Officers from 14 different law-enforcement agencies across the Lower Mainland were in Burnaby all this past week for a concerted four-day commercial vehicle enforcement blitz, with check stops set up at multiple locations each day.
One driver was nailed because he was an ‘L’ driver out on his own – in a commercial truck.
In a second case, on day three of the truck blitz, Burnaby RCMP said they stopped a commercial truck where instead of a wood block to seat an extra adult passenger, the trucker in question used a high-back child's booster seat.
A child's forward-facing high-back booster seat has both minimum and a maximum height and weight restrictions, and must be installed properly, including with a top tether, in order for it to be used safely by a child who meets those requirements. It is in no way a safe seating alternative for an adult, and using it for an adult passenger can damage the seat so that it is unsafe for a child to use it following that usage.
The trucker was issued a $598 ticket and the extra passenger had to take the SkyTrain back to work.
Last year, 40% of the more than 400 commercial vehicles pulled over and checked in Burnaby had to be taken off the road because they were unsafe, according to RCMP Const. Kevin Connolly, Burnaby’s commercial vehicle enforcement officer.
But he hopes a growing awareness among law enforcement agencies about the importance of commercial vehicle enforcement will translate into changes on the road.
It could be a matter of life and death, according to Connolly.
“When a commercial vehicle accident happens, it’s almost always bad because of the size of these vehicles,” he said.
With files from Cornelia Naylor/Burnaby NOW and additional reporting by Lindsay William-Ross/V.I.A.
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