Kaingaroa resident Shane Hunt at the site where he had a near head-on collision with a logging truck on Fisher-Riley Road in March. Photo / Myjanne Jensen
Kaingaroa resident Shane Hunt at the site where he had a near head-on collision with a logging truck on Fisher-Riley Road in March. Photo / Myjanne Jensen
A near head-on collision with a logging truck has left a Far North solo dad shaken and car-less.
Shane Hunt, 46, of Kaingaroa claimed he came off second best with a logging truck in March, after being allegedly forced off Fisher-Riley Rd into a row of pine trees.
As a result of the accident, Hunt's Mitsubishi ute sustained $14,000 worth of damage, leaving him no choice but to borrow money to buy a new car.
Hunt said the accident had left him distraught and believed it highlighted the dangers of logging trucks on narrow rural roads.
"I have driven on this same road for 18 years and have never had an accident until now," Hunt said.
"In the first couple of months of logging commencing on this road, I had four close calls, plus this accident, and several neighbours have had similar experiences," he claimed.
"Coming up to this blind corner as the truck was coming down, it was the worst possible timing, so the only thing I could do was to swerve or have a head-on.
"If the truck and trailer can't make the corner without entering fully into the wrong lane, then clearly the road is not fit for purpose for a 50-tonne logging truck and trailer."
As a survivor of a gyrocopter crash 14 years ago, Hunt said he'd been living with a brain injury, chronic pain and PTSD.
He explained that up until his accident, he'd been managing well, however the stress from this most recent event had triggered some of his symptoms.
Hunt said he'd counted one truck carrying out 10 movements per day on the road (five loaded, five unloaded) and believed at least four trucks had been working when the accident occurred.
He said he and others often felt intimidated by the logging trucks and had heard stories of people having to drive backwards, around blind corners, to let the trucks pass.
One of Hunt's neighbours, who did not wish to be named, said he too had experienced several near misses with logging trucks on Fisher-Riley Rd.
He suggested a pilot vehicle to escort logging trucks to the main road would ensure safety for all.
"It's only 6 or 7km (or approximately 15 minutes) from the logging site to the main road," the man said.
"Surely one of their staff can escort a couple of trucks which pass through here a few times a day.
"This road does have some decent passing spaces, but these trucks can't drive backwards with their loads, so it puts the onus on other vehicles to back up and let them pass."
Hunt and his neighbour claimed they had been left in the dark about the logging trucks starting work in the area.
The men agreed it was a complicated situation, but felt it was the truck driver's responsibility to identify any risks and/or hazards on the road and to report them back to management.
In the Far North, as long as logging trucks are legally registered vehicles, they are entitled to use and travel on any public road, according to the Northland Transport Alliance (NTA).
Calvin Thomas, NTA general manager, said the exception would be if there was a specific heavy vehicle exclusion (eg, a weight-restricted bridge).
The regulation and enforcement of road rules on district roads was the responsibility of the police, Thomas said.
In 2018, Far North District Council negotiated time restrictions with local forestry operators on truck movements due to complaints from Kerikeri residents concerned about the level of logging truck traffic on residential roads.
The trucks were unable to operate on residential streets before 9am or after 2.30pm and had to restrict vehicles to 30km/h.
A photo taken of the crash involving Hunt's ute and the logging truck. Hunt claimed the truck had swung too wide on the blind corner, leaving him no choice but to veer off the road. Photo / Shane Hunt
In terms of signage, Thomas explained that the National Environmental Standard for Forestry (NES Forestry) set out what was permitted.
"Harvesting a plantation forest does not explicitly trigger the need for signage, although as a 'good neighbour' action some logging companies do install signs to improve awareness of increased traffic," Thomas said.
"If a logging company is harvesting adjacent to the road, then a Traffic Management Plan will be required."
Thomas said occasionally, the risk of access onto the road network was such that a Traffic Management Plan (local traffic control and temporary speed limits) at the access point was also required.
According to Waka Kotahi NZTA, all truck operators and drivers must comply with the Land Transport Act, no matter what road they are driving on.
Operators are responsible for ensuring drivers comply with the act in regard to issues such as fatigue, logbooks, speed, alcohol etc.
Waka Kotahi also issues the Transport Service Licences (TSL) that operators are required to have to run their businesses and TSL holders are regulated by Waka Kotahi.
Kevin Anderson, Waka Kotahi NZTA portfolio manager (Central North Island), said all trucks must comply with the act, including logging trucks.
He said in some circumstances, such as for an over-dimension vehicle (eg, a truck transporting a house) a pilot vehicle could be required, but "that was not the case for logging trucks".
"It is not envisaged that such a requirement would be put in place," Anderson said.
Whether Waka Kotahi would become involved in a road incident would depend on the police finding, Anderson added.
"If the police find that there is a significant fault, such as an unsafe vehicle, or a drug or alcohol-influenced driver, Waka Kotahi will follow up with the operator and/or driver," he said.
"In the case referred to here, the police prosecutor reviewed the case and made the decision not to proceed with any further action.
"Waka Kotahi would be guided by that decision."
The Northland Age sighted an initial traffic crash report, which found the truck driver was at fault.
The matter was eventually dismissed, however, after a police prosecutor could not find sufficient evidence to prosecute either driver.
Northland District prosecution manager Catherine Anderson confirmed once the matter had been before the court, a police prosecutor had reviewed the case and all information available about the incident.
"Ultimately a decision was made to withdraw the charge," Anderson said.
"This was done in considering the levels of evidential sufficiency and whether this would bring about a successful conviction.
"It was the police's assessment this would likely not be the case.
"Police appreciate this would be incredibly frustrating for the other party involved in this crash, however, police must take the Solicitor-General's guidelines for prosecution into account when proceeding with prosecutions."
Hunt said despite the ruling, he hoped sharing his story would create more awareness about the issue and encourage others to come forward if they had experienced the same.
The Northland Age attempted to contact Northland Forest Haulage Ltd, the company involved in the March incident but was unable to get a comment before this edition's print deadline.
