Jorge Barrera
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Dec 12/01) - Truckers need a city truck stop where they can grab a meal, shower and fuel up, says the president of the territory's main transportation lobby group.

However, possible investors say there is not enough traffic to make such a venture possible.

"You hear truckers talking about (a truck stop) all the time, wondering when it's going to happen," said John Johansen, president of the NWT Motor Transport Association.

"There have been rumblings over the years but nothing is ever developed," he said.

Johansen said the desire for a truck stop is nothing new and truckers rolling through the city make do with the available facilities.

"Most of the truckers will stop at (the Old Airport Road) Reddi Mart or Gas Town to grab a sandwich," said Johansen.

"Or they go downtown but they have problems with bylaw because there is no place to park."

Johansen said 40 to 50 trucks pass through the city everyday during the months the winter roads operate, usually January to April.

The numbers drop to between 10 and 20 a day the rest of the year.

It is this decline that city entrepreneur Blair Weatherby said makes him believe a full-time truck stop wouldn't be feasible in Yellowknife.

"It's really hard right now because there are not enough trucks in the off-season," said Weatherby, the owner of Weatherby Trucking, which runs a truck marshalling station on Highway 3.

"You have to figure what to do with it the rest of the year unless you can get the holiday RVs to come through," said Weatherby.

"You need something to support it, like an awfully good restaurant, to attract people," he said. Weatherby's marshalling station is simply a parking lot for truckers, but he plans to open a small coffee shop for drivers soon.

Chris Hanks, a spokesperson for BHP Billiton, told a city council committee last week a truck stop is a lucrative business opportunity just waiting to be explored.

According to Denise Burlingame, communications officer for BHP Billiton, truckers make around 4,000 trips up the ice road to Ekati mine in the few months the ice road is open.