Before Monday’s crash, a provincial website had listed 17 other bridge strikes on provincial highways since late 2021
A crash on Monday of a commercial truck into an overpass on the Trans-Canada Highway in Langley underscores the need for better training and more oversight to deal with what has become a chronic problem, industry observers say.
Monday’s accident, which closed Highway 1 westbound at 264th Street in Langley, snarling traffic for hours, appears to have involved a truck carrying industrial equipment that was too high as it drove under an overpass. There were no injuries.
Before Monday’s crash, a provincial website had listed 17 other bridge strikes on provincial highways since late 2021.
Beginning in October 2021, all new truck drivers have been mandated by the province to take what is known as a MELT — or mandatory entry level training — course approved by ICBC.
But Dave Earle, president and CEO of the B.C. Trucking Association, said there is a large number of existing drivers who have been left out by this initiative.
“We have to turn our minds to how to reach drivers who have had their licenses for longer,” he said.
They also need to know how to properly measure loads and plan for trips, as well as understanding if loads will easily clear the height clearances on a route.
Amrit Grewal, an owner and instructor at Sarabha Driving School in Langley, said drivers more accustomed to handling dry vans or refrigerated trailers with regular-sized loads stored in an enclosed space may not understand how to measure or assess risk if they only occasionally have to deal with picking up an oversized or overheight load on a flatbed trailer.
“They don’t know how to check the measurements, and they are just setting off to get from point A to point B without planning their route,” said Grewal.
Drivers might use Google maps to plot routes, but not know how to use navigation apps or GPS tracking devices that give more detailed information such as where bridges with lower height clearances might be located, he said.
Some larger companies are putting existing drivers through refresher or orientation courses, but the smaller ones are less inclined, he said.
In a separate incident Monday in Abbotsford, a truck on Highway 1 crashed into the No. 3 road overpass. Abbotsford Police said the truck was heading eastbound when the front driver side tire blew. The driver lost control, crashed into the median, and then hit the overpass, bursting into flames.
A provincial official said efforts are being made to toughen penalties for truck operators who don’t check their loads ahead of time.
“Commercial vehicle operators are responsible for ensuring their loads are meeting the terms and conditions of the permits they have been issued. (We are) working with the trucking industry on new actions we can take with higher fines, steeper penalties, longer suspensions, and more driver education to stop these collisions from happening,” said Dave Crebo, communications director for the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure.
The ministry said the cost of repairs varies depending on the severity of the damage. For example, last July, when a truck damaged the 192nd Street overpass in Langley and it remained closed for repairs for over eight months, the cost was approximately $1 million. Where possible, the ministry works to recover repair costs from the insurance providers of the operators or vehicles that caused damage.
The ministry has been tracking bridge strikes since 2021 and notes they are caused by drivers using unapproved transport routes, not lowering their equipment while moving, or not measuring their loads.
Five of the 17 noted incidents involved drivers for Chohan Freight Forwarders Ltd., which had its carrier license suspended last June after its latest mishap.
This was lifted a few weeks later after a revised safety plan was developed.
Truck-overpass incidents since 2021
Here are the 17 previous instances of a truck striking an overpass in B.C. before the latest crash this morning:
May 1, 2023: Highway 1 at Peardonville Road
Carrier: Driving Force Decks Int’l Ltd.
Cause: Driver failed to measure load
Enforcement: Violation tickets
April 20, 2023: Highway 1 at 264th Street
Carrier: Bowline Logistics Ltd.
Cause: Driver failed to follow approved route
Enforcement: RCMP attended
Feb. 10, 2023: Knight Street at Cambie
Carrier: All Right Trucking-99 Ltd.
Cause: Vehicle equipment not lowered
Enforcement: Violation tickets
Feb. 1, 2023: Highway 16/5
Carrier: Under investigation
Cause: Excavator arm not lowered
Enforcement: Under investigation
Aug. 8, 2022: Highway 1 at 264th Street:
Carrier: 2248874 Alberta Ltd.
Cause: Driver failed to follow approved route
Enforcement: Violation tickets
July 21, 2022: Highway 99 at 112th Street
Carrier: 0948387 B.C. Ltd. doing business as Net Zero Waste
Cause : Excavator boom not lowered
Enforcement: Violation tickets
July 12, 2022: Highway 1 at 192nd Street
Carrier: Neil Smith Construction/Sharon Louise Stadnyk
Cause: Excavator attachment not lowered
Enforcement: Violation tickets
June 23, 2022: Highway 1 at 232nd Street
Carrier: Triahn Enterprises Ltd
Cause: Excavator bucket not lowered
Enforcement: Violation tickets
June 8, 2022: Highway 99 at Cambie
Carrier: J.T. Business Development Corporation Ltd.
Cause: Incorrect permit and load height higher than reported
Enforcement: Violation tickets
June 8, 2022: Highway 1 at 264th Street
Carrier: Chohan Freight Forwarders Ltd.
Cause: Incorrect permit
Enforcement: Violation tickets, carrier licence suspended (lifted June 30 after revised safety plan developed and implemented)
June 1, 2022: Highway 1 at No. 3 Road
Carrier: Chohan Freight Forwarders Ltd.
Cause: Driver failed to follow approved route
Enforcement: Violation tickets
April 26, 2022: Highway 1 at 264th Street
Carrier: Optimum Transportation Ltd.
Cause: Vehicle equipment not lowered
Enforcement: Violation tickets
Feb. 18, 2022: Highway 1 at No. 3 Road
Carrier: Ideal Lease
Cause: Driver failed to follow approved route
Enforcement: RCMP attended
Feb. 17, 2022: Highway 99 at 112th Street
Carrier: Chohan Freight Forwarders Ltd.
Cause: Driver failed to follow approved route
Enforcement: Violation tickets, safety plan required
Feb. 12, 2022: Highway 1 at 264th Street
Carrier: Chohan Freight Forwarders Ltd.
Cause: No permit
Enforcement: Violation tickets
Feb. 3, 2022: Highway 1 at Glover Road
Carrier: Rockport Carrier Co. Ltd.
Cause: No permit, excavator arm not lowered
Enforcement: Violation tickets
Dec. 10, 2021: Highway 1 at 192nd Street
Carrier: Chohan Freight Forwarders Ltd.
Cause: Driver failed to observe conditions of permit
Enforcement: Violation tickets