Police services from across the region teamed up to carry out a Commercial Motor Vehicle Enforcement Blitz at the Kitchener Aud.
The blitz was one of eight provincial blitzes run by the Ontario Police Commercial Vehicle Committee.
The purpose is to increase road safety, which is especially important when fatalities involving trucks are up 25 per cent compared to this time last year.
Approximately 55 police officers were involved over the two-day event, which aims to service around 250 vehicles over the course of Monday and Tuesday.
Officers stop and bring commercial vehicles in for a level one inspection.
Common faults found are bald or flat tires, defective brake systems and load security issues, all of which are safety concerns.
Last year, 42 per cent of vehicles stopped had defects that put them out of service, but Cst. Steve Saddler of the WRPS said that this year, the numbers have been better.
“They’ve been in around 30 per cent so far this year that we’ve seen from previous blitzes that have taken place,” Cst. Saddler said Monday.
According to police, the operation doesn’t cost more than the price of food and drinks provided, as each service helps one another during their respective blitzes.
“It’s purely for road safety,” Saddler said.
The Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change were all in attendance, as well.
