With less than a year to go for the implementation of the electronic logging device (ELD) mandate, federal Transportation Minister Marc Garneau is once again displaying leadership on road safety by reminding the trucking industry\u00a0and the Canadian public the much needed regulation is well on its way to being delivered.<\/p>\n
\u201cElectronic logging devices can help reduce driver fatigue and collisions. These safety benefits are important to Canadians and improve road safety. For these reasons, we worked with industry to mandate the use of these devices by June 12, 2021. We remain on schedule for this timeline, and we will continue working with stakeholders and industry to help them meet this goal,\u201d said\u00a0the Honourable Marc Garneau, Minister of Transport.<\/p>\n
Building upon this message from the federal transport minister, Teamsters Canada and the Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) are advising the industry the mandate date is set and that Transport Canada is not only on schedule to deliver the third-party system to certify ELDs but also firmly committed to the June 2021 implementation date.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe June 2021 date to make electronic logging devices mandatory in commercial vehicles will finally make hours of service regulations enforceable. It will go a long way to reduce driver fatigue, prevent accidents and ultimately save lives,\u201d said the national president of Teamsters Canada, Fran\u00e7ois Laporte.<\/p>\n
Over the last year, Transport Canada has worked diligently through the many issues to implement and construct a third-party certification regime. Transport Canada expects ELD vendors will be able to certify equipment over the summer, giving ample time for individual trucking companies who have not yet invested in ELDs for their trucks to get ready for implementation. CTA estimates that over 70 per cent of commercial trucks already have ELD capabilities.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe ELD mandate date is set in stone for June 2021 and CTA looks forward to the dawn of a new era in hours of service compliance,\u201d said CTA president, Stephen Laskowski.<\/p>\n
Although most carriers are steadfastly committed to all matters related to commercial vehicle and operator compliance, too many carriers still do not make safety a top priority. This was the case in the collision between a tractor-trailer and the Humboldt Broncos hockey team, where the owner of the transport truck involved in the deadly crash admitted he did not follow provincial and federal safety rules in the months leading up to the collision.<\/p>\n
\u201cThird\u2011party certified ELDs will ensure that bad actors cannot tamper with the ELDs, thereby jeopardizing public safety,\u201d said Laporte and Laskowski. \u201cThe third-party regime is critical to the integrity and safety performance of the ELD mandate. Forcing trucking companies like the one involved in the Humboldt Broncos collision to follow rules designed to make highways safer is an absolute necessity.\u201d<\/p>\n
Teamsters represent close to 125,000 workers across Canada. The International Brotherhood of Teamsters, with which Teamsters Canada is affiliated, has 1.4 million members in North America. Visit\u00a0<\/em>teamsters.ca<\/em><\/a>\u00a0<\/em>for more information. Follow us on Twitter\u00a0<\/em>@TeamstersCanada<\/em><\/a>\u00a0<\/em>and \u201clike\u201d us on Facebook at\u00a0<\/em>facebook.com\/TeamstersCanada<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n