There will be yet another study of hitchhiking on a remote Canadian highway associated with the disappearance of at least 18 women and girls, many of them aboriginal. Highway 16 in the western province of British Columbia has been dubbed the Highway of Tears.
The highway has billboards warning of the dangers of hitchhiking, but people do it anyway since there are few alternatives if you do not have a car. Many aboriginal people live in remote communities and are some are too poor to own cars. Young people often don’t have cars and may need to travel the remote region to get to tree-planting jobs.
An on-line survey of hitchhiker habits is being conducted by Professor Jacqueline Holler who teaches gender studies at the University of Northern British Columbia. There have been other studies recommending action be taken but the provincial government has not announced any significant plans to deal with the problem.
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