Allegedly drunk trucker jailed again, hours after arrest for driving on wrong side of TCH

The manarrested for driving a tractor traileron the wrong side of the divided highway near BrigusJunction on Tuesday was later picked up in Marystown for public intoxication.

Sources tell CBC News the man was released into the careof thetruck's owner hours after his initial arrest for impaired driving.

The owner continued the truck's intended route to the Burin Peninsula with the allegedlydrunk driver as apassenger.

While in Grand Bank, the 43-year-old man was arrested for public intoxication and held in custody overnight.

He was released Wednesday morning without additional charges.

Most dangerous scenario

Staff Sgt. RichardMarshall has seen a lotin his career with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, but nothingas dangerous as the tractor-trailer heading in the wrong direction on Tuesday morning.

Police from Holyrood and Whitbourneintercepted the truck shortly after 2 a.m. near Brigus Junction, halfway between each precinct. The driver was travelling at highway speeds, westboundin the eastbound lane.

"I can't think of anything [worse]," said Marshall."You've literally got a vehicle that's tens of thousands of pounds, travelling at possibly 100 kilometres an hour approximately, give or take in the wrong direction on the Trans-Canada, late at night in dark conditions. It's a terrible, terrible scenario."

The driver was charged with driving while impaired, and also ticketed for driving with a suspended licence.

It's the same thing as giving somebody a loaded gun.- Adam Leyte

Marshall said it's on trucking companies to make sure their drivers are vetted and have valid licences, to avoid situations like this from happening.

"They have to have their own checks and balances in place to ensure their drivers that they hire have the proper certifications, the proper licences, the proper class of licence. So that's concerning for us as well."

Trucker stunned by news

Adam Leyte, a trucker from Port aux Basques, said he was shocked to hear about the incident.

He said this is not a common situation for truckers in the province, and said this driver was an "anomaly."

"It's completely wrong," Leytesaid. "He should never be allowed to drive again. It's the same thing as giving somebody a loaded gun."

Leyte said truckers take it upon themselves to make sure they aren't driving when they are not in fit shape which usually means fatigue or illness.

There's just too much to lose, he said.

"If we lose our licence, we lose our job, we lose our livelihoods. This is what we are. We're drivers. It's too big of a risk for most of us to take."

'This one slipped through the cracks'

And it's a job that's heavily monitored and regulated, adds Jean-Marc Picard, executive director of the Atlantic Provinces Trucking Association.

Most trucks on the road are equipped with computers that can track how fast they're going, how long they've stopped, where the truck is travelling, he said.

Many also have devices that keep trucks from travelling beyond certain speed limits, he said.

Most companies also have drug and alcohol policies, and drivers are often randomly screened for substance use, he said.

"We're big, we're heavy and they need to make sure everything is safe on the road," he said.

There's a lot at stakes for the companies, too, he said the trucks themselves aren't cheap, and neither is the cargo they're often carrying.

And a black mark on a company's safety recordcan mean suspensions or big bumps in insurance fees, he said.

Picard said this particular story was shocking and he's not quite sure how it happened, given all of the regulations and oversight in the industry.

"This one slipped through the cracks."

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