A survey released this week by Life Insurance Finder found the transport and storage industry – which includes truck drivers – was the most dangerous job category in Australia.

It was an industry in which 65 people died last year.

Armstrong has been driving off and on since the 1970s and now is behind the wheel for Toll.

He said Toll drivers stick to the rules – ‘‘they watch us like hawks’’ – but he sees what goes on with drivers for other companies.

‘‘You see the trucks out there and what they do,’’ he said. 

He sees them pushed to the limit, sees them go without sleep and sees them overlook maintenance on their vehicles as long as possible.

And sometimes even longer.

‘‘They’ll leave it till the last minute if they can, until something happens before they fix it,’’ Mr Armstrong said.

‘‘I couldn’t care about them, it’s the other people out there that they’re going to maim or kill. It’s the people out there like my relatives and your relatives that are going to suffer because of this idiot that’s running on the red.’’

He said he wasn’t worried about becoming one of the fatalities in his industry.

‘‘I won’t become one of those 65 a year because my company does everything right,’’ he said.

‘‘If I’m tired I’ll pull over, there are a lot of guys who can’t do that.’’

In the survey, there were no surprises in the top three – agriculture, forestry and fishing was ranked second and construction third.

The retail trade finished in seventh place.