Aeolus Truck & Driver News

Sime Motors New Zealand opened its new truck service centre and Volvo showroom at the Ruakura Superhub in Hamilton on June 2, strengthening its national network to support heavy transport operators.

The Ruakura facility is one of three new Truckstops service centres developed by Sime Motors and is now the company’s largest workshop in the North Island.

The opening follows the establishment of a major hub at Waterloo Park in Christchurch last year and the start of operations at a new Kaweora Drive, Tauriko site in Tauranga on March 30.

Pat McKenna, Managing Director – New Zealand and Director of Commercial Vehicles Asia Pacific says the investment reflects Sime Motors’ long-...

The re-sealing work on the Cambridge section of SH1 Waikato Expressway reached Stage 3 from the middle of May.

This stage of the asphalting work is focussed on the southbound lanes between the Victoria Road Interchange at Hautapu and the Northern Interchange.

From Sunday May 17 to early July (weather dependent), the southbound on- and off- ramps at Victoria Road Interchange (Hautapu) will be closed. Crews will be working across all southbound lanes in this 5km stretch, day and night, where they can to get the work done as quickly as possible.

Roger Brady, NZTA Regional Manager for Maintenance and Operations in the Waikato and Bay of Plenty, says the renewals are about looki...

As Middle East conflict, surging fuel pricesand the roll-on inflationary impacts dominate the daily news headlines, New Zealand’s fuel supplies were holding steady at the time this issue of New Zealand Truck & Driver went to press mid-April.

It’s impossible to forecast the next global developments other than to state the obvious – even if the conflict comes to a rapid and peaceful conclusion, the damage to oil production and distribution infrastructure around the Gulf region and wider supply chain disruption will mean a normal supply situation is some months away.

So, it’s perhaps most relevant to outline how the government plans to respond to any increased fuel supply uncertaint...

The growing electric truck fleet operatedby WM New Zealand is the home for the first Mercedes-Benz eEconic in the country.

The battery electric low entry model is operating as a rear loader refuse collection truck, marking another step forward in safer operations and lower carbon emissions.

WM New Zealand has one of NZ’s largest electric truck fleets and the purchase of the truck is supported by a $150,000 grant from the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA).

The eEconic will be used initially for inorganic collections, with potential to support tyre collections in the future. It has been designed specifically for urban, stop-start operations and brings clear ...

Travel through the centre of the North Island requires some advance planning at present as a series of overnight road closures are in place for State Highway 1 (SH1) Desert Road until Monday March 9.

The closures began on February 15 and are in place Sunday to Thursday nights, between 7pm and 6am.

NZTA says the overnight-only closures, between Tūrangi and Waiouru, have been carefully programmed to enable the last phase of the Tīrau to Waiouru Accelerated Maintenance project (T2W), while avoiding long-term disruption.

Closures on this section of SH1 are needed to complete final surfacing in the area known as the 3 Sisters because the narrow, winding road can’t safely accommo...