Darrell Gunn, the Terrace based Ministry official oversees the operations in the Northwest and last week he provided a review of some of the information material that the Ministry has available for motorists as part of the Shift Into Winter program
As part of his thirteen minute presentation to Council, Mr. Gunn highlighted some of the ways that the program is being delivered in the region and what factors motorists should keep in mind as they travel the highways of the Northwest.
The main focus of the Shift Into Winter program is driver education and a reminder for those on the roads to drive to the conditions that they face. Partnered with ICBC and the RCMP, the main goal of the program is to reduce the amount of fatal accidents and injury related accidents that take place during the winter driving season.
Prior to wrapping up his review for Council, Mr. Gunn answered some questions from Council members, noting that the Mile 28 overpass project is still moving forward, he also reaffirmed for Council that Highway 16 remains a Class A highway, with snow clearing and winter maintenance expectations the same as can be found across the corridor and into the Prince George region.
You can review his presentation to Council from the City's Video Archive starting at the 36 minute mark.
One of the key elements to road safety in the Northwest is the use of snow tires during the winter driving season, something that is compulsory just past the Port Ed turn off.
As we noted back in September the regulations related to the use of Winter Tires on Highway 16 went into effect on October 1st, motorists must use those tires while travelling east of Prince Rupert through to march 31st.
Even in the Prince Rupert area, more and more motorists are making the switch to winter tires, a trend that is also finding Northern British Columbians getting better at heeding that Winter Safety message with ICBC noting that the changeover from all weather to winter tires in the fall is in the increase.
A recent survey from ICBC notes that nearly half of the drivers in Northern BC plan or already have plans to put winter tires on their vehicle.
You can find out more about the Ministry's Shift into Winter initiative here.
Notes on driving conditions along Highway 16 can be found on our sidebar listings, with both links to the Drive BC website and a list of Highway webcams available to view conditions before you travel.
Further notes related to last week's Council session can be found through both our Council Timeline feature and archive of the October 30th meeting here.
A wider overview of City Council Discussion topics is also available on our Council Archive page.
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