Latest Indusry News Briefs Courtesy of PMTA

ASCE Statement On House Passage Of Infrastructure Investment And Jobs Act

The following is a statement by Dennis D. Truax, P.E., President, American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE):

 WASHINGTON, DC…  It is a great day for the nation as the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), fulfilling President Biden’s vision with a historic piece of legislation that will have monumental impacts on the economy, public safety, global competitiveness, and each American’s well-being. Passage of this five-year, $1.2 trillion bill proves once again that the country can lead with infrastructure.  

With this legislation, the federal government will restore their critical partnership with cities and states to modernize our nation’s roads, bridges, transit systems, drinking water pipes, school facilities, broadband, ports, airports and more. Without a strong federal partner, local projects that are community lifelines have hung in the balance, oftentimes being paused or outright cancelled due to funding uncertainties. When this happens, American households and businesses are the ones who pay the price.  

The IIJA is the culmination of decades of advocacy by  American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) members who worked tirelessly to educate Congress about the role infrastructure plays in supporting the economy and our quality of life. ASCE’s Infrastructure Report Cards have sounded the alarm on our nation’s infrastructure conditions since 1998, with new reports being released every four years. While all categories of infrastructure have been the cause of some concerns, the common denominator behind each category’s struggles has been a backlog of projects, overdue maintenance, and a need for resilience. This bill includes investments to repair and modernize these critical assets for almost all of the 17 categories in the 2021 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure, which assigned our nation’s infrastructure a cumulative grade of ‘C-‘. 

We commend the House for joining the Senate in prioritizing American communities by passing this bipartisan infrastructure legislation and we are encouraged that President Biden has indicated he will sign the bill quickly to ensure our communities receive these long-awaited resources soon, allowing critical projects to move forward.  

Founded in 1852, the American Society of Civil Engineers represents more than 150,000 civil engineers worldwide and is America's oldest national engineering society. ASCE works to raise awareness of the need to maintain and modernize the nation's infrastructure using sustainable and resilient practices, advocates for increasing and optimizing investment in infrastructure, and improve engineering knowledge and competency. For more information, visit www.asce.org   or www.infrastructurereportcard.org and follow us on Twitter, @ASCETweets and @ASCEGovRel

ATA, State Trucking Association Partners Lead Legal Challenge to Biden Vaccine Mandate - Suit Filed in Fifth Circuit, Which Has Preliminarily Stayed Mandate

Arlington, VA… The American Trucking Associations, along with the Louisiana Motor Truck Association, the Mississippi Trucking Association and the Texas Trucking Association led a number of groups representing various facets of the supply chain in suing the Biden Administration over its employer-based COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

“To be very clear, ATA and its member companies support efforts to encourage all Americans to get vaccinated against COVID-19 – our trucks and drivers have been on the front line in fighting this pandemic since the beginning, moving personal protective equipment, test kits, the vaccine itself and much more as the country locked down, but we believe that the Biden Administration has overstepped its statutory authority in issuing this Emergency Temporary Standard,” said ATA President and CEO Chris Spear. “This standard arbitrarily picks winners and losers, and puts employers in an untenable position of forcing workers to choose between working and their private medical decisions, which is something that cannot be allowed.

“We told the administration that this mandate, given the nature of our industry and makeup of our workforce, could have devastating impacts on the supply chain and the economy and they have, unfortunately, chosen to move forward despite those warnings,” he said. “So we are now, regrettably, forced to seek to have this mandate overturned in court.”

ATA and its state partners filed their challenge in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and they were joined in the suit by the Food Marketing Institute, the International Warehouse Logistics Association, the National Association of Convenience Stores, the National Retail Federation, the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors and the National Federation of Independent Business.

“We are asking the court to stay implementation of the mandate because we believe the Occupational Safety and Health Administration did not satisfy the statutory requirements for issuing this Emergency Temporary Standard instead of going through the proper rulemaking process,” said Nicholas Geale, ATA vice president of workforce policy. “A stay pending full review is essential to ensure our members can continue to keep the supply chain moving without the enormous disruptions this unlawful ETS will cause the trucking industry and our nation’s consumers – including the 80% percent of American communities that depend exclusively on trucks for their needs.”

