The current system of Road Users is based on farm vehicles using diesel and not the road and
that's why there is Road Users for all diesel on road vehicles. So before we start picking on trucks doing
damage to the roads, just some facts :
I own a 44 tonne 9 axle B Train
For the first six months of this financial year, I have already paid $39,000 on Road Users.
In my 18 years driving trucks, I have spent in excess of $1.3 million of Road Users. My
new truck is 20 months old and Ive already done 170,000kms. Just the fuel bill for the
first six months was $61,000. My trailers have done in excess of 1,000,000kms and I
still have the same brakes. And this is only one truck, multiply that by however many there
are and we MORE than pay for fixing the roads. Not picking on anyone, but just some
facts. We also own a diesel 4WD.
Its not the trucks causing the damage, but the Contractors using substandard materials,
they chip seal it one day and the next day the chips are already coming off. In the early
days when Ministry of Works were doing the roads, they chip sealed it, rolled it with big,
heavy rollers, swept it, painted it and it was useable by that night. Now they use the trucks
as rollers and all the chips stay in the tread of the tyres.