Mr Hannifey said he approached council and Roads and Maritime Services (RMS), to extend the unsealed bay near Caltex service station in North Dubbo, which has room for 20 to 30 trucks.

“I don’t think it’s unreasonable to ask that they put in a toilet bay, when we don’t have another one,” he said.

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Mr Hannifey said a fully facilitated truck rest area in Dubbo was necessary because of increasing rates of road transport and caravaners using truck parking bays was a risk for road safety. 

“Rest areas on state highways are provided by a combination of Roads and Maritime Services, local councils and private industry, mostly service stations,” a Roads and Maritime Services spokesperson said.

Mr Hannifey said he was concerned because there “are no other facilities for people travelling through Dubbo or for people who don’t live here,”.  

“From memory, if you are driving south bound from Dubbo, the nearest public toilet is 30 mins away, and the closest one north of Dubbo is at a servo at Gilgandra. For well over an hour there is not a toilet available for the truck driver to use.

“Dubbo has close to 50,000 people and we don’t have a facilitated stop, we are the cross point for the majority of traffic, 75 per cent of freight in Australia comes through Dubbo,” Mr Hannifey said.

Mr Hannifey said he is waiting for a response from RMS in Parkes, the lead agency for this region.  

RMS said they were preparing a NSW Rest Area Strategy. Mr Hannifey submitted a proposal which he said he hoped will ensure more adequate rest areas. 

“One of the biggest challenges for Roads and Maritime and other managers of these facilities, is dealing with the ongoing problem of vandalism, theft and the dumping of rubbish and the high costs associated with these issues,” a RMS spokesperson said.

Near Dubbo, there are seven formal rest areas on the Mitchell Highway and 18 formal rest areas on the Newell Highway among informal truck parking bays.