Mandatory Speed Limiters is Picking up Support

Since July 2005 when the OTA first started to push this issue, the political supports have been growing. A recent comment from the OPP’s commissioner Julian Fantino shows his support, The Minister of Transportation Donna Canfield also, even Prime Minister Dalton McGivney has fallen under media pressure according to a press release of the Association on its web site. The official opposition in Queen’s Park support to with Laurie Scott and her Private Bill 115 proposed in 2006.

Last year, when the Quebec Government presented the “Plan d’action Québécois 2006-2012 sur les changements climatiques”(Quebec’s plan for Climate Changes 2006-1012), the figures show a reduction of GHG by imposing a government mandate to have all heavy trucks limited to 105Kmh.

I have to say that I don’t have the exact number for the truck count in Quebec but, with the size of the population and the number of carriers, I am leaded to think that the truck fleet is smaller then our neighbour of Ontario. What I am questioning on this issue, unless someone somewhere did a miscalculation, how do we get a greater reduction in Quebec of GHG?

A total of 330kt is what the document forecasts for 2012 while Ontario has a forecast of 140kt. Even if I subtract the 82kt that the PIEVAL Program should cut in GHG, note that Ontario has the “Drive Clean” program since many years, the sum is still over 100kt then our neighbouring province.

Still to this day, nothing is in the plans for light vehicles in Quebec, other then a tax on engines over 4liters, attached to the yearly registration fee, or incentive to get more fuel efficient cars. Nothing to have mandatory yearly C02 inspections on cars like in most jurisdictions in North America, to be able to register it with the government.

When will we have higher fines for speeders? Air pollution tickets for speeders, in general, over the fines for smoking heavy trucks? If I can allow me a comment on speeding, cut the 20Kmh tolerance over the posted speed limit. A tolerance of 5Kmh if enough and a fine scaling to discourage lead foot or repeating offenders. Why is it only to heavy trucks to do the effort? Speeding and fines, this is surely another topic to talk about.

What can we do, professional drivers, to put a stop to the issue or to start up a real debate on mandating speed limiters to regulate the speed of heavy trucks?

A few easy solutions can make a difference. We, Owner-operators and drivers, have to regroup to show our strength. In Canada, there is OBAC and in the USA OOIDA. They are the voices for the professional drivers. The power is in the numbers, the more we will be, the more we will weigh in. Currently, I know that the Canadian Association needs our support more then ever to represent us well at all levels of government.

You must also let you elected officials know about the impacts of these mandates can have on your income, on you business. You can find on the “Useful Links” in the right column, how to access to your MPP or MP, the sites of the Premiers of Canada, Ontario or Quebec.

I invite you to have another look at some previous posting on this blog.

March 2007: “Sharing My Views on Driver Pay and Leases to O-O’s”

January 2007: “Aren’t you tired of dying dummies? It’s enough!”

If some influent members of the trucking industry want to level the playing field by imposing on all to activate the speed limiting chip of the ECM of trucks starting from 1995, like in Europe, it’s all the European plan that has to be setup. This includes the way drivers are paid.

Asking to everyone to operate the same way, by modifying laws, is like asking the governments to step back and regulating the road transportation. This time, it’s not the permitting that is to be regulated, it’s the operations that will be. The deregulation was asked to let the market do its job in the industry, to take away the barriers of territories and the multiplicity of permits.

We need to remember that the economies of Canada and the USA are based on free market. The choice of an entrepreneur to have his truck, or trucks, run in a certain way is and should stay a business decision, not another rule or regulation to comply by. But if my memory is still good, this is why there is a “Highway Safety Code”.

Jean Catudal

A Real Nice Volvo!

This morning, while doing a fuel stop in Lake Station, I saw this truck. A Volvo with a 120” sleeper is not a common thing in any truck stop. I was wondering if I was the only one to have that idea to take a day-cab and put on a custom sleeper. I got my answer. But to be honest, I had seen one at the MATS in Louisville last year, in the parking a FedEx truck with about the same setup.

Except, this morning, the owner was there and he gladly answered some of my questions. Donald Beukman, a very good guy, even gave me a little bit more. We talked a good 45 minutes while enjoying the nice sunshine.

I couldn’t tour the interior, Ms Dale Beukman, which is also the co-driver, was in her rest period. I can tell you what you can find inside. Refrigerator-freezer, sink, toilet and shower, double bunks, a table and storage, lots of it for the long trips they have to do.

DD Haulit, from Florida, is leased to Clark Transfer and they haul shows. Being out on the road for months at the time and stopped for days, they need a good living area.

About the truck, it’s a day-cab with a 274” wheelbase, powered by a Cummins ISX engine, 18 speed automatic transmission, 8Kw generator, deep cycle marine batteries, topped off by a 120” by 96” custom sleeper by ICT.

2 other questions you may have, the weigh of it is 25,000lbs. You can see Joe Brown of S+S Volvo in Lima Ohio for the specs and you will need a cheque of $186,000 to roll it out with all warranties and prep.

But, it’s a real nice truck!

I must make amends

A year ago, I was making my debut on Sport Plus 172 with a head full of ideas, subjects with some controversy, mixed with a rebellious temperament and no radio experience. Wanting to inform the professional drivers, I also commented on various hot button topics in our industry. I must admit that I have pushed the envelope many times and I went overboard a few times.

I have never wanted to point toward an individual personally, but on the functions that they occupy and I have had strong comments on topics that I esteem important. These same topics are also some that owner-operators or small fleet owners would like to see a more open debate even if there is lack of organizations to represent them.

