New technology that monitors commercial vehicles will improve safety for local residents and drivers on Highway 5A.

Weigh-in-motion and automatic vehicle-identification systems will monitor commercial vehicles at highway speeds using sensors built into and above the highway. The sensors will measure real-time safety and vehicle data, such as weight, height and tire conditions, and compare the data against enforced standards.

Commercial vehicle data will be relayed directly to mobile Commercial Vehicle Safety and Enforcement officers in the area, enabling more efficient intervention and enforcement of safety standards.

This new system, located approximately three kilometres north of Merritt, will be the first exclusively virtual system in the province. Construction is expected to begin in late spring and be completed in the fall.

Highway 5A is an important alternative route for the trucking industry as the higher elevations make the Coquihalla Highway more susceptible to extreme weather conditions. Commercial vehicles also use Highway 5A for local deliveries, forestry and agriculture.

Quick Facts:

• The new virtual system on Highway 5A will provide information about all commercial vehicles that pass whether they are enrolled in the Weigh2Go program or not.
• Known collectively as Weigh2GoBC, the ministry has established a network of 12 weigh-in-motion and automatic vehicle-identification technologies that check vehicle safety compliance at highway speed.
• Carriers registered with Weigh2GoBC receive transponders that allow compliant vehicles to bypass inspection stations, saving time and fuel, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
• Currently, industry enrolment consists of more than 500 carriers and more than 5,000 vehicles.
• Since Weigh2GoBC’s launch in 2010, it is estimated that reductions in driver time and fuel costs have saved the industry more than $60 million, including a reduction of more than four million kilograms of greenhouse gas emissions