Summer hasn’t been good for collisions, winter is coming: TSH

“Summer hasn’t been very good for collisions,” Travis McDougall notes in his August video post.

“We’ve got trucks in the ditch, trucks crashing into each other, trucks all over the highways. Whether it’s down in southern Ontario or up in northern Ontario, or anywhere across Canada; BC has not seen it any better. So Truckers for Safer Highways has started two petitions: one to improve driver training regulations, and another one to call for a unified driver training program across the country.

“We need to see some major improvements in the trucking industry; these these crashes are just getting worse. Last winter was pretty terrible. The summer hasn’t been good; and this winter, it’s going to be bad. We see it now. It’s not going to get any better. That’s for sure.

“So do us a favor, go to our page sign the petitions. We need as much support as we can get – give our page a follow as well. We show what we’re trying to do and join what Shawn what we’re trying to accomplish. We appreciate the support everybody and be safe out there. Thank you.”

Petition to the Minister of Transport

“Whereas:

• In 2020, the Canadian Council of Motor Transportation Administrators, comprised of federal and provincial ministers overseeing transportation, issued Standard 16: Commercial Truck Driver Entry Level Training under the National Safety Code;
• Standard 16 establishes a comprehensive national standard for mandatory entry level training as part of commercial truck driver licensing, with only five provinces having since implementing it within their vehicle licensing frameworks;
• Standard 16 establishes a minimum of 103.5 hours of instructional training, only 65% of which is practical training spent behind the wheel, far below the minimum of 240 hours called for by industry players and public health road safety experts;
• Accidents involving commercial truck drivers have been among the deadliest in Canada with investigations frequently implicating the driver’s lack of training; and
• Preventable commercial truck crashes are on the rise, with Ontario having the highest number of commercial truck accidents ever in 2022 and over one fifth of traffic accident annually across Canada now involving large commercial trucks.

We, the undersigned, Citizens and residents of Canada, call upon the Minister of Transport to amend the National Safety Code’s Standard 16 to enhance mandatory entry level training requirements for commercial truck drivers to require that:

1. a minimum of 240 instructional hours be completed to be licensed;

2. a minimum of 80% be practical training behind the wheel of a truck;

3. tire chain installation training be mandatory for all commercial truck drivers in all provinces and territories; and

4. training instructors be certified as having completed the national entry level training requirements themselves before instructing others.”