Driver publicly condemned by company & trucking association after operating rig with duct taped windows and mirrors

A truck driver has been publicly condemned by his company and a local trucking association after operating his rig with duct taped windows and mirrors. 

The truck driver was pulled over, towed, and cited on Sunday, February 1st, in Corman Park, Saskatchewan, Canada along Highway 11 after an officer noticed duct tape covering his windows and on at least one side mirror. 

“When your line of sight is obstructed by duct tape and your mirrors are covered, there is no way you can safely operate that vehicle,” Corman Park Police Chief Robert Duttchen said to CTV News.

The owner of the truck and employer of the driver, South West Bulk Express, says that the damaged was caused by another vehicle backing into the rig while it was parked at a customer’s property. South West Bulk Express says that a tow truck was on its way to pick up the truck, but the driver chose to drive it to meet the tow truck instead. Police say that the truck had been on the road for six hours when it was finally pulled over. 

“How a professional driver could get behind the wheel of that vehicle, deem it safe after a pre-trip inspection, and take it on the road is beyond comprehension,” Duttchen said.

South West Bulk Express says that the driver is no longer employed with the company, and his actions have been publicly condemned by the Saskatchewan Trucking Association (STA). 

“It’s concerning to us and probably most of the general public as well,” said Thomas Archer, a leadership, education and development specialist with the STA, to CJME News.

“If they got stopped at a weigh scale and got inspected, they would be put out of service. So most employers and most owner operators typically would look at their vehicle and say, ‘Can I even take this out on the road? Am I being compliant?’ And in that particular case, that one wouldn’t be compliant,” Archer continued.

“Safety isn’t just one singular organization like us; it’s a shared system. Typically, provincial and federal regulators, some law enforcement, insurance and then the industry itself kind of takes a role within safety,” he said.

“A good company typically wants to ensure that the bad companies aren’t operating … it’s bad for their overall business, too… If you had a truck that’s breaking down constantly or is not compliant or being pulled out of service, that affects the work you do with your clients. None of our companies would advocate for a non-roadworthy truck, so they definitely want to make sure that the industry is looking good.”

The truck driver received several citations for the incident and the truck was towed from the scene.