My mouth dropped when I saw a massive truck stuck under the Highway 17A overpass on July 18. My first thought was, ‘not again’.
Social media exploded with irate drivers who were either stuck in traffic or worried about how they would get home.
“Jail time,” they yelled.
One could say it’s just another day in the life of a commuter who lives south of the Fraser, yet it feels like trucking accidents are on the rise.
In this incident the truck hit the 1959 constructed overpass so hard two of its five cement girders were damaged.
The southbound lane and sidewalk on the overpass is still closed with no end in sight as the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure comes up with a repair plan.
Take a look at the provincial governments’ Commercial Vehicle Safety and Enforcement web page and you can track bridge strikes.
You’ll see violation tickets for driver error, incorrect or no permits to operate, and load and height violations. Especially disturbing are the truck drivers that didn’t lower their excavator buckets or booms when in motion.
Most violators received tickets with small fines. That’s not an adequate deterrence to get trucking companies to abide by safety rules and to make sure their staff are well trained.
It’s simple math, more trucks on the road there’s more room for error. Combine that with the pressure to deliver and a shortage of trained drivers and accidents go up.
As the Optimist has reported, the Ministry of Transportation is looking at higher fines, steeper penalties, longer suspensions and education for the trucking industry.
The revisions won’t come soon enough. Praise for the trucking companies who have safe big rigs, and for the truckers that drive with care. Now let’s get all the other drivers up to speed.
Ingrid Abbott is a freelance writer who is impressed with semi drivers who can turn tight corners and not clip her car.