I know that I have commented on some points like a hunter and not like a sharp shooter. I put this on the lack of experience. I have learned from my mistakes but I won’t stop defending these issues, which many, in our industry, find unacceptable. I learned to moderate my comments but still want the message passed on. We all have to fight the pressure coming from the outside of our industry. Being able to survive and continue to serve the population that expects the goods to be on the shelves of the store, when they want it, after seeing it on a flyer, which was delivered to a distributing agency by a truck, because another truck brought the paper and the ink to print it.

The slogan of most Canadian trucking associations, “If you got it, a truck brought it”, applies to just everything we consume. Even pressure groups for intermodal transportation can’t deny that rails and rivers don’t go everywhere.

I must make amends to all that I have pointed to previously in my comments. As I have written above, I will put more moderation in my comments while keeping my efforts to inform the women and the men that are the driving force of our economy

Jean Catudal

Seat Belt Laws in North America

Radio brings up a lot of topics and makes me search some statistics that are sometimes funny and others interesting. Waiting to get for my delivery today at a truck stop that supports my internet connection, I did a little research after a call on the radio about road users that were getting tickets and no seat belts. I didn’t quite understood where it was but here is a stat from Wikipedia.

In January of 2007, all the states of the union except one had a seat belt law. The one being New-Hampshire. That state only requires that passengers under 18 years of age to be buckled up. However, as the road signs in the state say:” Under 18, Common sense for all”

25 states and the D.C. area have primary offence dispositions for the seat belts. In other words, you can be pulled over for that, the other 24 only have it as a secondary offence. You will get an extra ticket if the officer sees it after you have broken another traffic law.

In Canada, all provinces have provisions about seat belts but only in Quebec the law specifies that all passengers must be using the belts. So you can not have more passengers then the number of belts in the car.

Personally, I encourage the use of the seat belt, even if from time to time I need to be remembered.

Jean Catudal

Sources

Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seat_belt_legislation#United_States
Canadian Safety Council
http://www.safety-council.org/news/sc/2006/pres-jan.html
US DOT “Click It or Ticket”
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury/airbags/buckleplan/mayplanner2003/clickit.html

Smoking or Non-Smoking?

When the news came out in May 2006, I had talked about it in the trucking news and thanked David Bradley of the OTA about the clarifying of the impacts of the provincial laws and federal chartered companies.

If you are working for a provincially chartered company in Quebec or Ontario, you cannot smoke in your work environment. If the company is under a federal charter, the description of the smoke-free workspace does not include a motor vehicle and you can still smoke while driving.

Also if you are an owner-operator, you can still enjoy your tobacco addiction.

It’s not specified that a carrier can ban smoking.

Source: Ontario Trucking Association News Releases

http://ontruck.org/news/releases/2006/prel_2006_05_31_171005_rt.php3

Our troops need our support

Last November, I had prepared an audio clip that was aired on Entre les 2 lignes that I was co-hosting at the time. A few days prior to that, I had my father listen to it. Dad is a WWII vet. He had asked me to burn it on a CD so he could share it with at the Legion with other members. He had a lot of good works on it and told me about them.

Being myself a former army cadet, #2725 of the Fusillers Mont-Royal, I had the ambition to follow in a military career. Unfortunately, the recruiting officers decided otherwise and I stayed in the civilian life.

Since September 2001, on my truck, there is a yellow ribbon on each side to show my support. After the years, they faded out and were hard to see on a white cab. On a fuel stop at the Irving in Cornwall, I saw on the counter red ribbons with a Canadian flag and the mention “Support our troops”. The profits are for care packages for our troops that greatly need them.

I have often said the event if we don’t agree with the decision of our elected officials about where the troops are sent, these men and women deserve our support for the job they do and when they come home.

If you feel like dropping them a good word to help them keep their moral up, here is the web link to do so

http://www.forces.gc.ca/site/community/messageboard/message_add_e.asp

Jean Catudal

Mexican Trucks and Driver, Part 2

While, north of the Mexican border, our neighbours are wondering how to keep a possible flow of uncertainty about trucks coming from the south, we are wondering what can happen if we loose the buffer zone crated by the whole country of the USA. As I have written earlier, my view is more on the financial impact of the outpour then the trucks and the drivers with non verifiable skills and records.

In this whole question of letting Mexican trucks run freely north of the actual buffer zone along the southern border, one concern is coming out from them too. In 2001, the Mexican government has been petitioned by a group called “CANACAR”. This group seems to be about the equivalent of our Canadian Trucking Alliance or of the American Trucking Association. CANACAR, in 2001, had asked the Mexican Senate to cancel the trucking section of NAFTA, as reported in Land Line Magazine. Still today, CANACAR is claiming no real benefits to open the borders.

In the appearance to the Mexican Senate, the president of the group, Tirso Martinez Angheben, expressed the following points to stop the American Pilot Program.

• Transportation prices in Mexico are lower than in the USA or Canada;
• It will cause transportation prices in Mexico to increase;
• It will not accelerate the border crossing process;
• It will generate strong pressure on salaries paid to Mexican drivers, which in turn will increase the cost of domestic freight in Mexico; and
• The Mexican government lacks the capacity and infrastructure to supervise U.S. carriers entering Mexico and to prevent foreign companies from providing domestic transportation only reserved for Mexican nationals.

Don’t we have the same concerns but the other way around?

• Transportation prices in Canada are higher than in Mexico;
• It will cause transportation prices in Canada to decrease;
• It will not accelerate the border crossing process;
• It will generate strong pressure on salaries paid to Canadian drivers; and
• Can the Canadian government have the capacity and infrastructure to supervise any carriers entering Canada and to prevent foreign companies from providing domestic transportation only reserved for Canadian citizens?

These are some talking points that the associations representing carriers, owner-operators and drivers could sit down to see the full impact on our industry here in the great white northern.

Jean Catudal