12-hour commute during snow storm a chaotic ‘nightmare’ in B.C.’s Lower Mainland

It typically requires Cloverdale’s Kristina Trotzuk about an hour to get dwelling from get the job done on Annacis Island.

On Tuesday, it took her far more than 12.

“It was the most discouraging, stressful, terrifying scenario I have ever been by way of,” she advised Black Press Media Wednesday morning after just a couple hours sleep.

“It was just complete chaos.”

Trotzuk was amongst a gridlock of drivers trapped in their autos as a fierce storm blanketed significantly of British Columbia’s south coast and Vancouver Island with up to 25 centimetres of snow, producing traffic chaos, ability outages and airport delays.

She left her do the job at 4:15 p.m. Two several hours later, she had only made it to the Cliveden exit for Freeway 91 – a 15-moment stroll from her work. She could see that the Alex Fraser Bridge, just one of the primary artieries throughout the Fraser River, was a mess. It looked like a design zone, with buses sideways and tow vans.

At this point number of cars and trucks, if any, have been receiving across the bridge. She made the decision to attempt the George Massey tunnel. The road likely on Highway 99 had not been plowed or salted.

“It was like driving a mountain highway, it was the freakiest issue ever,” mentioned Trotzuk.

At all over 10:30 p.m., DriveBC noted the George Massey tunnel was shut southbound because of to an accident, so she experienced to reroute once more.

Trotzuk criss-crossed close to Delta and Richmond for the upcoming various hours, trying to come across a clear route household. Most of the time, she was going, even if it was at a snail’s pace, besides when she was on the No. 5 street in Richmond striving to get on Stevenson Freeway.

She recollects telling her spouse Perry at 11:45 p.m. she must be home soon. The next factor she understood, it was 2 a.m., and she had not moved. In all places she appeared, she could see cars in the ditch and spinning out.

For his part, Perry said it was a awful sensation sitting down at household not remaining in a position to enable his wife.

“I was helpless with no way to enable her out,” he claimed. “Makes me unwell to my tummy.”

Trotzuk then listened to that Steveson Highway had shut. As she sat in gridlock targeted visitors, she puzzled what she must do. It felt like there was nowhere to go.

“Do I cry?”

A local radio station encouraged motorists to make their way to the Golden Ears Bridge. She located a various route that was distinct. Within 40 minutes, she was leaping into her mattress at 4:55 a.m.

Her working experience was hardly exceptional. When Bharanisai Madhusudhan stopped at the grocery shop on his way house from function Tuesday afternoon, he envisioned the excursion from Vancouver to Surrey to choose him about 45 minutes.

Rather, it would be just about 12 several hours prior to he arrived dwelling.

“If I had walked to my home, I would have achieved there about four hours earlier,” he reported.

Madhusudhan said he saw motorists travelling with infants and spoke to just one senior who was apprehensive about managing out of his medicine. Deserted motor vehicles on the aspect of the road suggested some individuals had made the decision to leave their cars and trucks and stroll.

The stress from drivers was palpable, he explained.

“Actually, it was frightening because the past factor you want to do is get stranded on the top of a bridge and just wait around for a towing auto, which was also not feasible mainly because a large amount of towing cars had been stranded as effectively,” he explained.

He stated the authorities could have completed a improved task getting ready for the storm that it realized was coming and of notifying men and women when the bridge was staying shut down.

Trotzuk felt the similar, introducing she believes cities could have carried out more to prepare as well. The snowplows she noticed had a tough time clearing the roadways mainly because they ended up comprehensive of gridlock targeted traffic and deserted autos.

Reflecting on previous night’s encounter, she was psychological and termed the whole knowledge was “surreal.” She has lived in the spot her entire everyday living and claimed she has hardly ever seasoned nearly anything like that before.

“It was so unorganized,” she reported.

Officials with the Ministry of Transportation ended up expected to present an update on the circumstance Wednesday.

Fortunately Trotzuk had sufficient gas and a car with all-wheel generate. But the practical experience taught her to be much more well prepared for upcoming time – like building confident she has a heat coat in her auto.

When Black Push Media spoke to her on Wednesday (Nov. 30), she was on her way to work. This time, it only took her 35 minutes. The only men and women on the street these days are the automobiles people today deserted past evening all through the storm, she claimed with a chuckle.

Natural environment Canada lifted snowfall warnings Wednesday for Vancouver Island and Metro Vancouver but was predicting up to 10 centimetres more above the Fraser Valley and along the Sea-to-Sky corridor concerning Squamish and Whistler.

— with a file from The Canadian Press

Driving south on HWY 99 in the video clip around exit 4. A usually 50 moment commute from Vancouver to White took 3 hrs 15 minutes. Was like touring to Kamloops in the summertime minus the summer season! pic.twitter.com/1Psc6N56D2

— kenny-g-unitz (@KennyUnitz) November 30, 2022

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