The high number of truck movements on local roads is a reality the company and Greater Taree City Council seek to change.

Plans are on the drawing board for Jim Pearson Transport to set-up a transport hub at Cundletown, and according to Manning Valley Business Chamber (MVBC) economic development manager, Steve Attkins, it will bring at least 30 jobs to Taree.

He says council and MVBC is working closely with the company but as yet there is no timeline for works to begin.

Rezoning land at Cundletown and planning discussions will be critical to the success of the project but Mr Attkins says council "in the last 12 months has become very proactive in securing jobs."

The Economic Development Partnership Board (EDPB) supports the project and its chairman, Neil Hanington says the company is "looking to Taree and Grafton being their key transport hubs on the coast".

"They operate Sydney to Brisbane return and have two major depots at either end. Taree and Grafton will be their major transport hubs on the coast of NSW," Mr Hanington said.

"They haven't finalised the designs yet but it is important to note that this has been ongoing for three to four years and again, this shows that with economic development, nothing happens and then all of a sudden it will fall into place."

Mr Hanington said the project would dramatically cut the number of truck movements through Taree and "take a lot of pressure off our local road network."

"We have 472 major truck movements through the CBD per day and of those, 150 truck movements are Pearsons Transport trucks and B-doubles. They can only go through Purfleet and over the bridge and they can only go back the same way," he explained

"It's going through the business centre, past the hospital. Pearsons said that the development would save them money through time on the road and it's also going to take a lot of pressure off local roads."

Mr Attkins says Jim Pearson Transport is committed to the Manning Valley with 70 of its drivers living in the region.

"One of the challenges for long haul businesses in this country is maintaining drivers. They are away from home, they are away from their families and they tend not to have longevity," Mr Attkins said.

"What Jim is about is that he looks after his staff, tries to make sure that his drivers are happy. He's looked at the fact that 70 drivers live in the Manning Valley."

JIM Pearson Transport is a privately owned company that has been operating since 1978 and is located in Taree, Port Macquarie, Grafton and Sydney. It currently employs more than 250 highly trained and professional staff ranging from administration, mechanics, drivers, logistics experts, driver trainers, fatigue management educators, tyre changers, truck washers, yard workers and managerial staff.

The Jim Pearson Transport fleet is more than 120 Freightliner prime movers, with an average age of less than four years and more than 160 trailers, comprising of drop deck mezzanine and straight deck tautliners as well as refrigerated B double combinations.