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Fondly known as 'The Highway Man,' he is responsible for monitoring ice road conditions and rescuing troubled motorists.
News/North: How long have you been on the job and what does your job entail?
Joe Cooke: I've been working transportation with both the federal and the territorial government and mostly a lot of it has to do with road engineering, road construction with the federal government and also the same thing with the territorial government. Most of my job with the NWT government is a highway maintenance supervisor for both the Dempster Highway and the ice roads and ice crossings in the Delta area.
N/N: So how many years have you been doing this?
JC: I have been with GNWT transportation since the 1989-1990 season.
N/N: What does the job involve?
JC: On the Dempster Highway I usually look after the maintenance program year-round and make sure that the highway is safe for public traffic.
And on the ice roads my main duties are road inspections for ice packs, snow drifts, ice road conditions and overflows and keeping in contact with maintenance contractors, and also profiling for ice thickness in the winter time.
N/N: How much time do you spend on the road?
JC: Eight hours a day, five days a week and sometimes weekends if it's necessary to go out, if it's a stormy season. My truck odometer is close to 200,000 so that gives a pretty good idea of how much I go out on the highway and ice roads.
N/N: What sort of a truck do you drive?
JC: It's a government-leased vehicle and it's a 4X4 Supercab.
N/N: One of the best you can get?
JC: Yes. My vehicle has to be maintained regularly because it's probably the most-travelled vehicle of any in the government departments.
N/N: So you are responsible for all roads in the area?
JC: Yes, the Dempster Highway from Inuvik to Tsiigehtchic, the Tsiigehtchic ice crossings and of course the Tuk and Aklavik ice roads.
N/N: What sort of difficulties do you most often run into?
JC: Slippery ice conditions in the spring and some overflows, and of course snowstorms because of poor visibility. But it usually calls for ice road closures anyway in these conditions.
N/N: So how do you cope with conditions like that?
JC: Well you have to drive carefully and adapt to weather conditions and keep off of the road when the road is closed.
N/N: Do you often come across motorists who are in trouble?
JC: A lot of people get stuck, get caught in the snow drifts and then I have to go out there after I get a call from my supervisor or the RCMP. And a lot of time it's during the night when I have to go out for them.
N/N: Do you find that most of them are not taking precautions in conditions like that? What is usually the root cause of accidents that occur out there?
JC: It's usually people are in a hurry or are mostly speeding, and taking chances with the stormy conditions.
N/N: So they are being careless?
JC: Most of the time, yes. And a lot of the time, like I said, people will take chances and that amounts to carelessness.
N/N: It's not really worth it though, is it?
JC: Nope.
N/N: And it doesn't make your job any easier.
JC: Well, I don't mind because I am so used to this anyhow.
N/N: How much traffic do you see going back and forth, especially on the ice roads.
JC: Usually 40 to 60 vehicles a day, sometimes more.
N/N: Are certain days busier?
JC: Yes, especially in rig moves by the oil and gas companies. They are moving a lot of equipment and there is a lot of vehicles guiding them. And of course you've got meetings in different communities, also one of the busiest days is on Friday's, but probably the biggest is bingo days.
N/N: What type of radio do you use?
JC: I use a mobile radio so I can get a hold of contractors, my office here in Inuvik and a lot of the companies in Fort McPherson and James Creek, our maintenance camp on the Dempster close to the Yukon-Northwest Territories border.
N/N: Which road do you find has the most traffic?
JC: Other than that (Dempster) it's the Tuk ice road. That's due to the oil and gas companies working in this area again.
N/N: So I guess you're the first one to know when they are getting busy.
JC: Yes. They are in constant contact with us for permission to use the roads and they also help us anyhow.
N/N: How do they help?
JC: If they want thicker ice then they help with some money.
N/N: We have been having unusually warm weather this year. Does that make your job more difficult?
JC: Not really, because both ice roads were open as scheduled, except the fluctuation in temperatures caused some thermal cracking on the ice.
But that's easily repaired though. And this year we've had a few rough sections. It's been rougher than the last 12 years I have been on the job.
N/N: So what are the obstacles you have to deal with in keeping the ice roads maintained?
JC: Mostly snowdrifts, and overflows caused by warm weather. That's the most problems we have.
N/N: Does your job get any easier as the years go by?
JC: It's pretty standard. But there's increased traffic with the oil and gas companies. They like more ice thickness on earlier dates to get their rigs out and they have ice schedules themselves.
N/N: Do people ever stop you and complain about road conditions?
JC: Yes I get stopped daily for some concerns, not really serious concerns. Maybe the speed should be higher, but I say no. Most of it is compliments and questions about ice thickness, because they seem to be profiling the ice. And tourists stop to ask for directions, or just for conversation.
N/N: Do many people speed out there?
JC: Hardly anybody speeds, just one or two. And they are the ones getting in the accidents and getting stuck.
N/N: What advice do you have for people who use the ice roads on a regular basis, or tourists who have never travelled on an ice road?
JC: Just to drive carefully, especially in the mornings, and throughout the day listen to the daily road conditions report that the DOT has out every day. Watch for road conditions, obey signs and watch for bad areas.
