A 31 year old Alberta man was killed when his motorcycle collided with a semi-trailer truck along Highway 4 on Sunday.
The motorcyclist was traveling east towards Port Alberni when he collided with the oncoming truck around 2:30 p.m. near Hydro Hill, about 25 kilometres east of the West Coast Junction.
"It appears that the motorcycle rider may have crossed into the other lane," Cpl. Mike Elston of the RCMP's Central Vancouver Island Traffic Services (CVITS) division told the Westerly News.
"We have to determine whether speed or inattention may have contributed to it, but it appears at this time that he crossed into the lane in front of the semi."
He said a CVITS member was in the area and was the first on scene. A coroner and collision analyst responded as did the Ucluelet Volunteer Fire Brigade and RCMP.
The motorcyclist succumbed to injuries at the scene.
The truck driver did not receive any serious injuries in the incident, according to Elston who said additional information about the truck driver has not been released.
"At this point in time, we don't anticipate charges," Elston said.
The crash closed the highway in both directions for roughly six hours while an investigation was ongoing.
"The scene has to remain as is until the deconstructionist and the coroner agree that things can be moved," Elston said.
The road reopened around 10 p.m.
An investigation into the incident is ongoing.
News of the collision caused some locals to call for increased traffic signage along the highway.
Elston said CVITS can make recommendations about signage but he does not believe it is an issue in the area.
"This spot was an 80 km/h zone that had a posted 40 km/h advisory sign, so there was a sign up recommending that speed be drastically reduced," he said.
"There's lots of signage on the road. I don't find that it's lacking signage along that highway and the other thing you have to consider is there's a certain amount of signage fatigue; if you put too many signs up, people don't see them."