The Caltex serves as a roadhouse for one of the Newell Highway’s busiest changeover points for drivers.

Its loss will be a massive blow to the area, the NatRoad director and former truck driver John Morris said.

“It is a huge loss for Dubbo because it is the halfway point between Melbourne and Sydney,” he said.

“Caltex has been an institution here for 40 or 50 years. Sometimes you can see 30 or 40 trucks over there, they pull over and have a good rest.

“We don’t know what’s happening, we were hoping another company might look at building a more modern roadhouse.”

Rumours that Toll was moving into the area were confirmed yesterday when a company spokesman said an employee accommodation facility would be built near the truck stop.

While the facility will contain amenities and a kitchen the spokesman said it would only be available for Toll employees.

With truck drivers in NSW facing mandatory rest periods under fatigue laws, the closing of the Caltex will leave those drivers who choose to stop in Dubbo with few options.

“We are seriously hoping somebody will step up and look at another site,” Mr Morris said.

“Hopefully Dubbo council’s traffic management plan looks at a bypass .”

Any truck bypass with accompanying roadside facilities would receive the “100 per cent support” of those in the trucking industry, he said.

“You have a small stop in Tomingley about 50 kilometres away, or Gilgandra about 70 kilometres, they are the closest ones,” he said.

“The next is Narrabri about 200 kilometres. The old Caltex at Coonabarabran has closed down.”

Safety could also be an issue, Mr Morris said, because some drivers may decided just to push on rather than rest in a truck stop that has no facilities.

patrick.billings@ruralpress.com