Whereas the Interior Health highway death rate 15.2 per 100 000 and Northern Health highway death rate 18.1 regions of BC, in combination, make up the largest number of fatalities for vehicle incidents in the province average provincial highway death rate 6.0, being 189 out of 331 deaths in 2023 or 57, while only representing 22 of the provinces population; And whereas the Provinces commitment to upgrade Highway1 between Kamloops and the Alberta border mitigates safety issues on one specific corridor, but does not address safety concerns on the other highway corridors through the interior and north connecting to the rest of BC: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM request the Province of BCs Ministry of Transportation and Transit to invest in and prioritize road upgrades, improve road maintenance standards and oversight of provincial highways across the interior and northern health regions, with the goal of reducing fatalities.
