The provincial New Democrats say the time is now for the province to make northern highways safer.
It follows a recent survey by the Ontario Trucking Association (OTA), which garnered close to 700 replies.
Drivers, particularly those who travel on Hwy. 11 or 17, were asked to identify safety and infrastructure problems, along with potential solutions to the issues affecting Northern Ontario.
According to survey results, the top five concerns with driving in Northern Ontario include:
- Unsafe passing by other vehicles (84.32 percent of respondents)
- Lack of truck rest areas (83.84 percent)
- Poorly trained truck drivers (80 percent)
- Lack of safe passing areas for trucks (79.84 percent)
- Unsafe trucking fleets (65.12 percent)
James Steed, OTA Chair, says they believe the government has already started to take “meaningful action” to address some of the issues.
“But through further collaboration and analysis of the survey data – which encapsulates the real-world experiences of the hard-working men and women who frequently operate in Northern Ontario – even more can be done to improve the highway conditions, commercial vehicle enforcement and driver training and licensing standards,” he says.
The top five solutions to address concerns included:
- More truck passing and climbing lanes (78.75 percent of respondents)
- More truck rest areas are necessary (78.57 percent)
- Better-trained truck drivers (78.57 percent)
- More oversight of unsafe trucking fleets (70.21 percent)
- More heated washroom access for professional drivers (59.06 percent)
A joint media release from three Northern Ontario NDP MPPs says Northern Ontario’s truckers have spoken “loud and clear.”
“Now it’s time for the government to listen to those who travel these routes daily,” it says in the statement. “Truck drivers are calling our office every week to tell us that there needs to be better training and increased oversight. Those training the drivers must also be trained and licensed to train other drivers. Schools are receiving thousands of dollars to train commercial drivers, but many are providing poor training.”
According to the province’s Northern Highways Program, 47 improvement projects are underway in the region, including safety improvements, bridge rehabilitation, and resurfacing.
Another 240 projects are planned over the next few years.
With files from Richard Coffin and Mathew Reisler
