OKOTOKS, Alta – An Okotoks-based long-haul trucker was stranded in the United States due to an ongoing blockade at the border over the weekend.
“I’ve been driving for 20 years, and I’ve never met this level of idiocy,” said the longtime long hauler, who spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear for reprisal against him or his company in a phone interview on Jan. 30.
Participants in convoy demonstrations against COVID-19 vaccine mandates have occupied the northbound side of Highway 4 on the Canadian side of the Coutts border crossing since Saturday, preventing any northbound traffic, including trucking supply lines, from passing.
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney issued a statement Sunday, Jan. 30, condemning the complete blockage at the crossing as it contravenes the Alberta Traffic Safety Act, Alberta's Critical Infrastructure Defence Act and adds weight to any penalties police and prosecutors may levy.
Kenney said the decision to enforce any laws falls to police services and border enforcement.
RCMP said they will only use "the level of intervention necessary to ensure the safety of all citizens and to maintain peace, order and security."
"Our goal is to facilitate lawful and peaceful protest," reads a Sunday statement from RCMP. "When an event becomes unlawful, we utilize a measured approach, which ultimately includes enforcement. This event is unlawful and we are asking those who are involved to clear the area."
"It must be recognized that while everyone has a right to peaceful freedom of expression, the general public, local residents and businesses also have the right to a safe environment and freedom of movement."
While waiting for roads to open, transport trucks have begun to back up in the small community of Sweet Grass on the Montana side
“It’s a really, really small community. There’s a small rest area here and it is absolutely jam packed full of trucks,” the driver said, stating at least 100 trucks have become marooned south of the border. “Literally anywhere we could find a spot to park, we parked.”
He and all the other drivers in his company are fully vaccinated, he said.
The Canadian Trucking Alliance stated on Jan. 22 that the vast majority of the Canadian trucking industry is vaccinated “with the overall industry vaccination rate among truck drivers closely mirroring that of the general public.”
The driver’s wife was frustrated, as the delay ate into what little personal time they get.
“Our kid’s upset. Our kid only gets so much dad time,” she said. “We made the sacrifice with his job day in, day out, it’s a life and that’s what we signed up for.
“We didn’t sign up for our friends, our neighbours, our elected representatives to all go against us for what we felt was doing the right thing.”
Around the same time Sunday, Foothills MP John Barlow posted on Facebook saying he was in Ottawa “talking with folks, including truckers” about the impact the mandate was having on the Canadian economy and frustrations some felt with the pandemic.
He insisted in the post that everyone is being civil.
In an interview, Monday, Jan. 31, Barlow said while he supports Canadians right to protest, he doesn't condone the blockage of any trade corridor.
"I appreciate what they're doing but don't support it," he said. "It's counter intuitive to what they're saying. We need the border open to move products back and forth. Protest your frustrations and the policies you disagree with, but don't block the border. We need it open."
The driver’s wife, however, took issue with the MP's apparent endorsement of the movement.
“Seeing our MP give credence to this and listening to the 10 per cent, instead of the 90 per cent sure hurts. It feels like a slap in the face,” she said.
“They’re (protesters) talking about how they want everybody to have a choice, well, where’s our choice?
“I think the most disappointing part is the slap in the face from the people who are supposed to be my voices in Ottawa and Edmonton.
“They should at least be concerned about their constituents stuck in a foreign country.”
Barlow said conversations with colleagues has led him to believe the protest in Ottawa and blockade at Coutts are not related.
"Their message and what they're trying to achieve are sort of contradictory of each other," he said.
As this Okotoks long-hauler has no perishables in his own load, a trailer loaded with less-than-truckload (LTL) freight, and is accustomed to long hauls, he is not too unsettled by the delay returning to his family, but frustrated nonetheless.
“There’s lots of reefers (refrigerated trailers) that are running, there was a guy behind me who just came out of Arizona, so he’s got a load of fresh fruit on board, and his access to fuel was a half hour drive back to Shelby” the trucker said, conceding a reefer may last a couple days idling.
“One of this convoy’s issues is we can’t get goods transporting, well here we’ve got goods that are now being blockaded from being transported. What is this grocery store going to do when they receive their goods a day or two late and have to put it on sale before it spoils?”
The slow roll, he said, was a reasonable way of protesting, but a total stoppage crossed the line.
“So they wanted a reaction yesterday (Jan. 29) and they were getting no reaction, so now they decided to step up their game into a blockade instead of just an annoyance,” the trucker said. “But they’re putting public health at risk, they’re keeping food from grocery stores.