Trucking Industry says Drivers are Exempt from Vaccine Mandate

Arlington, VA…  American Trucking Associations President and CEO Chris Spear issued the following statement regarding OSHA’s emergency temporary standard on the vaccine mandate:  

“As we made clear in our comments to the Administration prior to the rule’s publication, drivers spend the vast majority of their workday alone in the cab and outside. The rule published yesterday exempts employees who exclusively work outdoors or remotely and have minimal contact with others indoors, and all indications thus far from the Department of Labor suggest this exemption does apply to the commercial truck driver population.

“While we complete our due diligence to confirm that fact through official channels, we see quotes from Labor Secretary Walsh as an enormous victory for our association and industry. Given the nationwide shortage of truck drivers, it is vital that our industry has the relief it needs to keep critical good moving, including food, fuel, medicine and the vaccine itself.

“We continue to believe OSHA is using extraordinary authority unwisely, applying it across all industries at an arbitrary threshold of 100 employees that fails to factor in actual risks. We are weighing all options of recourse to ensure every segment of our industry’s workforce is shielded from the unintended consequences of this misguided mandate.”

ATA Delivers for Afghan Refugees

Arlington, VA…  In response to the humanitarian crisis following the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, the American Trucking Associations delivered for hundreds of refugees being re-settled in the United States.

“We heard the call and saw a need and were happy to respond,” said Nate McCarty, a professional driver with ABF Freight and an America’s Road Team Captain, who drove ATA’s image truck and Louisa Swain trailer from Northern Virginia to Fort McCoy in Wisconsin with 24 pallets of donations.

In August, when many Afghan refugees were first taken to the Dulles Expo Center in Chantilly, Virginia, for quarantine and processing, area residents began dropping off donations of clothing, diapers and other staples. When those refugees were relocated to U.S. military bases, ATA stepped in to get those donations from member company Interstate Van Lines, which managed collection and storage of the items, to where they were needed.

“These people had been through so much, so if we could make things just a little bit easier for the, it was just something we had to do,” said Jeff Payne, a professional driver with Yellow Corp., who moved 24 pallets of donated goods to Camp Atterbury in Indiana, in ATA’s Workforce Heroes truck.

ATA, through its members and through the Trucking Cares Foundation and Trucking Moves America Forward, makes numerous charity moves like these two annually.

“Trucking is always first to respond when people are in need,” said ATA Executive Vice President Elisabeth Barna. “Whether it is drivers like Nate and Jeff delivering for these refugees, or the countless drivers who respond to natural disasters every year, this is the kind of commitment to service we expect from our professional heroes.”

Pennsylvania Turnpike Commits to Development of State Route 130 Interchange

PENN TOWNSHIP, WESTMORELAND COUNTY, PA … State Senate Majority Leader Kim Ward (R-Westmoreland) joined with leaders from the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) and local officials to announce that a planned, $30-million interchange to link the Turnpike and State Route 130 in Penn Township can be advanced now that the PTC has largely been released from a 2007 state mandate to provide $450 million annually to PennDOT to help fund Commonwealth transit operations.

“This interchange is a priority project for me as it is critical to the community I serve and the overall economic success of our region,” said Senate Majority Leader Kim Ward. “The project started when I was Chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, and I am thrilled that the PA Turnpike recognizes its importance and is here to continue moving it forward. This new connection has long been advocated because of the benefits of improved safety and mobility for passenger and commercial traffic in the corridor. I am excited to take this step forward today in making this project a reality.”

The State Route 130 Interchange and similar PA Turnpike improvement projects are now feasible because the PTC made its final $450 million payment to PennDOT this past July.

“With these payments now in our rearview mirror, we can finally begin to ramp up efforts to rebuild and add capacity to our 564-mile roadway network,” said Turnpike Commission CEO Mark Compton. “We are now free to plan critical roadway enhancements like new connections to improve access for motorists and deliver economic opportunities to neighboring communities. Our commission was created by the state legislature in the 1930s to serve as an economic driver, and it’s what we do best.”

Compton added that, besides several new interchange projects, the commission can get back on track with its investment to rebuild and widen sections of its roadway — some of which are more than 81 years old.

