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One man’s opinion

As the summer logging season has started, a month or more late for some, we see once again a lot of loads heading south of the Fort St. James Forest District. Well, at least this is providing jobs, but it is not doing any good for Fort St. James, so I would like to see this change. I believe, along with others that the B.C.T.S. as well as the licencees should be paying compensation to the municipality.

Editor:

 

 

Well, are you as surprised as I at the request for a five per cent increase by ICBC for the new year, just to keep up they say. Or maybe it’s bonus time again.

Find it somewhere else like everyone else has to do and a lot not able to do it, stay away from our well for a change.

Hydro, Gas, Ferries and the rest can to the same. One can hardly keep up.

It’s little wonder there are good qualified people seeking employment and residence in other provinces. It’s very hard to imagine some of the bureaucrats and politicians can actually go home at night with a clear conscience.

I think our Premier should be doing a lot of house cleaning. The government claims they are listening and will act in favour of the public wishes - we’ll see.

Now would be a good time to please your voters. I believe this is way past due.

As the summer logging season has started, a month or more late for some, we see once again a lot of loads heading south of the Fort St. James Forest District.

Well, at least this is providing jobs, but it is not doing any good for Fort St. James, so I would like to see this change.

I believe, along with others that the B.C.T.S. as well as the licencees should be paying compensation to the municipality.

Employees of the community are the ones doing the maintenance of the throughway, after all.

It has been suggested that a $1 per cubic metre be paid but I think $2 per cubic metre would be fair compensation, otherwise, build an alternate route that will cost you millions and once complete, put a toll station on it for local purposes.

Either way, the licencees and B.C.T.S. should be compensating our district, because once they are gone, you won’t see anything positive left behind.

I understand rates for contractors and truckers alike are being established soon for the season and who knows for how long.

Well, permit me to suggest what the trucking rate should be.

I think it should be $165 per hour or $4.35 per tonne hour and if there were a matrix or cost sheet I would be right in the ball park.

This is what the trucking industry should be making, considering costs. This would be over a dollar more per tonne hour than what they are allowed right now. Once again, you do the math.

As my friend Tony used to say: This is one man’s opinion.

 

 

Russ Gingrich

 

retired trucker