It feels like just the other day that I wrote my first editorial for 2023. To paraphrase myself: just like that, the last issue for 2023 is on the shelves!

Was the year a smoother ride than 2022, as I’d hoped? In some ways, I suppose it was. We could enjoy a full January to December cycle without Covid-19 and lockdowns dominating the headlines (that’ll be the last mention of that here), and the country could crack on with the next big thing on its agenda – the 2023 general election.

But first, a cyclone. Gabrielle simultaneously reminded us about what was really important in life and impressed upon us that the country can’t operate with a weak roading infrastructure for much longer. With cyclone recovery still ongoing, infrastructure served as one of the many talking points in a battleground of campaigns, debates and other political wranglings in the lead-up to October.

Right now, that all feels like a whirlwind that rushed in, picked us all up and deposited us … well, we don’t exactly know yet. Hopefully, Luxon, Seymour and Peters can play nice and agree before I write my first editorial of 2024… (Or even, perhaps, before you read this one.)

Maybe ‘battleground’ is a bit of a strong word to use in that instance, considering the situation in the Middle East and the Russians’ continual assault on Ukraine – albeit now going on almost quietly in the background. All things considered, it has been a bit of a tumultuous year as far as the local and global state of things is concerned.

As for the road transport industry… Sure, there has been a spike in operating costs and a natural flow-on effect on consumers. Fuel prices, labour shortages, ping-ponging RUC discounts, stranded ferries and cyclone-battered roads all contributed – all issues the industry will unfortunately continue to run up against, it seems.

But there were plenty of positives. Commercial vehicle sales have truly recovered to pre-pandemic (argh, damn!) levels, having long surpassed last year’s final numbers. Local and overseas truck shows were back on in full, spectacular form, as were the many industry conferences. And in it all, a convoy for a young truck-mad lad grew exponentially from a simple request for a birthday ride and made international news. There was certainly no shortage of gear taking to the road and no dearth of good stories for us to fill these pages with.

And so to 2024. To say the New Zealand Trucking Media team is excited for the new year would be a mild understatement. We’re buzzing about new opportunities in the pipeline to bring you even better magazine content each month. We plan a ramp-up of our digital content, too.

Of course, our phones are always on, so let us know what you want us to deliver in New Zealand Trucking magazine, on our YouTube channel, the Keep on Moving podcast and Trucking Radio 24/7.

Finally, a personal word of thanks to every person who had a hand in producing the content we delivered in 2023. It truly takes a village. So, thank you all for your hard work and dedication. And, most importantly, thank you to our readers and supporters. I hope you enjoyed each issue as much as we enjoyed bringing them to you.

Happy holidays one and all!