“Other projects returning to PTC plans include various tunnel improvements and replacement of major bridges including the 70-year-old Beaver River Bridge in North Sewickley Township,” Compton explained.

The new Route 130 Interchange — a project that has won the backing of state, county, and local officials — will provide those residing in Pittsburgh’s eastern suburbs better access to neighboring counties and employment centers and encourage economic development in Westmoreland County.

“Planning for the Route 130 Interchange is well underway, but its completion does depend on the conversion of our toll-collection system to Open-Road Tolling, or ORT,” said PA Turnpike Chief Engineer Brad Heigel. “ORT involves moving tolling points away from interchanges — where they’re now located — to fixed sites along our mainline roadway between entry and exit points. For the western sections of our system, we plan to convert to ORT in 2026.”

Heigel explained that building new Turnpike interchanges is only feasible in an ORT environment due to significantly lower costs to construct tolling points above travel lanes compared to interchanges.

“Last year’s All-Electronic Tolling conversion gives us the ability to scan E-ZPass transponders and capture license-plate images at highway speeds,” Heigel said. “Now, we can collect tolls on the mainline between interchanges, and build interchanges with a smaller footprint and lower costs of the traditional design required to funnel on and off traffic through a toll plaza.”

Heigel said the cost savings to the PTC is significant — in the tens of millions of dollars compared to the old way of building interchanges.

Officials from Penn Township and nearby communities have consistently backed the construction of a new Turnpike interchange at this location, with support reaching a crescendo in the last few years.

“Although the Pennsylvania Turnpike passes through Penn Township, we don’t have an access point nearby. The Route 130 Interchange would make it easier to get onto I-76 while easing congestion on routes now used to access the Turnpike,” said Penn Township Commissioner Jeff Shula. “Mobility improvements like this are also a critical component of the township’s comprehensive plan which is aimed at boosting the economic viability of our municipality for residents and businesses alike. We cannot grow unless we can quickly and efficiently move goods to market and employees to work.”

The PTC’s obligation to provide the Commonwealth with supplemental transportation funding was a result of PA Act 44 of 2007. Under Act 89 of 2013, the PTC’s payment to the Commonwealth drops from $450 million annually to $50 million at the end of the current fiscal year; at that time, $450 million for transit will come from the state’s General Fund. Lawmakers will have to address this shift in the next state budget.

PA Turnpike’s Statement On Collecting Tolls

Our goal at the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission is to collect all revenue that we generate. While leakage is an established part of the tolling business, as it is in any retail business model, it is something we take seriously. It has always been a part of tolling, even in a cash system, and we do everything we can to minimize it. These measures include use of collection agencies, suspension of vehicle registrations, lawsuits and even felony charges against those who refuse to pay. These measures take time, but they must be included in the discussion to understand the complete revenue capture.

Most importantly, it’s critical for customers to understand that, when you consider the E-ZPass and Toll By Plate options together, the PA Turnpike collects 93% of revenues. In fact, collections at the PA Turnpike’s cashless tolling locations meet or exceed tolling industry collection standards.

For us, it’s a matter of equity. Most customers do the right thing and pay what’s due. We owe it to these honest citizens to do all we can to collect from everyone. In January 2021, the PA Turnpike implemented a 45% additional charge on Toll By Plate transactions to offset the higher cost to collect using this invoicing method. That charge includes offsetting the amount of unpaid toll revenue. As a result, All-Electronic Tolling (AET) revenues are effectively revenue neutral. That is to say, the 45% Toll By Plate charge offsets uncollectable Toll By Plate revenues.

As current president of the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA), our industry group, I began a task force to look at how we can better tackle the issue of loss in our industry. The task force is a first-of-its-kind forum to bring in best practices from a national and global perspective. It’s worth mentioning here that, as we have these dialogues among agency leaders, the PA Turnpike is regarded as best-in-class among our peers when it comes to the variety of measures we’ve implemented to collect what’s owed.

There’s no question our industry is changing. Agencies are focused on doing all we can to avoid mailing invoices to customers. We’re making it easier for drivers to pay upfront. At the PA Turnpike, our Toll By Plate customers also have the option to sign up for E-ZPass and pay the lower rate when they receive an invoice. Toll By Plate users can now opt to set up a prepaid account on our PA Toll Pay smartphone app and receive a 15% discount.

