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In 1920, Big Valley was a hustling and bustling community! So, to get around you either walked, or you drove, or you rode the train. It was a normal town with garages, stores, and restaurants and like any normal town it had transportation. People had transportation not only for just joy riding, but to meet their basic needs of life. Back in the 1920’s the transportation was better than walking, but was expensive to buy. Also, people used transportation like tractors, horse and buggy, and a few Ford Model T cars. Sometimes when your tire went flat you didn’t really have the money to buy a new one or to get a patch, you would cut the traction of the tire and wrap it around the rims so it didn’t get wrecked.
People also used horse and buggy right out of the shoot instead of buying a car. It worked great, but eventually your horses would get tired and thirsty, and hungry. Not all the transportation they had would last for very long. Some of the cars people had ended up as a horse and buggy later on. Mostly because the car got wrecked because of a crash, or it could be too old, or expensive to fix.
There were more than just cars and buggies, there were such things as Stanley Steamers and stone boats. Not only did they have cars that ran on gas and had a top speed, but they also had the Stanley Steamer. It was one of the great cars that ran on steam and you could drive as fast as you wanted until it fell apart. The Stanley Steamer was one of the best cars in its time. It was powerful, quiet, and it sold a lot better than some other vehicles.
Trains were also a very popular part of transportation. One problem would be that it would only run on certain days.
Big Valley was a hustling and bustling community in which transportation played such an important role.
 Big
Valley Museum |
Transportation is very important to our lives. People use it to get food, clothing, shelter, to get to their jobs, and for some people it is part of their job. If people couldn’t travel then probably most of us would have a hard time living.
Normally, when you think of trains you think of fast, quiet, electric trains but not in Big Valley. We have a steam train that runs from Stettler to Big Valley and back. While you're on it you can enjoy live entertainment, dinner, and an old time train robbery. For the train robbery a group of people ride horses in a field right beside the train. One group is trying to save the train and the other group is trying to get to the train. The train comes in four times a week in the summer. Many people ride on it and have a great time.
 Trottier
Trucking Company |
In Big Valley, there is a trucking company, Trottier Trucking, and it is used for transporting chemicals, crude-transporters, KCL Sales & Service, methanol sales, portable water, toilet-rentals, trucking, trucking-tanks, trucking-vacuum, water hauling, and well site trailer rentals. It is located right near the arena. It has been in operation since 1999 and is still going strong.
East of Big Valley there is Highway 56. It is the main highway connecting Big Valley with Stettler and Drumheller. Along Highway 56 are the towns of Munson, Morrin, Rowley, Rumsey, Byemoor, and Big Valley. Without this highway people could not go to Stettler or Drumheller. Highway 56 is a vital part of Big Valley transportation. There is also a highway running east and west. It is 590 and runs to Innisfail.
In Big Valley, there is no airport or harbor. If you want to fly to another country you have to go all the way to Edmonton or Calgary. If you want to go on a vessel to another country you have to go to B.C. near the coast. In Big Valley people need cars to go anywhere.
As you can see without transportation Big Valley would be a ghost town. Transportation fits the needs of all the residents in Big Valley by bringing people closer together, getting food, and having a good time. It fills peoples physical needs by people driving to the store and buying food. It fills the social need by letting people get closer to each other. It also fills the psychological need by letting people come into town not sitting at home going crazy. Transportation is very important.
Transportation has changed a lot since 1920; we now have 4x4s, semis, sport cars, motorbikes, snowmobiles, monster trucks, go-karts, and mini vans.
Since weve had these changes people have had a new look on transportation.Trottier trucking is one of Big Valleys major transpotation they transportate goods like oil.
We have changed a lot in transportation for a long time we had steam engines and model Ts, now we have all kinds of different vehicles. We’ve had the bicycle for a long time and people still use it. Since we made new vehicles we have got airplanes and helicopters.
We’ve gotten into a huge world now that we have new and better transportation
