Dear Editor,
This is not a witch hunt against truckers travelling across our sprawling landscape. How many of us see bad driving, excessive speeding and more despite those with good habits. Traveling on Highway #1 east from Coquitlam to Hope (120km), for many months, that stretch is like a death raceway. Daily my eyes see many blast past me, from far behind, to exceed the speed limit by an estimate of 10-20km.
Despite the Upper Fraser RCMP presence, this roadway is already treacherous when you include high winds in Abbotsford, which rocks vehicles like a roller coaster. How many see a small image of a vehicle in our rear view mirror from hundreds of feet away, and glance up again to see tailgaters within 20 feet? I’ve seen illegal lane changes that have nearly clipped me, and reported truckers when I pulled over to make the call.
How many have seen clowns driving at night or the dark mornings without headlights illuminated? There are many more troubling bad behaviors to see people drive while talking on cellular phones, or engaging in other distracting activities.
I saw an RCMP in Surrey, years ago, texting while driving his police cruiser. I nearly whacked a cop for using their cell, distracted as they emerged from a hidden driveway. I opened my arms to non-verbally say, “watch out” as I was less than three meters from the door, and made an illegal lane change without even signalling. Less than a minute later, the Mountie did a 360 with lights flashing to pull me over to give me attitude with a suspected-bogus claim that they were hunting for a suspect.
How many of us have seen bad driving by law enforcement like U-turns close to you, without lights activated or otherwise? I bet lots. Safe practices should be followed whether you’re a cop, trucker, or a member of the general public.
The tragic loss of life from the Humboldt carnage is a wake-up call for overdue change.
As we face the first anniversary of Humboldt, I pray the families and nation find solace, and kudos to the judge for whacking the truck driver with an unprecedented jail sentence. While I respect him for ownership of guilt and delivering an apology, it will not restore the lives stolen from families, a community and a nation, and the families are now serving a life sentence of their own, having to resort to photographs and gravestones to remember and celebrate the lives of their losses.
Our streets and highways are congested, dangerous with bad driving including motorcyclists who weave in and out like they are drunk at high speeds. Use your dash cameras and show bad driving to police including fools throwing trash out of their vehicles to litter or discarded lit cigarettes during wildfire season.
Kerwin Maude