A recent report about leakage in the PA Turnpike’s Toll By Plate program didn’t tell the entire story. Our 93% overall collection rate is achieved, in large part, because today 86% of PA Turnpike customers use E-ZPass — where tolls are electronically debited from prepaid accounts. The remaining 14% are Toll By Plate customers, and leakage was anticipated from the beginning — and had been a fact of life for the PA Turnpike and toll agencies worldwide well before the introduction of AET.

The decision to convert to AET was a measured one that began 10 years ago. We studied the impact on our operations and organization, then unveiled a series of AET pilots across the state beginning in 2016 to get real-world data about the impacts. And finally, in 2020, this preparation enabled us to convert ahead of schedule to safeguard our operations and ensure customer and employee safety during COVID. The system and our collection rates have performed within expectations we established during a decade of research and what we know to be standard across peer agencies.

We believe all customers who utilize the PA Turnpike should pay their fair share, and so we will continue to do everything within our power to maximize collections and minimize loss, including exploring new ideas and opportunities with our partners, our industry and our stakeholders.

Mark Compton

Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission Chief Executive Officer

Harold Sumerford Jr. Elected 77th Chairman of the American Trucking Associations

Nashville, TN…  American Trucking Associations’ Board of Directors elected Harold Sumerford Jr., CEO of J&M Tank Lines Inc., Birmingham, Alabama, the Federation’s 77th chairman.

“This couldn’t be a better time to be not just a member of ATA, but chairman of the board,” Sumerford said. “I’m honored and humbled to be chosen by my fellow members to represent ATA and the trucking industry at this critical time.”

Sumerford succeed Sherri Garner Brumbaugh, president and CEO of Garner Trucking, as chairman.

“Harold is the consummate professional, and a tremendous ambassador for our industry,” said ATA President and CEO Chris Spear. “His story – working in the family business until he ran the family business –could not be more representative of what trucking is all about. I’m looking forward to working more closely with him as chairman and want to congratulate him on this honor.”

Sumerford has been deeply involved in the trucking industry, and is a past chairman of ATA Federation members the Georgia Motor Truck Association and the National Tank Truck Carriers. In addition, he and J&M have been longtime members and supporters of the American Transportation Research Institute and the Truckload Carriers Association, in addition to GMTA and NTTC.

Under Sumerford’s leadership, J&M Tank Lines has won numerous state and national safety awards and an ATA Mike Russell Trucking Image Award for the company’s work during the pandemic.

The Board also elected Dan Van Alstine, president and COO of Ruan Transportation Management Systems, Des Moines, Iowa, as ATA first vice chairman and Andrew Boyle, co-president of Boyle Transportation, Billerica, Massachusetts, ATA second vice chairman. In addition, the Board named Darren Hawkins, CEO of YRC Worldwide Inc., Overland Park, Kansas, and Dennis Dellinger, president and CEO of Cargo Transporters, Hickory, North Carolina, as ATA vice chairmen. In addition, the Board re-elected John M. Smith, chairman of Admiralty Holdings Inc., as secretary and John A. Smith, president and CEO of FedEx Freight, as treasurer.

CVSA Releases 2021 Operation Safe Driver Week Results

Commercial motor vehicle inspectors in Canada, Mexico and the U.S. inspected 35,764 commercial motor vehicles during this year’s Brake Safety Week, a seven-day inspection and enforcement initiative aimed at inspecting commercial motor vehicles roadside and identifying and removing any commercial motor vehicles with dangerous brake-related issues from our roadways. Twelve percent of the vehicles inspected were placed out of service due to critical brake-related inspection item conditions.

Every year, for Brake Safety Week, law enforcement jurisdictions with the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) conduct commercial motor vehicle and driver inspections at fixed weigh stations, temporary pop-up inspection sites and during roving roadway patrols, paying special attention to brake components and systems. Participating jurisdictions capture and report data on inspections and the special focus area for that year. This year, the focus was on brake hose chafing violations.

