Ottawa police anticipate more transport trucks for second weekend of convoy protest

With the truck convoy protests expected to continue for a second weekend, the Ottawa Police Service says it is ready, but warns the longer this drags out, the more risk to public safety there is.

According to Deputy Chief Steve Bell with the Ottawa Police Service (OPS), the city should expect more traffic again come Saturday and Sunday, then decrease again come Monday.

Dep. Trish Ferguson said Ottawa — at the moment — is in a period of stabilization and traffic officers are back to addressing traffic violations.

“What’s left is a highly volatile and determined group of people,” Ferguson explained.

But once more convoys roll into Ottawa, it’s all resources — and then some — on deck.

It’s unknown exactly how many more protesters will descend on the capital, Ferguson clarified, but it’s certain that with the incoming snow and need for snow removal, there’s a good chance it’s going to be messy.

As it stands right now, the only interprovincial bridge that remains closed is the Alexandra Bridge.

The downtown core itself — like on Wellington Street — continues to be the hot zone for congestion in the city.

“We’ll see large gathering in the Parliament precinct,” Bell warned at a media briefing on Wednesday, February 2.

He added that as more bodies continue to occupy Ottawa’s streets this weekend, OPS is anticipating more crimes will happen as a result.

That’s why, he said, it’s important for people — witnesses and victims, alike — report any crime.

“There is no crime too small,” Bell stressed.

According to Ferguson, at the protest’s peak, there were between 8,000 and 15,000 people at the demonstration on Saturday, January 29.

Several hundred trucks remain in the city today.