Members of the trucking industry are calling on Premiers Blaine Higgs and Iain Rankin to end the blockade that has halted traffic at the border between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.
Demonstrators have stopped traffic between the two provinces as they protest new rules from Nova Scotia that put restrictions on people entering the province from New Brunswick.
Rankin announced the rules Tuesday, one day before Nova Scotia was set to open to all four Atlantic provinces.
Rankin said he was forced to put new rules in place because of Premier Higgs surprise decision to open New Brunswick’s border ahead of schedule.
Jean-Marc Picard is the Executive Director of the Atlantic Provinces Trucking Association and spoke with Huddle Wednesday, saying he’s fed up with both protestors and the government for what he feels is a ridiculous situation.
He said there are “hundreds” of trucks stuck at the border, carrying everything from fresh produce, to fuel, to medical supplies, and that the longer they remain idle, the more damage they will do.
Picard adds if the blockade continues, people will start to see products missing from store shelves, fuel shops will run out of fuel, pharmacies could run out of supplies, and more.
Already, the Cumberland Regional Health Care Centre has been forced to scale back its services because some of its workers have been held up at the border.
Picard said he is frustrated that what appears to be a political spat is now having such a significant impact on the economy.
“I just want to see the blockade removed and you can deal with all this without blocking the road.”
“I mean, we’re all adults. This is this kind of like, ‘come on man, it’s the economy here.’ It’s been tough enough for the last few years. Let’s go and get this resolved,” he added “I’m running out of patience with them.”
Picard said if he could talk to Rankin or Higgs he would tell them to use their power to “do some good here” and get rid of the blockade immediately.
“Use your leadership, use your power, use your connections to do some good for everyone,” he said.
Until then, he said, the truckers that have already been run ragged by the pandemic continue to suffer extra stress and complications.
“It’s important to know that drivers have been working hard last 16 months so we have food on our table — and now the government is throwing this wrench into the industry,” he said. “We’ve been helping everybody, and this is how you respond? It’s just really, really poor strategic effort.”
Story by Trevor Nichols, Huddle Today, an Acadia Broadcasting content partner.
