The US Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has extended its original Regional Emergency Declaration issued November 24 until January 31 2022, allowing continued movement of Canadian goods through the US to bypass road closures and areas in Canada cut off by flooding and landslides. The original declaration was set to expire on December 23, 2021.
The FMCSA declaration provides an exemption from certain regulatory requirements in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety (FMCSRs) and is limited to Canadian motor carriers and drivers providing emergency services or transporting essential goods, supplies and equipment from Canada to other points in Canada through to bypass road closures and areas in Canada cut off by flooding and landslides.
Key highlights of the regulatory relief provided by FMCSA include:
- The ability for Canadian trucking companies and drivers (holding class 1, 2 and 3 licences) to operate from Canada to other points in Canada through the United States without a US DOT number, provided they hold a valid National Safety Code (NSC) certificate number issued by the appropriate authority in the base jurisdiction and a proof of registration in Canada have not been assigned a Conditional or Unsatisfactory safety rating by their base jurisdiction.
- That FMCSA will not enforce specific parts of the Drug and Alcohol Testing Regime and Clearing House.
Carriers are encouraged to carefully review the full details of the FMCSA declaration and the Notice of Enforcement Discretion to determine and its suitability to their operations.
For full details of the Regional Emergency Declaration click here and the Notice of Enforcement Discretion click here.
This declaration complements changes made to the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) temporary in-transit program to allow additional options for Canadian carriers and drivers to maintain key supply chain links to British Columbia and Western Canada, which was recently extended until January 8, 2022.
CTA continues to work with both Canadian and US authorities to ensure the temporary in-transit pilot remains in place as a long as is necessary to ensure the timely and safe movement of critical goods into BC to aid in the ongoing relief efforts.
Not included in the regulatory relief were considerations for domestic Canadian Weights and Dimensions to be allowed during in-transit movements, however CTA has prepared a document to serve as a basic guide to assist carriers in this area. Please click here: CTA-US Routing Weight Options_public
CTA will continue to monitor the rollout of the declaration and provide updates to the membership, as necessary.
CTA would like to thank the Government of Canada for championing this issue with U.S. authorities and their continued support for the trucking industry.