After another crossover crash on Highway 401 in Chatham-Kent, a local politician is calling for change.
An eastbound transport truck crossed the centre median of the 401 near Merlin Rd. Tuesday morning, smashed through the cable barriers before entering the westbound lanes, smashing head-on into two transport trucks.
Chatham-Kent-Leamington Progressive Conservative MPP Rick Nicholls says this was not supposed to happen according to Ministry of Transportation officials.
"It definitely is a problem and a major concern to not only myself but to our government as well," says Nicholls. "Unfortunately the decision had been made by the previous Liberal government to install the cable barriers, much to my chagrin as myself and of course there's an advocacy group down here."
He says he has reached out to the current Ontario Transportation Minister Jeff Yurek.
"I spoke with our Minister Yurek and we are going back and talking with our people in the ministry as to why the decision was made," says Nicholls. "Of course our biggest concern, and I've advocated already that in past, is that a fully loaded transport trailer crossing over would not be held by the cable barriers."
Minister Yurek will be inquiring why the cable barrier failed according to Nicholls.
"Of course he's got a lot of questions, he's going to be asking you know the people who made the initial recommendations as to, you went this way with the former Liberal Government," he says, "Unfortunately these cables didn't hold back, and fortunately no one was killed but there was still an accident, a major accident that shut down traffic."
Nicholls has advocated for the 401 to be expanded to six-lanes with a concrete median barrier from Tilbury to London.
He's hopeful the government may alter the ongoing reconstruction project, which is rebuilding the 401 as a 4-lane highway with cable barriers.