Editor:
The recent spate of overpass strikes by over height commercial vehicles is very simple to explain.
The provincial government abetted by the federal government have let commercial vehicles use our roads and highways to subsidize the trucking industry and like all heavily subsidized industries, the owners get greedy and push the envelope to a point where highway overpasses are being struck at regular intervals.
It costs a lot of money to transport “oversized” loads and if one can cheat a bit, maybe by a few centimetres, larger profits can be made and if not, the penalties are small, and insurance pays the rest.
As the height restrictions of overpasses are well known by the trucking industry, or should be, the remedy is simple, the height of commercial vehicles using our highways should be set at 10cm lower than the lowest overpass and any overweight vehicle must get permits and the route it must take.
It is time to rein in the trucking industry, as there are far too many cowboys operating commercial vehicles, cutting corners and fudging the rules to undercut the competition.
By they way, those flouting the rules; if an oversize truck hits an overpass without permit, seize the truck and load and invalidate any insurance.
Simple! Are you listening premier Eby?
D. M. Johnston
