Drivers who went over overpass ‘likely not driving appropriately’ for snowy conditions: OPP

OPP say the drivers of two vehicles that launched over a snow embankment in Kitchener, Ont., “likely” weren’t driving appropriately for the conditions, leading to them losing control.

OPP Sgt. Kerry Schmidt said in an interview with Global News that despite the snow on the side of the Highway 7/8 flyover, road conditions were good.

“The roads were plowed, they were salted and they were in as good condition as you could have barring the snowstorm that we were dealing with,” Schmidt said Wednesday.

“In both cases, there does appear that the drivers likely were not driving appropriately for the conditions on the overpass, ended up losing control and went onto the shoulder, which was covered with snow, and as a result of that, they ended up going over the wall.”

Police reported on Monday that two separate vehicles drove over the embankment.

The first was a cab driver whose vehicle went over the snowbank at about 2 a.m., though the driver was uninjured.

OPP and Ministry of Transportation officials closed down the area as they investigated, but later reopened the overpass.

Hours later, police said a second vehicle lost control and went over a snowbank onto the road below. In this incident, police said a 36-year-old woman from Waterloo, Ont., was pronounced dead at the scene.

The ramp was again closed for an investigation. That probe into the fatal crash is still ongoing.

Schmidt told Global News on Wednesday that the MTO and OPP are looking into all factors.

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“We look at human factors, mechanical factors, environmental factors, everything that could have been related,” he said. “Those are certainly issues that we always want to be able to exclude or include. What kind of tires? Was it traction control? Was the vehicle in good shape? … That’s what we’re trying to determine and assess right now.”

Global News reached out to the MTO for comment on the investigation and incidents but did not hear back by publication.

Schmidt went on to note multiple vehicles drove that stretch of overpass during the night and morning, calling the two vehicles that went over the wall an “exception.”

“No buses, and tractor-trailers and cars and SUVs and vehicles of all shapes and sizes had no problem navigating that,” he said. “I don’t know how many hundreds or thousands of cars or whatever would have driven that ramp over those eight or 12 or 24 hours leading up to these incidents.”

On Monday, Schmidt said that while plows were going through the area during the storm, the snow on the overpass could not be pushed over the wall as it would go onto the highway below.

He reminded drivers travelling on overpasses or highways after a snowfall to remember that it’s wet and slippery and can be dangerous. He added that snowy conditions, as seen Sunday into Monday, can make overpasses even more “treacherous” with ice and snow buildup, so take it slow around the curves.