CVSA devotes an enforcement initiative to brakes because of the importance of properly maintained and functioning brakes on commercial motor vehicles, including tractor trailers of all types, cargo tankers, vans, flatbeds, motorcoaches, straight trucks and specialty vehicles, such as cranes or automobile carriers, etc. “Properly functioning brakes may mean the difference between a catastrophic collision or the ability to avoid a crash,” said CVSA President Capt. John Broers with the South Dakota Highway Patrol.

Brake-related violations accounted for eight out of the top 20 vehicle violations in 2020, according to the U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s data. And brake system and brake adjustment violations accounted for more out-of-service vehicle conditions than any other vehicle violation during CVSA’s three-day International Roadcheck inspection and enforcement initiative in May.

Fifty Canadian and U.S. jurisdictions, and Mexico’s National Guard and Ministry of Communications and Transportation participated in this year’s Brake Safety Week, which is a voluntary commercial motor vehicle safety initiative. In Canada, 1,903 commercial motor vehicles were inspected. The brake-related out-of-service rate was 15.4%. The out-of-service rate related to brakes in the U.S. was 13.5% out of the 28,694 commercial motor vehicles inspected. And in Mexico, 5,167 inspections were conducted with a brake-specific out-of-service rate of 2.6%.

Combined, for a North American total, 35,764 commercial motor vehicles were inspected, Aug. 22-28, for Brake Safety Week. Twelve percent of those vehicles were restricted from travel because inspectors found brake-related critical vehicle inspection item conditions and placed those vehicles out of service, using CVSA’s North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria.

That also means that 88% of the commercial motor vehicles inspected throughout North America during Brake Safety Week did not have brake-related critical vehicle inspection item violations. Vehicles that did not have any vehicle and driver out-of-service conditions during a Level I or Level V Inspection may have received a CVSA decal, which is a visual indicator to inspectors that the vehicle was recently inspected (valid for three months) and had no critical vehicle inspection item violations.

In addition, during Brake Safety Week, inspectors in Canada, Mexico and the U.S. recorded 5,667 brake hose chafing violations, which are a common brake-related violation, whether out-of-service or not. Inspectors reported brake hose chafing violations in five different categories, illustrating levels of chafing severity, including two which are out-of-service conditions, and submitted that data to CVSA.

Brake Safety Week is part of CVSA’s Operation Airbrake program, in partnership with the U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators, and Mexico’s National Guard and Ministry of Communications and Transportation. Operation Airbrake is a comprehensive program dedicated to improving commercial motor vehicle brake safety throughout North America. The goal is to reduce the number of crashes caused by faulty braking systems on commercial motor vehicles by conducting roadside inspections and educating drivers, mechanics, owner-operators and others on the importance of proper brake inspection, maintenance and operation.

ATA Chief Economist Pegs Driver Shortage at Historic High - Industry Short 80,000 Drivers Today, May Be Short 160,000 by 2030

Nashville, TN…  American Trucking Associations’ Chief Economist Bob Costello said the current driver shortage has risen to 80,000 – an all-time high for the industry.

“Since we last released an estimate of the shortage, there has been tremendous pressure on the driver pool,” Costello said. “Increased demand for freight, pandemic-related challenges from early retirements, closed driving schools and DMVs, and other pressures are really pushing up demand for drives and subsequently the shortage.”

A one-page summary of Costello’s estimate, said based on driver demographic trends, including gender and age, as well as expected freight growth the shortage could surpass 160,000 in 2030.

“A thing to note about the shortage is that before the pandemic, we were adding drivers to the industry – even though we had a shortage, more people were entering the industry,” Costello said. “The issue is that new entrants into the industry didn’t keep up with demand for goods.”

In order to keep up with demand over the next decade, trucking will need recruit nearly one million new drivers in order to close the gap caused by demand for freight, projected retirements and other issues.

“Because are a number of factors driving the shortage, we have to take a number of different approaches,” Costello said. “The industry is raising pay at five times the historic average, but this isn’t just a pay issue. We have an aging workforce, a workforce that is overwhelmingly male and finding ways to address those issues is key to narrowing the shortage.

