can I get through there
breaker to Marsh is one of the very few
female long-haul truckers in Germany
I'm married to my truck if I had a
partner who told me I should stop
driving I'd say no I'm not quitting get
lost
despite the good money and freedom
hardly any women want to drive Long Haul
why is that they are good oh my God who
needs a gym
Cinder
[Music]
at just after 4am in laufenberg amarine
everyone is asleep but brigato Marsh is
already up early mornings are part of a
trucker's job no problem for biggie as
everyone calls her
I've always been an early riser as soon
as the rooster crows I'm awake
you know
biggie is 58 and has been a long-haul
trucker for more than 30 years and it's
taken its toll
she has diabetes and has had a stomach
reduction biggie struggles with her
weight for which she blames her job
just before five she sets off for the
depot
her car is small but it has something in
common with her big truck
[Applause]
I bought an automatic because my truck
is an automatic
and every time I got into the car I
forgot to shift
she thinks she broke her little toe last
night
well it's easy to break your toe without
even noticing
it's better to put a bandage on to
immobilize it
the trucker didn't think for a second
about going to the doctor or skipping
work even though as a permanent employee
she could have simply taken sick leave
good morning
she greets Eddie her truck it belongs to
the company but only biggie is allowed
to drive it biggie will live eat and
sleep in the trucks five square meters
for the next five days
before starting off she fuels up at the
Depot
biggie never trained to be a
professional truck driver she got her
driver's license more than 30 years ago
and that was enough to get her started
piggy leaves the yard at 5 30. truck
drivers working hours are strictly
regulated in Germany more than 10 hours
of actual driving time is prohibited but
the entire shift including preparation
fueling and loading and unloading is
often much longer
the shift is normally 13 hours
but it can be extended to 15 hours
today it's only a 12 hour shift
because we're only driving
only 12 hours but that is still a very
long shift biggie first has to drive 50
kilometers without a trailer because she
has to pick it up from another company
but the access road is blocked
oh no
damn I have to go another way
or can I get through
[Laughter]
I can't get through
that party store can I get through there
it's a tight squeeze but biggie knows
her Eddie first problem solved and time
for the next
oh this is oh they're already unloading
show you down
now we have to wait
can't get to my trailer
biggest trailer to the left another
trunk to the right she is really blocked
I have to turn around oh is it I'm back
in through the warehouse
reversing through a warehouse full of
obstacles is precision work
a bit more maneuvering because she has
to meet the trailer precisely
[Applause]
with the trailer biggest truck is now
complete
everything and raise the Jacks it's not
easy
kid
bro who needs a gym
so her load is industrial paint
[Music]
she backs out again and into the parking
lot before going further biggie wants to
make a coffee while the water heats she
takes care of the formalities
you were here before seven so this is
when we finished hooking up
she saves everything for her employer in
the onboard computer
but she is more old school and keeps a
regular log book too
Katarina boimler is the shipping
company's Junior manager the truck's
modern on-board computer lets her see
exactly where Biggie and Eddie are at
any time
here you can see there was very heavy
traffic
Monday
I drive four kilometers in 50 minutes so
she was badly delayed from this we know
what to do next is
and I have a very good monitoring system
and we can see that she fueled up this
morning before leaving did the normal
pre-drive check all through the onboard
computer
so we don't have to call a thousand
times we can see it right away
and of course if she arrives later we
know what the problem was we see
immediately that she was stuck in a
traffic jam
keeping track of it all is important for
the haulage company they have 160 trucks
on the road
and several locations across Germany the
headquarters is a large container
terminal in val amrhein in all 180
drivers work for boimler another 70
employees look after the garage and
office the shipping company is an
important employer for the region Martin
baumler is the fourth generation head of
the family business with 35 million
euros in annual sales and well-filled
Order books he should be satisfied but
he has one problem there's a shortage of
good drivers like Brigitte Marsh young
truck drivers are in short supply he
goes through the applications with his
daughter Katarina and his wife you wrote
me to ask if we should invite him and I
said yes
Katarina would like to hire more female
drivers
the relationships are different for
example if there are conflicts which
will hopefully always be rare I've had
women apologize the next day because
