We have successfully made our annual trek to our cottage in Prince Edward Island. Travelling by car the 1800 km brought home the paradox of dealing with transport trucks on today's highways. There were, at various stages of the journey, many trucks which somewhat reluctantly shared the road with us. The paradox comes in that dealing with trucks while driving a smaller vehicle – that is most vehicles, is not generally a positive experience. However, trucks and the cargo they carry are essential to the modern economy.
Reflecting on our experience of sharing the roads
with trucks, I mounted the way-back- machine and to my former life when I
worked in truckin8 policy for the Ontario Ministry of Transportation. A
part of the job was to help educate the public on the value of trucking to our
economy. One of the slogans that was developed by the Ontario Trucking
Association to help promote the importance of trucking was, ‘IF You Got it, a
Truck Brought it.’ In effect, this statement summarized the reality that
the things we use in today’s economy, at some point in its life, are moved by
truck. There may be some very minor variations to this but for the vast
majority of things this is the truth. This was true more than thirty
years ago and it is even more so today.
The number of transport trucks that we
encountered on our journey east gave a lie to the moribund picture of the
Canadian economy which is apparently in ‘a technical recession’. The
number of trucks moving on hwy 401 and the TransCanada hwy was a sign of
economic activity. The goods that they carry could not practically get to
their destination any other way. Most manufacturers and other businesses
no longer have rail connection as they once did. That’s the
positive. However, looking at it from the side of motorists sharing the
road with large trucks is not that positive. Large trucks are not as
mobile and maneuverable as cars and similar sized vehicles. That
means they take longer to accelerate and longer to stop – so it is wise to give
them some space. In addition, it can be annoying if a truck attempts to
pass another truck which is going slightly slower, it may take a long time to
do that manoeuvre while other vehicles are lining up behind the passing
truck. Trucks can also block road signs from the view of motorists –
again annoying and requires planning if you are looking for a particular exit
on a highway. If you are really lucky -or rather unlucky – you might get
caught in a situation where you are surrounded by large trucks with no way to
escape – trucks in front of you; trucks behind you and, yes, trucks beside you
in the passing lane.
There are things that any motorist can do to
adjust their driving to accommodate trucks. The most important thing is
to not let your emotions run you when you encounter a truck doing something to
get in your way. They are much larger and will win in any encounter with
a car. Of course, the government needs to do its part to ensure the
trucking industry is operating properly within the laws, rules such as hours of
service, and other regulations. There was the recent account in the media
about truck driver training schools scamming the system and not training
students properly. We all need to do our part in trying to ensure roads
are as safe as possible.
So, the next time you are frustrated by the
inconvenience or challenge of sharing the road with a truck, remember the part
they play in our economy – if you got it a truck brought it. Safe travels
on your journey.
