Welcome to the Main Forum. Anything goes.

-- Gary Allan Halonen (g_a_halonen@hotmail.com), July 11, 2001

Answers

I need some pictures of the BC mountains, preferably one's with a truck on one of our highways. Something from a height with mountains and the sky in the background would be, as the kids say,"Awesome!"

I'll use them as background on the Main page and introductory pages of the BC Trucker's Forum. You won't be paid but I'll include a Credit with your name and\or company at the bottom.

If I get enough of them, I'll alternate the use of them so that we'll always be seeing the site with a fresh look. So send them in whatever format you wish as an attachment to my email address. Thanks.

Gary

-- Gary Allan Halonen (g_a_halonen@hotmail.com), July 12, 2001.

Having recently moved from Ontario to Victoria, I'm really surprised on how low the freight rates and pay for drivers is here. What gives?! The skills required to drive these mountain highways far exceed anything in the East except perhaps the mountains in New Hampshire, northern Mass and Vermont. And even then, those States are quite small and within hours you're out of it and getting a break on open flat, wide highways.

Here, the driving is intense! You'd better have what you want to reach for close at hand for you dare not take your eyes off the road for a second! It goes without saying about people who are do not comprehend the weight and braking distance your rig needs when they pull out or quickly slow down on a steep down-grade.

Drivers in the East are getting paid between $13 and $18 bucks an hour for 5 tons and tractor drivers make between $15 and $19 an hour. And the conditions they drive under are fair less stressful than here. There are mostly double lanes on major highways. There are under-passes or over-passes everywhere so you don't have to stop every few miles. Actually you can go for many, many miles on 'cruise control' without even being concerned about the infrastructure holding you up or slowing you down.

We have a ridiculous, antiquated highway system here. Very little under\over-passes and the main highways run right through small towns. Just as it was 30 years ago in Ontario!

When I talk to highway truck drivers here, they're surprised that you could travel for 500 hundred miles straight with only a few breaks. Here the roads tend to burn a guy out after a few hours!

It isn't the drivers here lacking in skill or ability to put in the miles they do in the East or Mid-provinces, it's the deplorable road conditions. They're too narrow, too winding and generally the roads aren't designed for the volume of traffic. A little more enforcement on four wheelers wouldn't hurt much either.

Don't get me wrong. I love cruising along our beautiful BC highways. It's just that every time I get myself set into a relaxed state of mind to enjoy the trip like I do in other Provinces or States down South, some bloody, stupid, ill-concieved obstacle gets shoved in my face. And it's always something having to do with infra-structure.

Obviously, the Dept of Highways have had an easy ride here for a very long time. The government has been collecting the money from gas taxes and registration fees but haven't put much back into up-grading our highways. Up-grading does not mean 're-paving'. I'm talking about bring it up to 21st century standards. Aren't the highway people embarrassed when they drive out of BC and get on the super-highways going across Canada or across the States? Or perhaps they stick to flying. No need to put their important lives at risk, right?

Well that's my beef for today. Comment if you like or bugger off. I don't care.

Gary

-- Gary (g_a_halonen@hotmail.com), August 19, 2001.