May 2015 Volume 35, Issue 5
TRUCK NEWS Harry Rudolfs reviews two folding bikes that are ideal for professional drivers looking to exercise on the road.
Delivering daily news at trucknews.com
A van in the bush
Jim Bray tests the new Sprinter 4x4 on some mucky B.C. logging roads. Could he get it stuck?
Page 60
Trucking in northeastern Quebec and Newfoundland is being driven by the Muskrat Falls development.
Mini road warriors
Page 59
Boom and bust
Page 47
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Canada’s Trucking Newspaper Since 1981
Trucking illustrated
On a desolate stretch of Ontario highway a new industry hero is born in living colour.
All the rage at MATS From old classics to futuristic concept trucks, here’s what caught our attention at the Mid-America Trucking Show By James Menzies, with files from Sonia Straface LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY They say you can gauge the health of the North American trucking industry based on the turnout at the MidAmerica Trucking Show. If that’s the case, then things must be pretty rosy. It seemed no floor space went unoccupied and the aisles were packed with visitors eager to check out the latest equipment. If you couldn’t make the show yourself, don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Here’s a complete report on what caught our attention at the show. The outlook
Top executives speaking at the MidAmerica Trucking Show were universally upbeat about the year ahead. Strong Class 8 truck demand is expected to continue through 2015, with production climbing 15-20% over 2014’s healthy volumes, according to Joe Continued on page 35
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Electronic stability control, as demonstrated here by Bendix, is likely to be required on tractortrailers. The only question is, will Canada or the US be first to pass legislation?
Driving a safety mandate Transport Canada is moving forward with mandates that would require the use of electronic stability control and electronic logging devices
By Sonia Straface TORONTO, ONTARIO After a roundtable meeting with Canadian Trucking Alliance carrier members March 19, Federal Transport Minister, Lisa Raitt announced she would push forward mandates for electronic logging devices (ELDs) and electronic stability control (ESC) systems in order to improve road safety. “What I told everyone (in the roundtable) is that you have my personal support to ensure that we have something like this in the legislation in Canada and we want to mimic what’s going on in the US, but we also want to be mindful of the fact that sometimes we can move the United States in a direction and I think when it comes to safety, this is incredibly important,” she told Truck News following the meeting. The Minister said she believes the US will be coming out with its rule on mandatory ELDs and ESC in the fall (see related story, pg. 14), and that she has Transport Canada geared up as a result, to get Canada in a position where ELDs and ESC can be mandated in this country, too. “We believe that for safety reasons electronic logs is the way to go and we are going to be discussing this again,” she added. “I’ve already talked to (Ontario Transport)
Minister Steven Del Duca on this topic as well…and now that means we just need that one last push to make sure it’s mandatory in Canada. I’m taking it seriously and I’m going to keep working to get it done.” She claimed that accidents on Canadian highways are sometimes the result of human factors, like fatigue. “If you can eliminate or mitigate the human factors associated with fatigue as much as possible…then it makes good sense and it blends in with everything we’re trying to do in our government,” she said. “So I’m going to continue to ensure that (mandating ELDs and ESC) is top of mind and a top priority in Transport Canada and bring it to a close in the coming months.” As far as stability control goes, the Minister said implementing that is not just about safety, but about the traffic rollovers caused in busy areas like Toronto. “There’s lots of work between ourselves and the United States on it (stability),” she said. “We also have to work provincially on those matters so that’s another which just makes a lot of sense with safety and preventing accidents that can really jam up a place like downtown Toronto.” The Minister agreed that working with the US to harContinued on page 14
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