Wrecked vehicles a growing eyesore alongside Yukon highways, MLA says
The number of crashed-out cars and trucks strewn about ditches up and down Yukon highways is growing — and one MLA says it's time the government cleans them up.
In some cases, the vehicles are burnt, rusted and have clearly been long since abandoned, while others appear more recent with broken glass and smashed frames.
Between Lake Laberge and Carmacks, there are more than half a dozen wrecks and it's a similar scene along parts of the Alaska Highway and elsewhere.
"I live out at Marsh Lake so there's three that are very close to the turn off to the Alaska Highway, three vehicles probably within about a two-kilometre stretch," said Yukon Party MLA Scott Kent, adding that he's also getting complaints from constituents about it.
"With tourists now arriving in the Yukon, it certainly is an eyesore."
Kent said he also worries about the safety hazards and environmental damage that could come from fluids left in vehicles.
Elizabeth Beecroft, acting director of transport services for the Yukon Government acknowledges the "excessive number" of wrecks.
"We are aware that there is an increasing number of abandoned vehicles on the highway right of way that have popped up over the years and have been sitting there for an extended period of time," Beecroft said.
Beecroft couldn't say exactly what has led to the unsightly accumulation of wrecks.
"I don't have an answer for that," she said.
She notes the department does hope to clean up the mess, it's just not clear when.
"We're still in the middle of developing that plan."
Philippe Thibert-Leduc, manager of environmental compliance and inspections with Environment Yukon, calls it a "complex issue."
Different departments or agencies might be involved, depending on where a wreck is found. For example, Thibert-Leduc's department responds if a vehicle is found in or near a water body. Police are involved if it's a public safety issue, or part of a criminal investigation.
Thibert-Leduc chairs a committee on environmental spills that has representation from various levels of government and the RCMP. The topic of abandoned vehicles has come to the table.
"RCMP and most of our agencies don't have towing trucks so we rely on third parties and they're busy as well," said Thibert-Leduc.
"And then there's the whole question about junk yards, impound yards, and where do we store these vehicles once we impound them ... It's a lot of work."
Meanwhile, MLA Scott Kent says he would just like to see swift action to clean it all up sooner than later.
"I wish the government would just go and retrieve them," he said.
"And then if there's some way to recover some of the cost of that, either from the owners of the vehicles or insurance companies, then we can do that later."