“Companies are doing more and more to address some of the structural lifestyle issues that have traditionally been a challenge for truck drivers,” he said. “So by finding ways to let younger people enter the industry like the Drive-SAFE Act, reaching out to women and minorities, will open this career path – one of the few with a path to a middle class lifestyle that doesn’t require a college degree – we can put a significant dent in the shortage.”

CTA: CBP Releases Statement Reconfirming Need for All Essential Workers to be Vaccinated to Enter The US

TORONTO…  US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued a statement late last week clarifying requirements for the opening of the US border to non-essential travel on November 8, which also reaffirmed the treatment of essential travellers, including the requirement for full vaccination, when crossing into the US as of January 2022:

“Individuals engaged in essential travel will not be required to be vaccinated at this time. Starting in January 2022, however, all inbound foreign national travelers crossing U.S. land POEs or ferry terminals – whether for essential or non-essential reasons – must be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 and provide related proof of vaccination.”

The Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) has stated that the supply chain is not ready for the mandate to be introduced in January 2022 and that Canadian and US officials need to work with the trucking industry to develop a plan and alternative timeline to implement such a mandate, which could potentially bring serious disruptions to an already fragile supply chain as well as introducing significant delays at land ports of entry.

CTA’s statement also outlines the severe shortage of drivers in the industry, sectoral vaccination rates in both Canada and the United States and the need for Ottawa and Washington to work together to move the January deadline for full vaccinations of essential workers further into the future to minimize supply-chain disruptions.

“Our industry is already facing a significant driver shortage and introducing this mandate will cause significant disruptions at various points of the supply chain. Government and industry need to work together to develop a plan that achieves the goal of increasing vaccination rates while ensuring cross-border goods movement remains as seamless as possible,” said CTA president Stephen Laskowski. 

“Losing close to 38,000 drivers, essentially overnight, would be devasting, especially with no short-term labour help on its way. Make no mistake, if this mandate moves forward as planned, there will be significant consequences for the cross-border economy, the impact of which will be felt by the Canadian and American public,” added Laskowski.

CTA: Want to Improve Trucking Safety? Focus Enforcement on Driver Inc Carriers, Implement Trusted Employer Model and Enforce ELD Mandate

TORONTO, CANADA…  Commercial driver training is once again in the public spotlight as a key to improving highway safety and avoiding catastrophic motor vehicle collisions like the Humboldt tragedy. 

 Improvements in commercial driver training is an important element of driver and highway safety – one advocated by the Canadian trucking industry through the introduction of Mandatory Entry Level Training. With the implementation of MELT, the Government of Canada, provinces, and industry groups like the Canadian Trucking Alliance took a significant step in the right direction towards further improving road safety. 

 While mandatory entry level training is one of many improvements the industry and governments have made over the last few years, an even bigger opportunity to significantly improve truck and highway safety is to focus federal and provincial enforcement resources on the main identifiable threat to highway safety – carriers that sidestep all regulations as a business strategy. 

 These unsafe fleets – referred to by the industry as Driver Inc. companies – target ill-prepared and inexperienced drivers who, without much knowledge about industry rules and regulations, are easily taken advantage of by unscrupulous trucking companies. The growing number of Driver Inc. fleets are fueled by the underground economy; abuse their labour by not paying payroll taxes, workers’ compensation or employees vacation/overtime payments; and force drivers to work without regard to hours-of-service rules. Some of these drivers may also be new to Canada and the abusive operator they work for often take advantage of the fact they are unknowledgeable of Canadian labour and safety laws. These Driver Inc drivers are then provided trucks which are likely not properly inspected for safety, are uninsured or covered by fraudulent insurance; and in many cases, have had their emissions controls removed. 

 Through a safety analysis, CTA has found that Driver Inc. companies that abuse labour, tax and environmental rules also routinely have poor safety records, showing a direct correlation between non-compliance and public risk. Driver Inc. companies, says CTA, threatens the existence of safe and compliant operators as well as the well-being of the motoring public. The lesson learned is that Driver Inc. companies can be identified and removed from the road before a serious collision occurs. Enforcement at all levels of government must be focused on Driver Inc carriers, says CTA. This enforcement has begun in Ontario and now must be vigorously expanded across Canada by provincial and federal governments, including tax, labour, workers compensation and highway safety agencies. 

