Introduction.
I first became involved in road safety in 1999 following one of those days on the road, when you really wonder where people get their licenses, out of Weet Bix packets or do they simply not care about their lives or those of anyone else? After sleeping for the night at Narrabri and only being on the road 15 minutes and not even up to highway speed, I and the car behind me, were overtaken by another car with two unrestrained children in the back with an approaching b-double heading towards us less than 200 metres away. I was in a b-double fuel tanker and both b-doubles went off the road onto the shoulder to allow the stupid motorist to safely get through.

Later that same day being fully loaded and coming down off a hill onto a narrow bridge, I flashed the oncoming F250 Ford as if to say, “Back off just a bit and I will be off the bridge before you come on”. No way. This bloke kept coming and we met before I came off the bridge and to this day, I believe I missed that vehicle and the bridge posts by millimetres. Had he just lifted his foot off the accelerator for less than 20 seconds, I would have been clear and the possibility of a crash would have been completely avoided. So I pulled up for my break and thought, “What can I do to lessen these problems?” and have been involved since.

All drivers and truckies particularly, can regale you with horror stories of crashes and near misses, most of which need not have happened, nor the risk have even occurred, had the motorist simply respected the size and weight of the larger truck. This is not about might is right, it is simple physics. As a pedestrian, you would not step out in front of a bus and simply expect it to stop because you are there. And yet everyday, car drivers who have perhaps not been taught to share the road with trucks, will pull directly out in front of a fully loaded semi or b-double and expect them to stop dead.

If through the information on these pages, one of these crashes or lives lost can be prevented, then my efforts will have been worthwhile. I make no claims to be perfect, we are all (at least supposedly) human, but not all drivers are equal and some have simply been taught to pass a test, not to spend the rest of their lives on the road, let alone to share those roads with large trucks. Fatal crashes between cars and trucks are over 70% the fault of the car driver according to crash statistics. This only confirms to me that we do need better education of car drivers about sharing the road with trucks. There is no doubt that truckies have to earn the respect their vehicles deserve and do their part to improve road safety as well.

I have now travelled in excess of 6 million kilometres on the road in vehicles from cars up to triple roadtrains and still see such foolhardy acts on the highway that risk my life and that of others. If all drivers treated people in other vehicles as if they were a member of their own family, do you think that would change some of the impatience and risky behaviours? Perhaps not a bad way to look at your time on the road. Is it your children as learners, your wife or partner in the next car, or your ageing parents going a bit steady? Either way, would you risk their lives to save yourself two minutes? I hope not, but it is up to you!

Having returned Ken’s truck, I then went back to RPT truck 7 for another year, then in 2011 Rod Pilon Transport bought a new K200 bigcab, the first in the fleet and I designed a new set of curtains that Rod never saw till I turned up with them fitted. There are few companies that would allow a driver to do this and I thank Rod Pilon for his support since the start and through now to his son Ben.

I had that white K200 for just short of ten years, did over 2 million k in it and it is still on the road with yet another Rod, driving it. The original curtains from the first TIV are on another set of RPT trailers, so they too are still putting out a good view and industry promotion as they travel the highways. TIV 2 served me very well, but now there is TIV 3 and likely the last, we will see.

June 2017 Audiobooks For The Road
I have started a facebook page to provide reviews of books I read, sometimes up to 3 a week and to seek your comments and reviews as well. I was recently invited to be a judge for audiobook of the year and want to let people know of the entertainment you can get on long trips from audiobooks. Click Here to read more.
Links to the ABC interview and Sydney Morning Herald article.

March 2026 Latest Blog Post. Listen on Spotify
Goodaye all, well a big week for fuel and NSW roads with the Great Western Highway closed for they say 3 months, if only. It has always been a bottleneck, limited to semis and the tunnel was planning to go straight to A doubles, but that got canned and here we are, but even had they agreed to go ahead, we would still be in the same situation now. Why? Beats me? And will we ever know the truth? Seems it has been slowly getting worse, but surely it would have been cheaper to fix some years ago when they first found the problems, but now it is and will be for some time, a nightmare for all who run Sydney west.

I see the ACCC, only two weeks late and after we have all been buying greatly overpriced fuel, are going to talk to the fuel companies. I’m sure we will all get a refund, in your dreams. Panic buying has simply made it so much worse, but how do you stop that?

So on a run to Adelaide and back we had the bad caravaner and the good one. Caravan approaching me, but slowing and half on the shoulder, I called the truck stuck behind the van, saying he could have picked a better spot to slow and move left. But it gets worse. Ol mate in the van had sat in the parking bay exit, waited for the b-double to nearly get there, only to pull straight out in front of him, accelerate, only to then slow as the door to his van was swinging open, so not only an idiot for pulling out in front, but then stuffed the truck up again as he slowed and pulled up, still half on the road to shut the door.

Then on the way home came up behind a van and yes, they had an 18/40 sign on the back, but very small. I called them up and asked could I make a suggestion. “Yes”. “I am in the truck (with a car in between us) just behind you and whilst I know what your sign says and why, as I started Caravan Channel 18, it is too small and no one could read it till they are as close behind you as the car, you need to make it 200mm high so we can read it early and call you early”. Then the lady replied, “Would that be Rod Hannifey?” and I said, after laughing for a bit, “Yes and how” and they said “We listen to you on the podcast each week” so I said “Well listen next week and I will mention you” and tomorrow I will, Joan and Louie.

So they then offered me help to get round and I overtook them when safe and wished them safe travels, so one for Luke and the “Bonafide” podcast. I had a bloke call me up and say the truck looked good on the way home and after I had done the same on the way out of Melbourne, had dinner with a gent in a beautiful 8 month old 909 at the Ampol Keith and yes it was a good feed, but I did finish it, which he had said he doubted I could. 9 out of 10, just the salad kept it from being a 10.

Then at Ararat pulled up for a feed to have a bloke walk in and give me that look, he knows me, but I did not know from where till he came and sat down. Over 20 years ago this fellow worked in the Finemores Melbourne workshop where I spent a bit of time and he left and went into farming and trucking and we discussed the old days for a few hours before a shower and into the backblocks of Ballarat for my delivery next morning.

Many of you may recall the “Stinger” a Finemores designed car carrier that in its’ day, was way ahead of its’ time. But they are all gone, as are the Cottrell trailers initially from the USA, that followed them. Sad not one of either still exists as far as I know, they were all chopped up when they reached the end of their lives so as not to be sold to others and give them that advantage. There should have been one in a trucking museum somewhere, they were very different.

So I loaded out of Melbourne Thursday for Wagga Friday morning and the plans have changed so many times since then, I am only sure I know what I am doing tomorrow, cause I made sure when I got to the yard this morning after a changeover last night at Moree, the trailers I am taking are good to go, so podcast in the morning and Westbound and down. Till next time, Safe Travelling, Rod.

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