Drivers who hit overpasses and other infrastructure face a massive increase in fines, as well as jail time, under proposed changes by the provincial government.
They would allow courts to impose fines as high as $100,000 鈥� up from $500 鈥� and 18 months in jail, if convicted of the violations, the provincial Transportation and Infrastructure Ministry announced Tuesday (March 12).
Transportation Minister Rob Fleming said the province is 鈥渢aking the strongest action possible鈥� with the proposed changes to the Commercial Transportation Act.
Fleming called it 鈥渁 message to commercial truck drivers that they are responsible for the safe transportation of goods and services on our roads, and a lax attitude toward safety will not be tolerated.鈥�
A string of impacts in recent years across the Lower Mainland have damaged overpasses, causing millions of dollars in damage, and snarled traffic with each collision.
There have 35 crashes since late 2021 by over-height commercial vehicles, the province says. Laws surrounding highway infrastructure haven鈥檛 changed since the late 1970s.
READ ALSO: Licence yanked for Aldergrove truck firm that hit six overpasses
After six overpass collisions in two years, Aldergrove-based Chohan Freight Forwarders saw its safety certificate suspended on Dec. 29, 2023, a day after the most recent collision, when overheight ironwork being transported by a Chohan contractor crashed into the Highway 99 overpass at 112th Street in Delta.
Losing its safety certificate meant that Chohan Freight鈥檚 65-vehicle fleet in BC. was brought to a halt, which it said has caused losses of more than $1 million a week, along with losing contracts and clients worth around $2-3 million.
In court, the company鈥檚 lawyers argued the driver involved in the most recent crash was an owner-operator, not a direct employee of Chohan, despite the fact that the truck was marked with Chohan logos and the dispatching was handled by the company.
In addition to the Dec. 28 incident, Chohan鈥檚 overpass crashes included:
鈥� June 6, 2022 on Highway 1 in 91原创
鈥� June 1, 2022 on Highway 1 in Richmond
鈥� Feb. 17, 2022 on Highway 99 in Delta (the same overpass struck on Dec. 28, 2023)
鈥� Feb. 12, 2022 on Highway 1 in 91原创 at 264th Street
鈥� Dec. 10, 2021 on Highway 1 in Surrey
Chohan鈥檚 petition notes that those incidents were attributed to either driver error, failing to follow an approved route, or having an incorrect permit.
Fines were raised in December to the maximum allowable penalty of $500 from $100.
READ ALSO: Contracts tendered for 91原创 highway widening
The 264th Street interchange in Aldergrove has the highest number of crashes in 91原创.
It, and the 232nd Street interchange, are among the last remaining highway interchanges in the Lower Mainland that date back to the original construction of the highway in the 1960s. They feature large cloverleaf loops, and relatively low overpasses which have each been hit by overheight trucks in recent years.
Provincial plans call for them both to be replaced as part of a series of road widening projects along Highway #1 to Abbotsford, first the 232nd Street overpass, then 264th.
The new changes include formalizing 鈥減rogressive-enforcement鈥� framework, but it will still include escalating consequences for carriers who commit repeat offences. Those consequences could include a possible loss of safety certificates, prohibiting them from operating.
Beginning June 1, there will also be a requirement for an in-cab warning device to alert dump-style vehicle operators when the dump box is raised. Speed limiter devices have also been mandated, preventing heavy commercial vehicles from travelling more than 105 km/h on B.C. highways.
- with files from Black Press Media
