ANNAGRY woman, Ciara Sharkey (19) is continuing her grandmother’s legacy as she recently received her artic lorry driving license.
Ciara, a business management student at ATU Donegal is among, if not the youngest, artic driver in the country at present.
When Ciara’s not studying she works for ‘Sharkey’s Waste’, a family business that was set up by her grandmother more than 50 years ago.
Speaking to the Donegal News, Ciara said her love for lorries came as she has been around them ever since she was a child.
“My dad owns a waste company in the west of Donegal. He used to give me turns driving the lorries and from then, I knew I wanted to follow it up and get my lorry license,” she said.
When Ciara was 18 she passed her theory test.
“The thought of doing the theory test was the worst part. For anyone starting they think it is a big deal but once you get that over with the easy part is completing the lessons,” she said.
Ciara began her lessons in April with ‘McMenamin Advance Driver Training’ and waited five months for her test.
“The night before my test I couldn’t sleep I was so nervous,” she said.
However, all the hard work paid off as she passed first time.
Ciara Sharkey, 19, with the Sharkey Waste artic truck that she drives to Dublin following her obtaining her artic license.
Ciara’s father, Tony Sharkey, owner of Sharkeys Waste in Annagry, gifted her a lorry following her achievement and now fully equipped she is well used to ‘tipping the load’ on her days off.
Ciara, pictured right, said the first run in her new wheels was to Indaver, County Meath with her father following behind.
They were supposed to meet in Monaghan where Ciara was due to follow him the rest of the journey.
However, little to her knowledge her father’s lorry had got a puncture and she had to continue the unknown journey by herself.
Even though it will take some time to get used to the many different routes, Ciara hasn’t looked back.
Now her weeks consist of runs to Duleek or Indaver Waste-to-Energy with a load of rubbish, Toomebridge in Antrim with a load of glass, Ballymena or Cavan with a load of scrap, Pettigo with a load of timber or Newry with a load for recycling.
Although it may seem somewhat unusual for a woman to be driving a lorry, Ciara says it’s an occurrence that is much more common than people would think.
“I feel like nowadays there are more opportunities in this line of work, people are recruiting more women. When I was out with my dad in the lorry a few years ago I didn’t see many women drivers. Now I definitely see more.
“I love my job and I love meeting new people on the road. People think because you’re a girl you shouldn’t be driving lorries but I feel like I am respected for doing it. People are happy to see me driving the lorry and I get plenty of waves on the road,” she said.
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