Waiting for the call as drivers duel with death
Startling footage has laid bare the deadly conditions faced by truck drivers on the Bruce Highway, as the boss of one of Queensland’s largest freight companies reveals why he waits by the phone each night.
The deteriorated, underfunded highway has become a landmine for crashes, with truck drivers forced to navigate potholes, outdated bridges and narrow shoulders at the expense of their own safety.
Major concerns have been raised over the lack of rest stop areas and overtaking lanes, with footage showing frustrated motorists dodging oncoming traffic to pass trucks on dual lanes.
Followmont Transport CEO Mark Tobin said road conditions on the Bruce had become so rife, he challenged anyone to drive a truck along the highway and “see if they have their ribs left”.
Mr Tobin operates one of the largest Bruce Highway delivery services, with 100 Followmont B Double trucks sent to North Queensland and back each night.
“I can send anyone from Brisbane to Sydney and know they’re safe but from Brisbane to Cairns, road conditions are unpredictable,” he said.
“How my guys come home each time I have no idea.”
Mr Tobin lost one of his drivers on the Bruce Highway just four weeks ago.
Followmont driver Daniel Stuart lost his life driving past an intersection in Maryborough when a disqualified driver turned on to the highway, directly into the path of a semi trailer, causing a headon collision between the two trucks. The trucks exploded on impact, killing both drivers.
“To make a phone call to his family after 30 years in this industry is the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” Mr Tobin said.
“It’s not fair that a man who did all the right things doesn’t get to go home to his family. Dan just went to work.
“We put everything in those trucks to make people safe, and I still sit by the phone and wait for a call.”
Drivers experience near misses regularly, with motorists frequently driving into oncoming traffic to pass trucks.
Dashcam footage provided to The Sunday Mail shows a hire van speeding on the opposite side of the road to overtake a truck barely missing two oncoming cars, while in others cars reverse or pull out in front of trucks, and drive over double lines on tight corners, with trucks jerking to the left to avoid being clipped.
Between 2020 and 2023, 134 people died in 121 fatal crashes on the Bruce Highway, with stretches between Bald Hills and Caboolture, Ingham and Innisfail, and Mackay and Proserpine the most dangerous head-on hotspots.
OzWide Freight linehaul manager and experienced truck driver Brendon Edwards recalled a recent crash at a parking bay in Gin Gin when a caravan driver “drove straight into him”.
“He totalled his car and told me he didn’t see me,” he said.
Constant crashes also create extensive delays for freight companies, with limited to no heavy vehicle detour routes.
Drivers forced to pull over behind a road incident end up waiting so long, others are sent out to crash sites for emergency shift changeovers.
Nolan’s Interstate Transport’s Anne Lipp said if the company did not meet its delivery timeslot, loads of fresh produce could be rejected.
“Any delay and cost to the transportation of goods effectively increases the price of the product for the customer, increasing the cost of living for everyone,” she said.
Mr Tobin said all Bruce issues could be fixed if the government came to the table: “It needs to be through structure, forward vision and putting money in the right place.”
Transport and Main Roads Minister Bart Mellish last week conceded funding had been affected by the state/federal infrastructure split in which the state took on 80:20 instead of the previous 50:50.
Despite this, he said 57 per cent of the state’s $32bn infrastructure investment would be spent in regional areas, with $18bn going to Rocky and Mackay ring road projects and the Gympie Bypass.