Patrol of the MTQ worried

Photo Axel Marchand-Lamothe
Patrick de Rosa, team leader and patroller traffic surveillance, deplores the lack of respect of the security corridor.

Axel Marchand-Lamothe

Sunday, 14 January 2018 01:00

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Sunday, 14 January 2018 01:00

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An unusually high number of collisions involving their vehicles since the beginning of the winter worried about the patrol of the MTQ, which call for a better respect of the corridor of safety for motorists.

Only in the montreal region, at least five accidents involving trucks of the ministry of Transport have been listed in recent weeks, while they assured the protection of emergency responders. Fortunately, there were no injuries.

Never seen before, according to Patrick de Rosa, a ski patroller for 18 years.

“The security corridor could be better respected, lamented the team leader for the North Shore of Montreal. There is a lot of improvement, but it is still far from the respect that one sees in the United States, for example. “

Since the beginning of the winter, the Sûreté du Québec deplores also at least three incidents on the motorway networks, causing minor injuries to some police officers.

“Motorists don’t need to do sudden braking and lane changing at any price if the maneuver is not possible, remember Hugo Fournier SQ. Above all, we need to slow down to ensure the safety of stakeholders. “

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Only in the metropolitan area, at least five crashes involving trucks of the ministry of Transport have occurred since Christmas.

Risky trade

Patrick Rosa, like her colleagues, is fully aware of the risks he takes when he takes to the road.

“A supervisor who is not afraid is not in his place. It is necessary to be aware of its environment. It is always necessary to prepare for an impact “, he says.

In June 2016, the public service Union of Quebec had conducted a survey of 160 patrolmen that he represents. In total, 90 % of them considered that their health and safety were threatened.

“The fear is what keeps us alive,” says Patrick de Rosa.

For him, it was the death of a police officer and a patrol officer, in October 2002, at Laval, who reminds him constantly of the dangers that it faces.

Recalcitrant

Few motorists correctly identify the supervisors road as emergency vehicles, according to surveys conducted by the MTQ since the implementation of the Move Over Law in 2012.

However, remember Sarah Bensadoun, spokesman for the ministry, it applies everywhere, be it on motorways, rural roads or urban streets and all the emergency vehicles whose lights are activated.

According to Mr. Rosa, motorists recalcitrant scant regard for the risk of contravention, which ranges from $ 200 to $ 300 in more than 4 demerit points.

“And they often follow too closely the vehicle in front to be able to react to what they see in the storms,” says one who has himself seen his truck being hit three times in recent years.

The nerve of the war is thus to be visible when they came to a stop on the expressways.

“If we get hit by a vehicle, there is little chance that we will win “, concluded Mr. Rosa.

alarming data

• 214 accidents involving emergency vehicles fixed at the roadside, in Quebec, from 2009 to 2012.

• 40 % of the road users say they still do not comply with the security corridor. In 2012, it was 90 %.

• 15 % of motorists identify proctors road as emergency vehicles.

Sources : MTQ, SAAQ, APDQ