW and has southbound access only but is popular with truckies, vans and motorists.

There is also an excellent Driver Reviver there run by Lions Club volunteers.

TfNSW had a notice inside a dunny advising that after ongoing incidences of damage, theft and vandalism, the provision of paper was suspended until further notice.

Truckies will tell you that finding a suitable rest area with a decent dunny is hard enough in itself.

But if you pull up wanting an urgent “number two” and find there is no paper, it is even worse.

This may sound like a menial subject and whinge, but to our champion drivers who find themselves in such a predicament, it is a grassroots issue.

Long service at roadhouse William Nash has worked at the Black Mountain Roadhouse in NSW for an amazing 35 years.

Aged 58, that is most of his working life and during that time he has met thousands of truck drivers, many of whom are warm friends.

“We would get between 100 and 200 truckies on average a day stop off here. We are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week with full service,” Nash said.

I visited there on January 5 with my wife Jenny during a story gathering trip through NSW and southern Queensland.

Every time I have interviewed and snapped pics of drivers at random for Big Rigs, one of the questions I ask is about their favourite roadhouse.

In the past years, scores of truckies have nominated Black Mountain which is located 25km from Armidale – so I decided to stop in there unannounced.

My wife ordered the big Black Mountain breakfast which she rated as delicious and great value for money at $19.

I opted for a beef pie which I found out was homemade by Nash and it was tasty.

When I told Nash I was a Big Rigs writer he took a few minutes to tell his story.

“I came from a farm background and when the family sold it 35 years ago I was offered a job here at the Black Mountain Roadhouse and took it. However I thought I may only last three months and I am still here and love it,” he said.

Nash said the main food truckies ordered if they were dining in was steak, veggies and salad, and the big breakfast.

“Some use the showers and toilets and if they are busy will grab a cup of coffee and a cold drink and be on their way,” he said.

One of the truckies he became great friends with lets him stay at his house when Nash visits Brisbane.

The other worker there when I visited was Kym Nielsen who, like Nash, was run off her feet.

She was cooking the food orders, whilst Nash was on the counter and delivering meals to tables.

The roadhouse is privately owned by a Sydney man and has been there since 1954.

Since then the fuel has been supplied by BP, Liberty, Shell, Mobil and Golden Fleece.

Nash said he is sure the roadhouse is one of only three between Cairns and Melbourne which provides full service all day, every day.

William Nash is the longest serving employee of a roadhouse I have interviewed. If you know of anybody who has served longer, we want to know about him or her.

War of words

A war of words has erupted over the lack of public toilets available for truck drivers at rest areas or pull off sections along the busy Bass Highway, between Launceston and Devonport in Tasmania.

A number of truckies reckon there are none along the 102km stretch of the major route in northern Tassie.

They have complained bitterly that authorities should ensure drivers have some toilets for their use.

To balance the story Spy contacted a well respected road transport identity to offer his views.

He admitted that whilst the Launceston to Devonport corridor does have the largest number of daily truck movements, that drivers have correctly told me there are no toilets as yet.

“There is work being done currently on that to find sites suitable,” he said.

“If any of those drivers were realistic and honest with you they too would have mentioned there is no land mass at roadside that would service a rest area and toilet without land purchase, that would accommodate the guidelines for safety for entry into traffic.

“So a rest area must be located accordingly around safety issues and guidelines so it does not contribute to possible accidents by trucks entering traffic at slow speed.”

It must be pointed out that there are numerous roadhouses with toilets along the way where drivers can stop.

Parkes park problem

A Victorian driver based at Ballarat who travels into NSW regularly is hoping that authorities do some much needed work on a parking bay just before Parkes.

“I stopped there and you can do damage to your tyres because of the giant potholes,” he said.

The lad does concede that such potholes are everywhere after heavy rain but he reckons this one is in really bad shape.

He also said there were similar problems with a rest area in the vicinity of Forbes.

Secret admirer

Receiving flowers is a happy occasion most of the time, often delivered to celebrate a special milestone such as a birthday, wedding or anniversary etc.

In a minority of cases such a bouquet will be delivered by a “secret admirer”.

This is the case for a wellknown lady who toils hard at a popular roadhouse.

The first lot arrived on Valentine’s Day and from reports which Spy received had the lass beaming with joy.

But there was no identification from the sender except the words ‘From a secret admirer’.

On two more occasions flowers have turned up and she has no idea who the admirer is.

But she does suspect it is an interstate truck driver who frequents the roadhouse.

Any updates will be passed on by Spy.

Hume holes

Whilst many truckies have told Spy that the Hume is in fair to good condition when compared with other highways around Australia, there is one section they say needs urgent repairs.

“The Hume between the Marulan Inspection Station and the service centres is in terrible condition,” one said.

It is a busy route and they tell me many trucks have incurred tyre damage when negotiating it.

They say it is bad enough having to go through a rigorous inspection at Marulan weighbridge which adds to the angst.

Much-loved truckie and staunch campaigner for better conditions and facilities for drivers, Lindsay Cavill, has passed away at the age of 56.

Cavill was seriously injured on April 8, 2022, when a large square bale of hay fell on him while unloading at a feedlot in Charters Towers. He required surgery on his back and neck, and suffered 18 broken ribs, a dislocated hip, along with many other internal injuries. The accident resulted in Cavill becoming a quadriplegic. Before his passing, he had been learning to master an electric wheel chair using chin controls. Sadly, he never made it home from hospital and passed away on February 18, 2023, 10 months after the accident.

“It was the second time he had been to that feedlot that week and was early in the morning. A bale of hay fell off the truck and it hit him. I believe they weigh about 400kg per bale,” explained his partner Ann Nelson.

Cavill was taken to Charter Towers Hospital by ambulance, before being air lifted to Townsville and ending up in ICU. The next morning he was put into an induced coma and flown to the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane, where he passed away last month.

“He had suffered massive injuries and was in hospital battling all that time. A workplace safety investigation hasn’t been finalised. I hope the outcome of the investigation compels workplaces to better protect drivers,” explained Nelson, who had only been a week out of hospital at the time of her husband’s accident, following complicated knee surgery.

With herself based in Townsville and Cavill in hospital in Brisbane, Nelson would fly over to see him every three weeks for many months.

Nelson says Cavill will be remembered as always being kind and thoughtful, and looking out for others.

“In hospital, he was well liked by fellow patients and staff. He was always looking out for his fellow patients too,” she said. Cavill was an owner operator based in the rural Townsville suburb of Woodstock.

Born in Townsville, he was the youngest of three children to Roy and Joy Cavill. He was a much loved partner to Ann Nelson.

Cavill attended Woodstock State School and worked at Calcium Mine and also did some butchering for well-known Ralph Savill. Long-time friend Nick Roberts, who runs Nix Transport at Major’s Creek, has fond memories of Cavill.

“Lindsay remained on the family property at Woodstock where he ran cattle and his freight business with his faithful Freightliner carrying out road train work for himself and subbing to other freight companies,” Roberts said.

“He had a heart of gold and would push himself beyond limits to help anyone. One of his challenges was fighting to better road train facilities for operators, especially the breakdown pad on the Woodstock/Giru road which has been used by many truck drivers over the years but came under fire from the transport department recently.” Cavill’s family were genuine pioneers of the region, having been at Woodstock since the 1880s.