Growing up around trucks, 27-year-old livestock truckie Alex Maloney developed a passion for the industry very early on. “I always wanted to drive trucks and follow in my father’s footsteps,” he said.
“Dad has been in trucks his whole life. He started driving years and years ago. Some of my earliest memories are sitting in the truck with Dad. He used to cart livestock all over New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, South Australia and the Northern Territory, and I loved going with him on the school holidays,” Alex fondly remembers.
A yellow Kenworth T950 his father Michael Maloney drove for Martin’s Stock Haulage holds a special place for Alex, who was lucky enough to make some great memories in the truck from when he was as young as five or six years old – no doubt already learning some of the ropes.
His grandfather Martin Maloney, who sadly passed away earlier this year, was also involved in trucks, running his own body truck business in Casino many years ago. “Pop grew up on a farm and then just started carting. He eventually sold that business to my uncle.”
When Alex finished high school, he moved to New South Wales’ west for a few years, to work on a farm. “I spent a lot of time in the trucks there too. Once I finally started in trucks full time, I’ve loved every day of it,” he said.
“Dad started out as a sheep carter and I would go with him, so I had always wanted to cart sheep. I love working with animals, but there are some days where animals can be challenging!”
These days Alex drives for Maloney’s Livestock Transport, a company his father started around five years ago in the family’s hometown of Tamworth.
It’s grown to a fleet of eight company-owned prime movers, along with four sub-contractors, all used to cart sheep and cattle right across the country – between farms, saleyards and abattoirs.
Alex is currently behind the wheel of a new 2024 Kenworth T659. Since receiving the keys to the new rig in January, it’s already racked up over 100,000 kilometres on the clock.
“It’s a good truck and is beautiful to drive. I stepped out of a 909 before this one and didn’t know how I’d go, but I really love it,” said Alex.
When he chatted with Big Rigs, he was travelling along the Golden Highway in New South Wales, somewhere between Dunedoo and Merriwa, pulling a B-double loaded with sheep.
While he usually tows B-doubles, sometimes he’ll go up to a road train and other times it’s down to a single, all depending on what’s required. “There are some weeks where I’ll cart a lot of cattle and not much sheep, then other times I’ll be carrying sheep for a straight fortnight. I’ll travel as far as Western Australia – we go Australia-wide,” explained Alex.
“Our rosters are 11 days on and three days off, because we operate on Advanced Fatigue Management. Sometimes I come home during the week as well, depending on the runs.”
Although he says being away from family can be hard at times, he’s really enjoying the work.
When asked if there are any roads he finds challenging, Alex’s response is quite succinct, “Every road is a different challenge. You never know what’s around the next bend. You’ve just got to treat the road with respect.”
For Alex, the adventure and freedom of the work has been a great fit. “I enjoy seeing different parts of Australia, the parts that you don’t normally get to see. Then there’s also the people you meet – the agents and the farmers, and the lifelong mates you get to meet out on the road.
“I enjoy the freedom and flexibility of the work. What I do isn’t time-slotted or anything, so if I want to stop, I can.”
Asked about his favourite places to stop, Alex nominates the Tuckerwagon at Moorland in New South Wales, when he’s travelling up the Pacific Highway. “It’s probably one of the best roadhouses out there, I reckon.” Along with the Morven Roadhouse on the Warrego Highway when he’s travelling through Queensland.