Thursday, July 03, 2008

It's the day of the big "truckie" strike. Yes, as in Spain, France, UK and elsewhere, the truck driver protests have come to NZ. And it's not so much about fuel prices, though that's the backdrop, it's really about an increase in the road usage tax. Will we be able to get to school?

Here's a look down the hill from our driveway...












I can see they've already started. Wouldn't normally see a truck down there at the bottom of the hill. Uh oh, I can hear horns in the distance. Let's give it a go and see what happens--












Well having made it there and back, I can tell you these are the nicest truckies ever. As you can see from my windshield-cam, the drivers are leaving space for people to pull in and out. Yes, the works are a bit gummed up, but you can still get where you need to go.

No impromptu road blockages here, I flip on the news, which is broadcasting the routes the trucks will be taking in Wellington and Auckland, so everyone can know exactly where to go (or avoid). It's kind of like a parade.

Those horns? I think it's more a solidarity tap on the horn between truckies and the occasional auto driver. In fact the media is reporting in their poll as to, Do you support the truckies?, the results are 95% Yes 5% No in their most lopsided poll result ever. So there you have it. The great NZ truckie action of July 4, 2008.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey Barb, here is a link to Wikipedia about mufti day! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mufti_(dress)

Anonymous said...

actually I'm not anonyous, I'm Theresa! I've just never done this before!

Barbara said...

Thanks Teresa. We love comments. I'll check out the site.

Sue K said...

SO...is the truck strike over? Did you guys have any issues because of the strike? Sue