EDMONTON -- The men and women who are keeping Canada’s supply chain open are facing a new challenge. Truckers say there are fewer places for drivers to access services.
Trucker Andrew Nickel said he’s struggling to get coffee on the road.
"We spend 16 hours on the road a day, and it’s just nice to have a coffee to keep going down the road with and it’s frustrating," he said.
Many truckers are putting in extra hours to keep supplies moving around the country.
"It’s really hard to get in anywhere to use the washrooms, get food, get something to drink," Nickel said.
Trucker Brian Bell said he’s planning ahead before he hits the road.
"Usually you pack a lunch, cooler, you go to the grocery store prior to leaving," he said.
McDonalds said between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., truckers and drivers of other oversized essential vehicles can use the McDonalds app to have an order delivered to them outside.
Tim Horton’s also released a written statement.
"Walk-ups to our drive-thru service just aren’t safe – but please know we’re working hard on a solution to support truck drivers," said Mary Lowe of Tim Horton’s.
“In recent days, many restaurants with a drive-thru lane have set up a process that allows guests to place a mobile order and call the restaurant to retrieve their purchase just inside the front door. We now have 1,100 restaurants offering this service and hope to scale it out even further in recognition of our country’s truck drivers and their essential work during this unprecedented time. We also have almost 2,800 restaurants open for take-out service with operating washrooms that are cleaned every 15 minutes.”
"I understand why these businesses have no walk up policies but this is a little different case that we’ve never dealt with before so a little bit of an exception would be a lot more help," said Nickel.
The head of the Alberta Motor Transport Association has stepped in, and is pleaded with businesses to make exceptions for truckers.
"Safety is number one, we understand that however we need to get these amenities out there for the drivers to keep our supply chain moving and keep our shelves full," said President Chris Nash.
In the meantime, AMTA has added a section to its website that shows drivers what’s open to them in an effort to help truckers.
"We’re phoning all the locations we can think of and just asking what they have for amenities, facilities, everything and just trying to keep it up to date the best we can on a day by day basis," Nash said.
With files from CTV News Edmonton's Amanda Anderson.
