MY NAME is Will, I'm 35 and have been driving trucks since I was 19, carting livestock, most of it in the eastern states and Western Australia, as well as carting general freight.

I'm currently driving for RTA/Hamptons in Perth I'm well aware of the issues this industry faces and believe it can be fixed by blokes like myself that are drivers and not owner operators or mangers.

We need to be involved more with decision making and rules, too many decisions are based on profit and not the viability of the industry.

Long term benefits for those working in it for the long term areas I believe need to be fixed and addressed are:

• Paying drivers by the km and trip money
• Different laws in different states - eg fatigue laws, length limits, combinations
• Vehicle standards - I'm noticing more and more drivers are driving trucks not fit for the job with no sleeper air con and very small bunks on long distance trucks

It's about time we look at making fridges and inverters mandatory in trucks - especially giving blokes need inverters to run sleep apnoea machines

Maybe looking at giving long distance drivers, who spend a lot of time away, five weeks a year holiday pay.

Not allowing people to upgrade their licence from HC to MC etc without showing that there has been time spent driving the smaller class of vehicle before up grading.

Check drivers history lost demit points, insurance claims etc - we need competent drivers driving.

Will Guyett