It seems high to me for the following reasons:
1) Yes, he killed and injured a large number of people, but that was because of the vehicle he collided with. If he did everything exactly the same but the timing was different and he collided with a single occupant vehicle, the death toll would have been much smaller.
2) From all the reports I've heard, he was a brand new driver who was distracted / concerned by a loose tarp that was flapping. He became too focussed on the problem with his truck and lost focus of the road signs in a stressful situation. He could go to jail for 100 years and it wouldn't make a difference the next time an inexperienced trucker is in a stressful situation. At that moment, you aren't thinking about what you should do or what someone else did wrong. Your instincts take over.
Who I DO blame for this part of the tragedy is the owner and the trucking industry and regulators that allowed this situation in the first place. If the owner faced jail time or a significant fine, it MIGHT make a difference in the future. Future owners would know the consequences when they are deciding their training and hiring practices and would not be making a split second decision in a stressful moment.
3) He pled guilty, from all accounts, out of a sense of genuine remorse. This isn't some career criminal who is pleading guilty to get a light sentence. And by avoiding a trial, he saves Saskatchewan the cost of a trial and he saves the families from having to endure the pain of a trial. I think that should factor into the length of his sentence.
I don't really know what a "good" sentence would be, but I don't see how jail time benefits anyone except those who want vengeance. It's too bad he couldn't be sentenced to something like an ongoing fine for X number of years, where a certain percentage of his salary would go to fund things the victims need for their recovery.
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