The announcement the provincial government will be conducting public consultation on safety initiatives for commercial trucking is welcome news, but it comes a little late. The pending regulation changes are geared towards closing what a trucking industry insider told CBC is a “widely abused” loophole. The “chameleon” loophole allowed trucking companies to remain on the road, by reopening under a new name, after safety infractions had forced them to close. This allowed decertified drivers to continue to operate. The proposed overhaul also considers driver training and the possibility of restoring Government of Alberta driver examiners. All this sounds great, but it certainly doesn’t help the victims of the Humboldt Broncos bus collision or the driver of the semi that hit the bus, who is now facing a possible lifetime in prison. To be clear, we do not know the specifics of what evidence Major Crimes found to suggest the vehicle was being operated in a manner dangerous to the public. We are not saying the driver, Jaskirat Sidhu, shouldn’t be facing criminal charges. What we are suggesting is this industry has long been known to be a problem and did not set Sidhu up for success. Alberta loves private enterprise, which is why regulations in this industry were loosened in the first place, but that seems to be serving the industry and company owners within in it more than it serves the public. People who work in the trucking industry need to be protected, too, and the industry as it is certainly did not do that for Sidhu – or those who died on a road near Tisdale, Sask.
