Gravel haulers plan second major truckers' protest
CLOVERDALE, B.C. (May 5, 2005) -- About 500 gravel haulers plan to follow up last weekend's truckers' blockades with a massive protest of their own in Cloverdale tomorrow. The group, again led by Teamsters B.C. president Don McGill, will gather at the Cloverdale Fairgrounds at 9:30 a.m. in an attempt to shut down much on the unionized construction work around the region, The Surrey Leader reports. Last weekend, about 250 Teamsters-backed truckers -- many container haulers -- brought city traffic to a standstill while protesting high diesel fuel prices. The truckers demanded the federal government and provincial governments cut their fuel taxes on diesel to provide relief -- starting with the federal GST. McGill told the paper the purpose is to demonstrate that gravel haulers are united in enforcing a higher fuel surcharge they've recently declared. He said the truckers want to collect a one percent rate hike for every four cents diesel goes above 90 cents a litre. The price of diesel has increased by more than 50 percent to around 95 cents a litre in the Vancouver area. It has jumped 20 cents in just the past four months. Some truckers are calling for a much larger scale, province-wide trucking blockade. McGill said he's had to talk truckers out of more drastic demonstration in recent days. Last week, the Ottawa-based Owner-Operator's Business Association of Canada said that truckers' blockades in protest over high fuel prices will only lead to negative reaction from the public and continue to alienate independent truckers. "Rather than clambering after governments to cut fuel prices, owner-ops should be focusing their attention on the real problem -- inadequate haulage rates -- and going after their customers to start paying what it costs to have their freight moved," said OBAC executive director Joanne Ritchie. -- with files from The Surrey Leader