they weren't in a good mood
it can happen but I've never had that
with men
so it's a different kind of cooperation
but both can do the job equally well
the company offers women short hauls so
they're always home in the evening still
only three of the 180 drivers are women
the boss thinks that's too few
of course we need more people in general
so we're glad for every person who joins
in who enjoys it who sees the job as a
vocation
their gender doesn't matter at all
to keep the employees happy there is a
fruit basket and sweets almost like in a
Berlin startup
icky of course gets none of this from 50
kilometers away she has to look after
herself but can she do it without coffee
I did at least four of these big mugs of
coffee per day
I can't do it without coffee
India
you know
this is still too hot to drink
but if I know I have coffee I can stay
calm
coffee breaks over now Begins the long
journey through four German states and
just as her boss envisions truck driving
is not a job for biggie but a vocation
you have to put your heart and soul into
it or it doesn't work
I don't drive trucks because I have to
but because I want to
who told me I should stop driving I'd
say no I'm not quitting get lost
driving is my life
my my labor
her love of driving has cost Big E two
marriages that doesn't bother her but
she deeply regrets not seeing more of
her two daughters
I've just never spent time with my two
girls
there's a
there's not and that really eats me up
so sure I had them on weekends and
sometimes they drove with me but I never
saw them grow up
I didn't really notice when they started
puberty and I couldn't explain to them
what was happening
I was never there for them except by
phone
I never held them in my arms
that was bad it's still bad
piggy has lived in laufenberg Amarin in
baden-vertenberg for about five years
the idyllic town on the Swiss border is
a popular vacation spot after just a
short walk you have left the EU and
entered Swiss territory
[Music]
biggie lives just up the hill on the
German side
she lives alone in an apartment owned by
the freight company
he is under stress to improve her
relationship with her daughters she
wants to move out of her low-cost
apartment and move to a new city 150
kilometers away from her employer it's
worth it to her to live near her
daughter Bianca
that's not heavy at all I thought it
would be heavier
one more Pact
arranging the move alone with so little
free time seems too much for biggie
it's really a lot
no might be sure normally I'm always
busy with work but now I don't know if
I'll get through this move
now my two nieces have canceled for
Saturday and I don't know how we're
going to do it
I can hardly fall asleep in the evening
because my head is spinning
um
yeah
back to the road where there are other
problems like where is the next bathroom
I have to look for parking lots or rest
stops with bathrooms
the men can just get out of their truck
and do their business right there
a lot of men just go in a bottle so they
don't have to stop
but that's disgusting
[Music]
and I've taken over trucks where the
seat right here between the feet looked
really icky
I think someone missed and it was stank
like that
on uh
biggie pulls into a rest stop with
bathrooms
no it's Luca
no it is Samuel
I'll park beside him
by law after four hours driving we have
to rest
hi hi
biggie dropping your bread no
no
make everything work with the backup
yeah fine I had to back in because they
weren't loading yeah
even though you were there at 6 30 yeah
yeah
have a good trip drive safely you too
also talk to you soon
costs one Euro to use the bathroom that
adds up
back in the truck biggie looks at her
aching toe
oh yeah oh boy
it's purple
I'm gonna Glenda they can't do anything
with the little toe just bandage two
together I think
a plaster will have to do
biggie Waits out her required break
yeah
that's always something
she doesn't eat
regular healthy eating is one of the big
problems with hauling
not many kids poses now it's my break
but I'm not hungry
I have some peppers that I eat while I'm
driving and they keep my Hunger away
but now in my break I'm not hungry
that's the thing with truckers eating
and driving instead of taking a break
and then eating
outside and walked around he's a young
guy and takes care of himself but the
old ones like me don't pay attention
they only eat when they're hungry yeah
back on the road biggie gives her
healthy sliced peppers a chance
[Music]
here in the truck she's her own boss but
also very much alone
lonely yes sometimes
you're alone a lot especially on Long
hauls you can do what you want you can
turn the music up loud you can leave it
off
when you're alone you can do whatever
you want
biggie you also knows Solitude from home
her workmate root Muller is one of her
few friends
they've known each other for about a
year both are divorced both drive trucks
for the same carrier that connects them
foreign
drinking coffee between moving boxes
isn't a problem
are they good yummy yummy like always
yeah
