Truckers: Life on the Road

One of the newest recruits to the world of trucking is Laura – one of ten new apprentices recently brought in to combat the driver shortages. So far, she’s loving the life of a trucker. After a lesson from The Donk in how to park a 55-foot truck in a tight space, she’s ready to hit the road on the day shift. Top of today’s tasks is delivering 52 pallets of toilet roll. Between deliveries, she manages to squeeze in a quick catch-up with fiancée and fellow apprentice driver Ben.

Receptionist Jess is another recent recruit who joined the company after the global shutdown put paid to her job tracking down lost bags for airline passengers. Luckily for Jess, veteran driver The Donk is on hand to give her a crash course in all things trucking – quite literally – with a day out to the Pembrey truck races.

Newly qualified driver Laura may have her HGV test behind her, but she still has challenges to overcome. Today she is facing her nemesis: the most complex intersection on the British road system, serving 18 routes on five different levels – aka Spaghetti Junction. Can Laura face her fears to become a master of the pasta? Having recently taken over as MD, Ian has the tough job of steering the company safely through troubling times. Luckily, his dad and company founder Huw is on hand with a surprise visit and some sage advice. Despite the challenges, Ian is planning an ambitious move into the Welsh capital. And the hunt is on for another recent recruit: warehouse cleaner Adrian - aka the hide-and-seek champion.

Unlike many big haulage firms, Owens has remained 100 per cent family-run and owned. From its founding in 1972 by Huw Owen, with just one van, the company has grown to over 1,000 employees. To mark 50 years in business, Huw’s son Ian, the new MD, has decided to hold a fun day for the entire workforce and their families. With expectations sky high, Vicky in marketing has been put in charge of making sure everything goes smoothly on the day. But for Ian, there is still the matter of that all-important speech to write. Before they can get the party started, it’s business as usual for the 650 drivers powering up and down Britain’s motorways. Trucker Matt has a 500-mile round trip ahead of him. He is heading to a Scottish forest to collect felled logs to be turned into garden fencing. Matt is one of only three drivers in the company trained to do this forest run. With tricky terrain to navigate, one wrong move could send his truck careering over the edge.

Long-time trucker Andy has been in the lorry game for three decades. He’s a specialist driver, trained to transport extra heavy loads of steel. After a 3am start, he’s picking up from a titan of the Welsh economy - Tata Steel in Port Talbot. Today he’s hauling a particularly hefty load. Work environments don’t come much more hazardous than this, as massive furnaces burn throughout the day and night, breathing sparks, steam and fire. Andy needs to watch his step.

Night driver Dai is another veteran trucker who followed his dad into the industry. After a 40+ year career, he’s now content to follow the same regular nightly route to Burton-on-Trent. The solitude and peace of the night is time to reflect on the happy memories of trucking, as well as some really difficult times. But there are also the recent recruits to the industry, like newly qualified driver Laura. She’s loving the life of a trucker, whatever the weather.

Long- time trucker The Donk has taken charge of a very special cargo: a supersized birthday card for company founder Huw, who turns 70 in a few days’ time. There’s a surprise party planned for him at HQ - but the surprise might just be on MD Ian when his dad turns up early for the first time ever.

While most of the company’s trucks are delivering goods up and down the country, they also have a local waste and recycling division, processing up to 20,000 tonnes of waste every year. Veteran trucker Jason is out on the recycling run around Llanelli with his partner-in-grime, his 17-year-old son Kieran. After 20 years of driving HGVs long haul, he’s decided to change lanes. And his new job also comes with perks, whether it’s a perfectly good gazebo someone has thrown away or a bit of bonus cake from a favourite customer. Jason treats his bins like children - he even gives them names! Back at HQ, MD Ian’s stress levels are up. He's ordered 40 brand new greener trucks that can run on hydrogenated vegetable oil. But there’s been a hold-up on the parts needed to build them due to the Ukraine war - added to which, they’re £30,000 more expensive, per truck!