Image Credit: Skilled Truckers Canada

- This story was originally published June 12, 2022.

A Vernon driving instructor says there’s a lesson to be learned from a video being shared around social media of a near accident involving two semi trucks.

Matt Dutchak, a professional driving instructor with Taylor Pro College, said both vehicles were at fault.

A video originally shared by Skilled Truckers Canada, shows a Vernon-based DCT Chambers semi-truck passing a red semi on a double solid line. Dutchak recognized the logo on the side of the white truck as DCT.

The red semi doesn’t slow down and eventually drives to the side of the road when the white semi attempts to merge back into the lane. 

READ MORE: Semi trucks narrowly avoid crash after one crosses into other's lane on Highway 97

“One of the things I teach my students is that if you find yourself in a situation where the red truck was in, you just let off the throttle, and let whoever needs to get by, get by,” he said. “You don’t try to race them or block them, or anything like that. You just recognize what they want to do and let them do it.”

The DCT truck should have been aware of upcoming road signs and known to hang back if it didn’t have the speed to be able to pass, he said.

“Both looked like it was ego and I’ve run into that situation lots just teaching my students through the area, we go all over from Sicamous, Salmon Arm, all the way out to Merritt,” he said.

He said situations like these ones occur every day and he hopes this will bring awareness to the issue and to DCT Chambers.

“This is what the new MELT (mandatory entry-level training) program that came in last October is trying to curb all of this behaviour,” he said. 

Dutchak said the changes with the new program are making a difference but it will take a while to see the changes on the road.

B.C.’s program exceeds the minimum requirements set by the National Safety Code Standard for entry-level training of Class 1 drivers.

DCT Chambers could not be immediately reached for comment but Skilled Truckers Canada said the video was taken along Highway 97, south of 100 Mile House while the vehicles were travelling in the northbound lane.

A timestamp on the video shows the date as June 10.

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