Roger Pickering

Inducted into the Shell Rimula Wall of Fame in 2023.

Roger Pickering was born in March 1959, in Swan Hill, Victoria, to Ted and Dorothy Pickering. Ted founded Pickering Transport Group (PTG), formally known as Lake Boga Transport, with his brother George. Roger is married to Jill Pickering and together they are co-owners of Pickering Transport Group, along with his brother Daryl and cousin Jamie. 

From an early age Roger began working in and learning the family business of transporting general freight and refrigerated produce.  Upon leaving school at the age of 15 he moved to Melbourne to follow his passion of working in the transport industry.   

Roger’s career started with loading trucks with general freight in the family’s Melbourne Depot, at Sims Street Footscray. These loads were bound for the family’s depots in Kerang, Swan Hill and Mildura. Roger then graduated to driving trucks in the early 1980s, moving his family to Mildura. Running predominately between Mildura and Adelaide, driving a Mercedes Benz T2630, Roger would take produce to the city and return with general freight and groceries for the township. Roger often commented that Meatloaf’s ‘Bat out of Hell’ was the number one tune that would get him home when tired.   

Roger’s driving days ended when he returned to Melbourne, making the change into managing operations at that site. Following on from there, Roger’s career has continued through Operational and General Manager roles, working in Swan Hill and then Mildura, where he currently resides.  

Hoping to give a little back, Roger served for several years on the board of Natroad, and as its president from 2005 – 2008, worked with regulators and government to improve conditions throughout the industry.  

Today Pickering Transport consists of 150+ Line haul and local vehicles and provides employment for approximately 350 staff. PTG also includes both 2nd and 3rd generation family members within its ranks, which is a source of great joy for Roger.  Along with Daryl and Jamie, Roger continues to oversee the business in his current role as ‘Northern Regional Manager’ and focuses on customer management and fleet management.

During his life working in the transport industry, Roger has often commented on his love of the people he has serviced and worked alongside.