At the last regular meeting, Thompson City Council had a brief discussion on the increased truck traffic along highway six over the past year, which is a result of the ongoing OmniTrax situation.

The discussion stemmed from a letter Council received from Marc Garneau, the Federal Minitser of Transportation.

Councillor Kathy Valentino spoke on the topic, saying that in the wake of the Humboldt Broncos incident, the issue of increased trucks on the highway needs to be elevated. She said that it did not matter whether or not the collision in Saskatchewan had anything to do with OmniTrax, and that one collision on a highway is one too many.

Councillor Ron Matechuk shot back a response quickly at Councillor Valentino, saying that he thinks there should be more traffic. He said "I disagree with that (Councillor Valentino's remarks) totally. If we expect to get somewhere economically in this area we better have more traffic on the roads. That's what it's all about."

Speaking on City Beat later in the week, Mayor Dennis Fenske said that the City will be elevating their lobbying efforts on the issue.

He said that even though Thompson should continue to be a transportation hub for the region, this is an issue of safety that needs to be addressed.

Photo courtesy of Thompson Citizen, Kyle Darbyson.