Last week, ahead of the 2024 NZ Road Transport Hall of Fame event at the Bill Richardson Transport World in Invercargill, Dave and I had a quick chat about some of the more positive aspects of the industry we’d witnessed while on the road that week.

We were inspired by those doing the hard yards to build a young Otago-based transport company, by the lad at another Southland operator still too young to get his drivers’ licence but beginning his career from the ground up, and of course, by the spirit of the Hall of Fame honouring those who did all that many years ago and helped make the industry what it is today.

But the good vibes weren’t to end there because, after a quick stop in Alexandra to mingle with the operators taking part in the town’s annual Blossom Festival truck parade, we headed over to the West Coast to meet another multi-generational operator with a decades-long history serving the region. It’s fair to say the flashest thing about their whole operation was the new truck and trailer unit we were there to feature. That was hardly surprising though, and fully in keeping with the no-frills attitude in the region.

For someone who spends most of their time bouncing around the North Island – and far too much time in the hustle and bustle of Auckland – spending a few days on the West Coast was a breath of fresh air. There’s an overwhelming sense in the region of getting on with the job, dedication and, most notably, community. It was certainly a different experience – for me at least – to walk into the local pub at the end of the day and see many of the locals all there having a drink, a yarn, and a laugh at the end of the day.

I suppose that’s nothing unusual in many small-town regions of the country – but for a visitor from one of the ‘big cities’, it was like a step back in time. And I mean that in the most positive light … It was a reminder of what’s most important not only in an industry like ours, but in everyday life – the people, those we surround ourselves with, those we work beside, and those we build our communities with.

‘A great place to leave the world behind,’ I thought. But a great place too, to remember the virtues of going back to basics – and how often do we need to remember to do that in today’s times…

Take care out there,

Gavin Myers
Editor