Recent Lockdowns in the U.S. due to COVID-19
CTA has been getting an increasing amount of questions regarding lockdowns/state of emergencies which are occurring in the U.S. CTA remains in communication with our contacts south of the border regarding any issues that may arise regarding the movement of trucks under these new measures, or other issues that may impact the ability of members to service their customers due to curfews, or plant closures.
Below are recent lockdowns/stay-at-home orders that have occurred in the U.S. including links to their related definitions/orders, of what is/isn’t included as essential services during the COVID-19 outbreak:
- California: https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/publications/CISA-Guidance-on-Essential-Critical-Infrastructure-Workers-1-20-508c.pdf
- Connecticut: https://portal.ct.gov/Office-of-the-Governor/News/Press-Releases/2020/03-2020/Governor-Lamont-Signs-Executive-Order-Asking-Connecticut-Businesses-and-Residents-Stay-Safe
- Illinois: https://www2.illinois.gov/sites/coronavirus/FAQ/Pages/Stay-At-Home-FAQS.aspx
- Maryland: https://governor.maryland.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/OLC-Interpretive-Guidance-COVID19-04.pdf
- Massachusetts: https://www.mass.gov/doc/covid-19-essential-services/download
- Michigan: https://www.michigan.gov/coronavirus/0,9753,7-406-98158-522625–,00.html
- New York: https://esd.ny.gov/guidance-executive-order-2026
- New Jersey: http://d31hzlhk6di2h5.cloudfront.net/20200321/72/72/ea/72/bec24cb2fadc63980ea9e0db/EO-107.pdf
- Ohio: https://www.dispatch.com/news/20200322/coronavirus-in-ohio-read-full-stay-at-home-document
- Pennsylvania: https://dig.abclocal.go.com/wpvi/pdf/032020-wpvi-for-natalie-pdf.pdf
Members are encouraged to conduct their own due diligence when complying with these orders to ensure compliance with these regulations.
IFTA Statement on Addressing COVID-19 Issues
Today representatives from the International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA) responded to the CTA-ATA joint letter sent last week regarding the need to delay compliance dates in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis.
The letter indicates that many jurisdictions have already issued emergency declarations waiving various requirements for IFTA credentialing. It goes on to state that IFTA, Inc. is strongly encouraging every jurisdiction to issue their own emergency declaration to waive the requirements for enforcement of IFTA credentialing until June 30, 2020. The June 30th date will provide a consistent date that has been recommended by other compliance organizations.
Carriers are encouraged to review the information on the IFTA website at the following link for further detail – https://www.iftach.org/
APTA Delivers Message of Drivers as Essential Service
Executive director for the Atlantic Provinces Trucking Association, Jean-Marc Picard, tells local media it is business as usual for the trucking industry and truck drivers are working diligently to make sure the supply chain is not interrupted.
“We are very busy during this challenging time. Bathroom tissue is flying off the shelves, so we have to make sure the supply chain is not interrupted and make sure all of the shelves are all replenished. Food is very important, and water and things like that.”
See full story here.
Manitoba
The Manitoba Trucking Association is strongly encouraging everyone to complete all licensing/registrations/vehicle insurance/etc transactions through their regular insurance brokers or directly with MPI by phone or online (where possible). MPI announced that it is temporarily allowing the following transactions to be done by phone without the need to physically visit an Autopac agent or one of MPI’s Service Centres in person:
- New registration and policy application
- Renewal of an expiring/expired driver’s licence
- Reapplication of a lapsed driver’s licence
- Manual reassessment of an active or lapsed driver’s licence
- Driver’s licence replacement
- Basic ID card replacement (with no information changes)
- Vehicle insurance coverage renewal, reassessment, reactivation, reapplication
- Transfer of policy
- Payment
Whenever possible, use the phone or online service, rather than visiting an office to complete your MPI transactions.
Due to COVID19, Manitoba Infrastructure has temporary relaxed the “Essential Commodities Provisions” to ease the transportation of the those commodities, support the essential food supply chains and to ensure food security. This measure is also expected to reduce the risk to the relevant Industry workers and thereby, to the general public.
The following exemptions will apply for the 2020 Spring Road Restrictions season to the Essential Commodities Provisions:
- Despite the imposition of Level 1 road restrictions on the highways listed in the “2020 SPRING ROAD RESTRICTIONS (SRR) ORDER # 3 (Special)”, a vehicle may transport essential commodities at normal loading on a highway that is subject to Level 1 road restrictions.
- Despite the imposition of Level 2 road restrictions on the highways listed in the “2020 SPRING ROAD RESTRICTIONS (SRR) ORDER # 3 (Special)”, a vehicle may transport essential commodities at normal loading on a highway that is subject to Level 2 road restrictions.
- The following items from the Permit Required List of essential commodities will be considered Permit Exempt essential commodities:
- grain to satisfy grain quotas or contracts
- potatoes or vegetables from producer to processor
All other conditions specified in the “2020 SPRING ROAD RESTRICTIONS (SRR) ORDER # 3 (Special)” and at the SRR website shall still apply, including the limitations on using the shortest amount of a Level 2 restricted road when hauling essential commodities.
Nothing in this concession authorizes the operation of a vehicle over a bridge or other structure in excess of posted weight restrictions.
5 – We continue to work on sourcing supplies for drivers to keep in their trucks, including hand sanitizer, and will update accordingly.
CVSA Guide
CVSA is offering an on-line seminar on The Trucking Industry’s Guide to Infectious Substances and COVID-19 on March 25th. We are all responding to the repercussions of the widespread coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. On this webinar, CVSA will offer personal protection and decontamination guidelines, a primary concern for everyone on the frontline. They will also cover inspection guidelines and regulations applicable to shipping patient samples and hospital waste associated with the virus. The on-line registration link is available from the CVSA web site.