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Massive protest involving semi-trucks blocks Vancouver traffic

The protest covered a lot of distance
Brendan Kergin
Brendan Kergin
truck-protest-vancouver
A huge protest involving semi-trucks blocked Vancouver traffic on July 21. The demonstration was in opposition to proposed policy changes affecting transporting goods in Vancouver.Jeremy Hainsworth/Glacier Media

Traffic in Vancouver, Richmond and an area of Delta was backed up in the middle of Sunday, July 21, due to a rally involving semi-trucks.

The rally was organized to protest proposed changes to drayage (a sector of the trucking industry dealing with transporting goods short distances) and licensing.

The rolling rally passed along major roads in Vancouver causing delays, including Burrard, Georgia and Knight streets.

The changes were proposed earlier this year by the Office of the B.C. Container Trucking Commissioner (OBCCTC), an independent agency of the provincial government tasked with overseeing the container trucking industry in B.C.

The OBCCTC says the changes are aimed at strengthening off-dock enforcement and increasing the stability of the drayage sector, according to a report released in May.

The rally was organized by the Port Transportation Association (PTA), a group founded in 2019 by companies that work in the drayage sector and deal with the Port of Vancouver and OBCCTC.

"Attempting to reshape B.C.'s container drayage industry by way of license will have a detrimental effect on BC small business, jobs with all related sectors, risk the health of Canada's supply chain, and will ultimately increase inflation," states the PTA in a press release.

The rally was organized to bring the public's attention to the proposed changes, which would be put in place at the end of the year. The rally route ran from Annacis Island in Delta to downtown Vancouver and then back out to Delta.