LANCASTER, Ontario – The 401, like any high-volume expressway, can be the fastest and safest way of getting from here to there. However, if there’s a mishap, or a blizzard, or fog or construction, it can be hellish.
Tuesday August 29 started off with streams of 18-wheelers, motor homes and commuters getting from A to B at more than 100 kilometers per hour without a glitch. Suddenly, before noon, came a lumber spill from an upset west-bound transport truck. There was no going beyond the off ramp immediately west of the Lancaster 814 interchange. There were enough 2x4s to Keep Chris Emard busy for weeks on end.
The traffic flow became like trying to pour a fire hose through a drinking straw. Ten into one becomes a decimal, a flow of one- hundredth the input. Police cars, fire trucks and salvage equipment were rushed to the scene. SD&G County Road 2 was just not up to the task. Some of the more savvy truckers even resorted to going along other backroads. It was a snail’s pace on even Robert Frost’s ‘The Road Less Travelled.
Moral of the story? Don’t drive on a near-empty fuel tank or a near full bladder. Be patient. Chill! Chill? In winter, be sure to bring along something, or someone, to snuggle up with. That one-hour run may become as lengthy as a replay of “Gone with the Wind” (three hours, 58 minutes).
