Although the delay was an unfortunate part of the trucking business there was an easy solution, Lawrence said.
"On the Paparoa route all that needs to be done is upgrade some of those small bridges, straighten a few corners and that's the easiest solution. This just highlights there has to be a viable alternative for trucks not just cars.
"This is the unfortunate part of only having one main road in and one main road out. You are stuck."
He said the detour through Waipū and Mangawhai was a twisting road with tight corners and not easily negotiated by truck and trailer units, and drivers were sometimes forced to go on to the wrong side of the road to make the corners.
Fellow truckie Pete Brasier, also delivering wood chip to Kawerau in his Scania rig, was at the front of the queue and was forced to change his schedule which was likely to have a financial impact for the owner of his rig.
"I have a 50 tonne rig so those diversions are not an option. A stoppage like this impacts on delivery times and return trips which all cost money."
Northland Road Transport Committee chairman John Bain said an alternative route was a must. He said ensuring the resilience of SH1 is one of the main focuses for the committee and yesterday's blockage showed just how important that was.
"Something is wrong when the major road is closed and we are forced to push vehicles and some heavy vehicles out on to country roads that were not designed to take them. It adds an awful lot of danger to people using those rural roads and in wet weather it's a recipe for disaster."
Emergency services were called to the scene after the southbound fuel tanker, on its way to Auckland after filling up at Marsden Point, and a northbound car collided on the southern side of the Brynderwyn Hills, blocking the road.
The tanker came to a stop up against the barrier, where the bank dropped steeply away into native bush.
Constable Lindsay Weir said the tanker driver, plus a driver in a following ute, went to help the woman and child in the car.
They were put in the ute until a St John ambulance crew arrived and transported them with moderate injuries to Whangārei Hospital.
Weir said the fuel had to be transferred to another tanker before it could be shifted off the road.
"We're pumping the fuel out because the weight of the truck fully loaded is too heavy to be towed. We need to do this the safest way possible so we don't have another incident."
After the fuel was transferred, the tanker involved in the crash was towed to the bottom of the Brynderwyns on the southern side, because a steering mechanism had been damaged.
A fire crew from Refining NZ were on the scene to oversee the transfer of fuel and volunteer crews from Maungaturoto were also called to help.