 To protect new arrivals to Canada who want to make Canada their home and work in the trucking industry, CTA is advocating a Trusted or Known Employer Program. These workers should only be permitted to work for compliant fleets that uphold Canadian labour and safety standards so they and their families can thrive and enjoy all the benefits of our great nation, says CTA. The Liberal Government’s policy platform is committed to a Trusted Employer system to streamline application processes for Canadian companies hiring temporary foreign workers to fill labour shortages.

 CTA will be working with the Government of Canada to ensure that Driver Inc. companies no longer have access to any foreign labour and that the Trusted Employer program is expanded to all immigration programs related to trucking. CTA never wants to see another new arrival to Canada abused by a Driver Inc fleet again; there are many excellent and compliant trucking fleets that want to employ these new Canadians and would assist them to thrive as professionals and members of Canadian communities.

 An immediate opportunity to improve truck safety, which is contained in CTA’s Ten Point Action Plan to improve commercial vehicle safety, is to ensure all provinces provide full enforcement of the electronic logbook (ELD) requirement for trucking companies by June 2022. This enforcement action will end a significant aspect of the Driver Inc. business model of ignoring hours of service rules, which puts all road users at risk.  

CTA is calling on the Government of Canada, provinces, and major private and public sector buyers of transportation services to continue working with CTA in improving truck safety by targeting enforcement resources where it matters most – eliminating the practice of Driver Inc.; implementing a Trusted/Known Employer Program for all trucking immigration programs and ensure the ELD mandate is fully enforced by June 2022. 

Border-crossing Vaccine Mandate Needs to Consider Timing to Avoid Supply Chain Disruptions: CTA

TORONTO…  As the Biden Administration prepares to open land border points of entry to vaccinated travelers, the Canadian Trucking Alliance is asking Washington and Ottawa to work with the industry to reexamine appropriate mandate timelines for cross border truck drivers while also developing a seamless, mutual system of identification for drivers to limit potential border delays when presenting their vaccination status at the border.  

 To avoid economic disaster to the North American supply chain, truck drivers – classified as essential workers – have been permitted to cross the border for work while it has been closed to non-essential traffic since March of 2020. 

 The Canadian and US economies move by truck. About 70% of the $648 billion in trade between the two countries moves by truck. In total, there are 120,000 Canadians who operate cross border and 40,000 US licensed drivers moving north-south trade.  

 The recent announcement by the US to open the Canada-US border to all traffic – essential and nonessential – will require proof of double vaccination for all travelers, including truck drivers. to enter the U.S.

 CTA and the Canadian trucking industry strongly support the use of vaccines to bring an end to the COVID-19 pandemic and is encouraging its drivers to get vaccinated to protect themselves, their family members, co-workers and customers, notwithstanding legitimate medical/religious exemptions. CTA is working with members of the industry and governments on strategies to increase the vaccination penetration rate among its workforce so that Canada and the US can fully recover economically and mitigate some of the supply chain service disruptions and delays being experienced globally. 

Early last week, both the US President and the Deputy Prime Minister commented on the need to monitor the fragility of the North American supply chain and that it receives the support it needs to operate efficiently. CTA’s message reflects Washington’s public recognition that the supply chain faces severe challenges and any measures introduced should not compound the capacity pressures. 

 The good news is that many trucking companies from across Canada have double vaccination rates in the 85-90% range – well above the provincial averages. However, there are a significant number of carriers moving Canada-US trade that have lower vaccination rates, which are more reflective of the regional rates where their companies are located and their drivers are recruited.  

 Based on this wide range, CTA conservatively estimates that 20 percent of Canadian truck drivers crossing the border (22,000), and 40 percent of US truck drivers (16,000), would almost immediately exit the Canada-US trade system should the vaccination mandate take effect in January 2022. (CTA fully expects the same vaccination requirement for U.S. truck drivers travelling into Canada would apply if the US mandate were implemented.) The removal of tens of thousands of cross-border truck drivers would also compound the domestic driver shortage problem. Research by Trucking HR Canada shows that currently, even before any vaccination mandates takes effect, nearly 20,000 job vacancies for truck drivers in Canada remain unfilled.

