Truckers relieved to be back on Coquihalla but too many are speeding

• Lots of smiles and relief among truckers
• Too many speeding tickets
• Driver complacency an issue

The head of the B.C. Trucking Association (BCTA) said there’s great relief among its members the Coquihalla is open again, but, there’s continued safety concerns because dozens of speeding tickets have already been issued.

A massive effort by contractors saw Highway 5 reopened to commercial traffic just 35 days after the closure caused by extensive washouts from the atmospheric river in mid-November.

“There’s an awful lot of relief,” BCTA president Dave Earle told Kelowna10, even though the temporary repairs mean traffic is bottlenecked into one lane in each direction in places.

“It’s safer [than Highway 3], a more convenient route, it’s a much shorter route, we’re hearing it’s taking about an hour extra to do,” Earle explained. “It’s our main connection moving into the Interior, into Alberta and the rest of the continent. I can’t stress the importance of having it back open and how utterly pleased we are with the work that’s been done.”

However, he said the comfort level truckers have with the Coquihalla compared to the far less familiar Highway 3 may be leading to complacency.

“We’re seeing way too many speeding violations. You know, the highway has only been open for a day and we’re seeing dozens of speeding tickets, and it’s just commercial vehicles on that route,” Earle said.

But he stressed the importance of truckers being mindful of the trust the public has given them in being the exclusive users of that highway and to be aware of the fragility of the transport system at the moment.

Earle said the majority of the transport fleet has speed governing technology that prevents them from going too fast. Even though it’s a minority of driver doing the wrong thing, it’s still too many.

As for the supply chain, he said it is going to improve, but the industry is still operating at about 50 per cent capacity. Prior to the disaster, about 6,000 trips a day were happening across Highways 1, 3 and 5, with up to 4,000 of those trips along the Coquihalla alone.

“That’s going to take us a while to dig out of so, while yes, some things are going to move, there’s going to be a lot of stuff that’s going to be a bit more delayed, but we’ll get there,” he said.

Earle added the industry will get through the highways catastrophe and the public has become far more aware of the significance of truckers and their role in the supply chain. But, he said the sector will still face major challenges in the new year with a labour and equipment shortage.

Meanwhile, with most truckers now having moved away from the interim challenges of the overly-congested Highway 3, that route is now open for all non-essential traffic and Earle has a message for anyone attempting it this holiday season.

“Be patient, make sure you’re prepared, and for those who haven’t travelled Highway 3, understand what you’re getting into. Make sure your vehicle is prepared, have good emergency supplies, allow yourself lots of time.”