Canterbury truckie 'terrified' at thought of being involved in fatal crash

Scary dashcam footage has been filmed by a South Island truckie, highlighting the dangerous driving of some Kiwis on our rural roads.

Jess Johns, 23, fears, through no fault of her own, of being involved in a serious or fatal crash everyday she goes to work.

"It's terrifying to think we could kill someone, we're carrying so much weight, and people just don't seem to realise how hard it is for us to stop."

The Canterbury-based driver of three years said her truck, usually 23 metres-long and weighing 50 to 58 tonnes, would "take a good 200-300 metres to stop at 90km/h".

She said some her scariest moments have come when a driver pulls out in front of her at an intersection, attempts to overtake her truck on a blind corner, or overtakes her when entering a town.

"Is it because they see the truck and think it's travelling slow? Or because we're professional drivers and think we should stop for them?"

She posted the dashcam footage to her YouTube and Facebook pages to raise awareness about the dangers amateur drivers create on Kiwi roads.

Frustrated, she also wanted police to take a more active role in locating the offenders reported by truckies.

"You ring *555 to report the driver, they tell you there are no [police] patrols in the area, but then 10-15 minutes down the road you see a patrol parked up checking people's speeds."

She said her husband frets about her profession, but despite the danger Johns loves her job.

"Yeah, every day I'm worried. Every day it's always in the back of your mind that you might be involved in a really bad one," she said.