 Since March 2020, CTA has been working with federal governments on both sides of the border to implement measures that keep the Canada-US supply chain moving while protecting essential service workers and all Canadians from the spread of COVID-19. This collaborative effort, along with the commitment by trucking management to introduce new health and safety measures to stop the spread of COVID-19 among its highly-isolated driver population, helped produce extremely low infection rates among drivers and their fleet operations. Because of these systems, the economy moved at a time when it needed to the most and the fight against the spread of COVID-19 in trucking was a resounding success. 

 The Canadian trucking industry fully understands that admissibility requirements are changing around the world. CTA is urging governments for a date-driven, practical implementation timeline that does not further disrupt a constrained supply chain and increase processing times of trucks at the border while also maintaining the need to keep Canadians and Americans safe.

ATA Urges DOT to Proceed with National Framework for Automated Vehicles

Arlington, VA…  The American Trucking Associations, along with a dozen other stakeholder groups, urged Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to move forward on implementing a national framework for the development and deployment of automated vehicles.

“Implementing a federal AV framework that fosters the safe deployment of AVs can help the Biden Administration to shepherd in a safer, more environmentally friendly and accessible transportation future,” the organizations wrote in a September 20 letter.

ATA was joined by the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Consumer Technology Association, the Partnership for Transportation Innovation & Opportunity, the Self-Driving Coalition for Safer Streets, the American Chemistry Council, the American Highway Users Alliance, the Automotive Service Association, ITS America, the Motor and Equipment Manufacturers Association, the National Association of Manufacturers, the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies, Securing America’s Future Energy and the Telecommunications Industry Association.

“Currently, there is much uncertainty as to how the Department intends to regulate AV technology in the near term as updates to existing motor vehicle safety standards are developed and finalized,” the letter said. “As the AV industry moves from research and development to deployment, we urge the Department to use its authority to foster a pathway for near-term AV deployment. Providing for the widest range of deployment options in the near term will also help the Department gather key data on the performance of AVs to inform permanent safety standards that are both practicable and effective.”

“ATA believes there is great promise in automated vehicle technology to improve highway safety, the efficiency of our supply chain and our environment,” said ATA President and CEO Chris Spear. “But we need a national framework that fosters innovation, not a patchwork of potentially conflicting state and federal regulations to deliver on that promise.”

ATA Joins National Distracted Driving Coalition

Arlington, VA… The American Trucking Associations  joined the National Distracted Driving Coalition, the first coalition specifically formed to address the growing epidemic of distracted driving, and will serve as a member of the organization’s steering committee.

“We know that ensuring safe driving behavior is key in improving highway safety, and perhaps no action would do more for the cause of safety than reducing distractions for drivers,” said ATA President and CEO Chris Spear. “America’s truckers see motorists on their phones while driving countless times a day, and if a driver is focused on a text or call, we know they aren’t focused on driving safely.”

The Coalition was officially launched today in Virginia Beach, Virginia by National Transportation Safety Board Vice Chairman Bruce Landsberg, with a mission to promote innovative and collaborative approaches to create a culture of attentive drivers and to serve as a central clearing house for diverse stakeholders.

“Today is an important day in the effort to curb distracted driving,” said ATA Executive Vice President for Communications and Public Affairs Sue Hensley, a member of the Coalition’s steering committee. “This group has produced several action priorities that we believe will promote a cultural shift toward more attentive, safer driving – ultimately saving lives on our highways.”

The Coalition’s 2021 Action Plan Priorities include:

* Communicating the importance of having prevalence data to measure and track the problem;

* Conducting a national survey to focus on what it would take for drivers to change their behavior and identify the barriers that prevent behavior change;

* Highlighting the importance of educational messaging to underscore the risks of hands-free phones as a source of distraction;

* Working with children and youth to increase distracted driving prevention strategies;

* Promoting best practices for workplace distracted driving policies to inspire corporate leadership and encourage that leadership to extend their culture of safety to other influencers and the community at large;

* Preparing policy/legislative briefing documents to support legislative initiatives.

For more information on the Coalition, and to see the group’s complete action plan, go to https://distracteddrivingcoalition.org/.