But two trucks were found to have “major” defects to the steering column, requiring immediate repair.

Last week Roads and Maritime Services inspectors launched Operation Shield – a statewide exercise focusing on truck drivers’ compliance with fatigue laws and keeping an accurate logbook.

In the Illawarra, investigators set up at the Nungarry rest area near Kiama and also conducted mobile patrols on Mt Ousley.

RMS Director of Compliance Roger Weeks said across the state the operation inspected 10,302 heavy vehicles and found 119 fatigue law breaches.

“The good news is that in the Illawarra we found no fatigue breaches at all,” Mr Weeks said.

“Our inspectors were active in that area the whole week doing road enforcement. And they were looking primarily at fatigue.”

Mr Weeks said a number of trucks worked between Wollongong and Sydney – a distance that did not require them to keep a work diary.

But he stated a “reasonable percentage” of the 10,302 trucks pulled over as part of Operation Shield occurred in the Illawarra.

Across the state RMS inspectors issued 926 defect notices and 257 infringement notices – several of which occurred in the Illawarra.

“We were also looking at the roadworthiness of the vehicles and we did get a couple of defects in that area,” he said.

“In both cases they were around steering. There were other defects issued but they were also of a minor nature.”

The steering faults were one level below the most dangerous rating, where the truck cannot leave and the fault needs to either be fixed at the location or towed to a mechanic.

Mr Weeks said the Illlawarra defects were deemed “major”.

“The major category defects are serious but not necessarily imminent,” Mr Weeks said.

“We consider the vehicle still driveable but only for the purposes of getting it to be repaired.”

Mr Weeks said the Operation Shield results showed 80 per cent of truck drivers were doing the right thing.

“However, the serious nature of problems found in the remaining 14 per cent shows that more needs to be done to drive improved compliance outcomes for the industry,” he said.