The welcome announcement from the Heavy Vehicle Industry Association that the Brisbane Truck Show is going to happen on May 13 to 16 this year will have been welcome news for many in the industry, after all, the show must go on.
It needs to happen for the sanity of many people in the trucking industry. Working in the road transport industry does mean that most people are working in their own little area, either on the road or in various facilities around the country, with very little interaction with others in trucking, but we are all part of an industry which does have an element of group solidarity.
Working in an industry which is pilloried by the media, ignored by the government and taken for granted by the general public, means we have a common experience, which is only felt by others in the same position.
The social side of the trucking industry is just as important as the business side. It is a small enough industry for those involved to know a wide range of their competitors and to have common issues and gripes which can be shared.
It is only at industry events that people can get together, pick up on all of the gossip, get an idea of who’s who in the zoo plus catch up with old friends and colleagues.
Last year was a nightmare for anyone wanting to network in trucking. Not only were in-person meeting off-limits, and no industry event occurred after March, but many sectors of the industry were snowed under with work or trying to cope with unplanned and poorly executed border crossing bans.
Let’s hope the worst is behind us and the borders will remain open so that all of those great people who make this Australian trucking industry such a fun and challenging area in which to work can get together, have a few beers, meet up with old friends, chew the fat and, of course, get to touch and look at all of the latest in trucking technology.
We will all be sitting nervously, looking out for outbreaks, hoping the borders stay open and looking forward to some semblance of normality at the Brisbane Truck Show in a couple of months time.