“A part of me finds that just irresponsible and clinically stupid, because they’re not working anyway. If you have the time to do this, you obviously don’t have a job to do.”
Part of that job, he continued, involves maintaining standards.
“It’s public safety, it goes back to public safety,” the trucker continued. “If you get your vaccine shots, then any COVID infection that’s there, you have a better shot of not carrying it now and spreading it around to the public.”
The slowdown didn’t just start with northbound trucks, with the United States border crossings put on edge.
“I was driving southbound [Saturday] and I was rolling through and they were just doing the slow roll like they were going to occupy the slow lane and leave the hammer (fast) lane open,” the driver said.
“U.S. Customs was viewing this as part of their standard operating procedures — when they have an issue like this it’s against Homeland Security policies.
“Instead of there being one or two traveller booths open for traffic, and a commercial lane for us drivers, they had it down to one lane.
“They really upped their presence; they normally have maybe four vehicles, well there was close to a dozen and they were on high alert. It took me two hours to move 200 metres and get to the booth.”
Of the vehicles he passed, most were private passenger vehicles — pickup trucks and minivans — but of the semis he saw among the demonstration, many were independent bobtails (not hauling a trailer), and often without U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) numbers for cross-border travel or International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA) numbers that would indicate they even transported goods on highways.
“I think it’s very irresponsible. As I was passing them in their convoy, a lot of these trucks aren’t even highway legal,” he said.
Trucks without these registration numbers, he explained, would typically be for use in local industry or agriculture.
“It’s one of the things that scale masters check for, do you have your IFTA or USDOT number, are you properly registered?” he said. “Farmers and stuff, they get a sort of ‘OK, we know you’re just trying to move your hay from this field to that field, so we’ll let you go and do it.’ But they’re not held to the same mechanical standards as a regular legal highway truck.
“There was one unit bobtailing and he looked like he was getting ready to lose a brake due to it starting to go on fire.”
Officials have indicated a less-trafficked crossing at Carway, Alta., is being used as a bypass despite not typically handling commercial traffic, and it involves a two-hour detour.
The nature of the driver’s LTL load waybill, however, is registered to a specific crossing, and would require tremendous paperwork with his company's clients to take through another crossing.
“If you go to another port, you have to have all those shipments transferred to that port location electronically,” he said.
As for provisions, he has a sleeper cab and plenty of food and water, but is worried others may not be so lucky.
The driver's impromptu hosts, the residents of Sweet Grass, have been understanding and hospitable to truckers stranded in their community.
He was interrupted during the phone interview by a local going 'door-to-door' handing out water and snacks to the waylaid haulers.
“This is how the locals are taking it, they’re here for us truckers,” he said.
As of Sunday evening, the driver said sheriffs indicated the crossing may open by Monday.
By Monday at 4 p.m., the blockade remained in place after RCMP warned demonstrators to clear the area.
The blockade of the Coutts border crossing violates the Alberta Traffic Safety Act.
— Jason Kenney (@jkenney) January 30, 2022
It is causing significant inconvenience for lawful motorists and could dangerously impede movement of emergency service vehicles.
This blockade must end.
My full statement: ⬇ pic.twitter.com/VbXTQTVft8
Over the weekend, several photos surfaced of demonstrators desecrating the memorial to Terry Fox, as well as the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and National War Memorial — in one case with demonstrators dancing on it and the other showing it having been urinated on.
The head of Canada’s Armed Forces General Wayne Eyre tweeted his disgust at the sight Saturday.
“I am sickened to see protesters dance on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and desecrate the National War Memorial,” Eyre said in the tweet. “Generations of Canadians have fought and died for our rights, including free speech, but not this. Those involved should hang their heads in shame.”
I am sickened to see protesters dance on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and desecrate the National War Memorial. Generations of Canadians have fought and died for our rights, including free speech, but not this. Those involved should hang their heads in shame.
— General / Général Wayne Eyre (@CDS_Canada_CEMD) January 29, 2022
Ottawa police released regular updates on social media advising anyone working downtown to work from home or avoid the area, and that they were working with organizers to ensure the demonstration remained peaceful.
“Still, confrontations and the need for de-escalation has been regularly required,” one Twitter post from Ottawa Police read. Along with safety issues, costs to business and social costs, the Ottawa Police continues to tally the financial costs of the policing costs which are estimated at more than $800,000 a day.”
Still, confrontations and the need for de-escalation has regularly been required. Along with the safety issues, costs to businesses and social costs, the Ottawa Police continues to tally the financial costs of the policing costs which are estimated at more than $800,000 a day.
— Ottawa Police (@OttawaPolice) January 31, 2022