and you know me well yeah greedy guts
just not enough
almost two years ago Hood retrained as a
truck driver through the employment
office but she drives different routes
than biggie I only do day trips why uh
I'm not so good with long distances
because I'm not used to them
although there are only three female
drivers in the company they don't
automatically get along
I was happy when I saw root in her truck
and went right over to her it's been
great
but I have to say honestly if she'd had
long painted nails or been all made up I
wouldn't have gone up to him
but she's natural like me
I think it's great that women drive
trucks no question
um
but I have to be able to cope it was on
my nose I have to do the work not just
drive I have to be able to unload too I
had to change a tire on the freeway in
Italy it took me four hours but I
changed the tire you can't do that with
long fingernails The Battered fried
apple rings start the two dreaming shall
we drive to Genoa
we'll tell the boss we won't be in
tomorrow
[Laughter]
instead of Genoa we're back on the road
in Germany biggie has to stop for the
night
so we're coming up to the zunga House in
South exit we have to drive to the truck
stop there
theoretically she is allowed to drive
for another hour but then there will be
no rest area for the night so let's see
if we can find a nice spot
splitter
I ain't gonna save that okay then exit
and pause
so and now we can shut off the engine
the first spot in the truck stop is
right next to the bathrooms that's
important for biggie
okay
fuel is even more expensive here than at
home
192. crazy
the truck is parked in the blazing sun
it's five o'clock and still 30 degrees
in the shade
biggie first darkens the cab her truck
has air conditioning but it only works
when the engine is running that burns
fuel
it is not an inviting setting for an
after work stroll the rest stops are
mostly located in industrial areas
they're made for vehicles not for
pedestrians
foreign
biggie is not in the mood for sliced
Peppers or bread for dinner she wants a
hot meal the food served at the rest
stop is not exactly well balanced or
healthy
when I go to a truck stop now every
trucker sits alone at a table always
alone
in the past we sat and ate together
we talked
even if we didn't know each other
biggie spends the rest of her evening
watching TV on her tablet in the truck
comfortable yes
but she's also alone
to eight o'clock she starts getting
ready for bed
using the truck stop bathroom
foreign
the rest area is filling up every free
parking spot is occupied overnight
he takes another look at her toe the
plaster will have to do purple foot
stupid
still light outside but biggie has to
sleep the alarm is set for three so she
can start off at four as planned
but the departure next morning is hectic
biggie has slept in
it's already nearly four and her toe has
been aching all night
so how does it feel
s it's terrible
she quickly takes out the garbage
and brushes her teeth in the rest stop
bathroom
time is tight so biggie buys a coffee
from the vending machine it costs three
Euros but she doesn't have time to make
one in the truck and no coffee is a
no-go
foreign
but the coffee isn't good
oh that's awful
oh he's hot and awful without milk
[Music]
[Applause]
biggie had planned on one hour to start
her work day but 30 minutes will have to
be enough a quick pre-drive check
the noise is coming from this
refrigerated truck it parked behind her
and the coolers ran all night another
reason she slept so badly
a 20 past four biggie starts her journey
20 minutes later than planned
I shut off the alarm before it rang
um
and I was awake earlier but then you
forget the time
look
full blood yeah
now we have to hurry a bit
the sun slowly Rises biggie checks the
radio the last thing she needs now is a
traffic jam
okay it's finished I heard right
biggie knows the route and knows where
she can get through the fastest and she
doesn't quite stick to the 60 kilometers
an hour speed limit for trucks
we're only doing 68.
[Music]
so nobody can say anything
now for some coffee
I won't wake up today I didn't sleep
properly
the last kilometers lead Big E through
small villages and she actually reaches
her drop-off point on time
she has to wear a safety vest and boots
here
so biggie is solely responsible for
getting the paint from her trailer into
the company's tanks
[Music]
oh it's going
after the paint is out she still has to
clean the tanks
thank you
biggie is on her way to the next job The
Hectic morning is over
let's say I've got a Karma page
I used to be a real hot head driving at
top speed and now I'm only driving at
83.
take it easy
I don't want to make myself crazy or
burn myself out I'm taking it easy
[Music]
later biggie sends us a message her toe
has healed and the move worked out too
so so hello
I feel good and I'm near my daughter my
ex-husband often comes by and helps me
put up the lamps
it's really nice
biggie is now trying to manage
everything better long distance driving
and the family
[Music]
thank you