FOR
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JOBS
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October 2026
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OVER THE ROAD E S T. 1 9 9 3
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2 • OVER THE ROAD
OCTOBER 2026
WE ARE HIRING!
WE ARE LOOKING FOR COMPANY DRIVERS Company LTL Drivers averaged $95,000 in 2025
Drivers are paid $0.60\mi with a FAST or TWIC card along with Picks and Drops, Idle and Performance bonuses.
Visit our website at www.kurtztrucking.com for complete Pay Package details.
Contact Safety at 1-800-265-2835 ext.770 or email safety@kurtztrucking.com OCTOBER 2026
ANYTHING.. ANYTIME.. ANYWHERE.
JOBS FOR TRUCKERS • 3
1189694 Ontario Ltd. C.O.B. as Over The Road
Publisher Peter Charboneau peter@otrgroup.ca Director of Operations & Editor-in-Chief Cathryn Charboneau cathryn@otrgroup.ca Account Executive Luke Zentil luke@otrgroup.ca
18 Parkglen Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K2G 3G9 1.800.416.8712 • 613.224.9947 Email: otr@otrgroup.ca www.overtheroad.ca
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All advertisements, and/or editorials are accepted and published by Over the Road on the representation that the advertiser, its advertising company, and/or the supplier of the editorials are authorized to publish the entire contents and subject matter thereof. The advertiser, its advertising company, and/or the supplier of the editorials will defend, indemnify and hold Over the Road harmless from and against any loss, expense or other liability resulting from any claims or suits for libel, violation of privacy, plagiarism, copyright or trademark infringement and any other claims or suits that may rise out of publication of such advertisement and/ or editorials. Press releases are expressly covered within the definition of editorials.
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We are now Hiring Highway Drivers Steady weekly runs to Florida Flexible time off Paid Hub miles All picks and drops paid Waiting time paid EZ pass for scales and bridge cards Bi-weekly direct deposit Benefits from day one Great dispatch team
– AYR, ONT. / ORLANDO, FL.
Contact Randy Baker 1-877-665-6015
randyb@beyondtransportationinc.com
Minimum of 1 year of experience is required
300 Melair Drive Ayr, ON N0B 1E0
beyondtransportationinc.com 4 • OVER THE ROAD
OCTOBER 2026
THE BEST IS THE LEAST WE CAN DO
IT’S TIME TO MAKE YOUR MOVE! Driver planned home time | Full load dry van – No touch Freight Steady year-round miles | Group benefits and pension plan | Paid weekly Mostly warehouse and industrial area deliveries in US C-TPAT and FAST approved Carrier and Loads
A huge thank you to all of our Drivers and everyone in the industry that is working so hard. We appreciate everything that you are doing.
HIRING RECRUITING DEPARTMENT
OCTOBER 2026
DARTMOUTH Yard MONCTON Yard
WOODSTOCK Head Office DORVAL Yard
BRAMPTON Terminal WINNIPEG Terminal
1-800-668-0099 | ayr.recruiting@ayrmotor.com
ayrmotor.ca
JOBS FOR TRUCKERS • 5
MAKING YOUR MILES COUNT Robert D. Scheper
The Effect of High Fuel Costs on Operators Accountants are privy to a lot of information; most of it private. However, trends are usually not a matter offensive to anyone. Over the last three plus years of industry recession, I’ve seen the morale of Operators slowly dip. I’ve seen a ten-fold increase in retirements and a steady increase in days out on the road to keep the proverbial wolves from the door. Many would think the jump in fuel prices would escalate the negative feelings. Not necessarily. In fact, there is a split in perspectives... it is a three-way split. The middle and most dominant group have virtually no opinion, good or bad. Their net take home is very similar no matter what the fuel price. The reason is either the contract they are driving under or the carrier’s customers they pull freight for. The first is a contract for Lease Operators (Operators who get paid cents per mile and are given a fuel subsidy as the fuel costs fluctuate). The rate of subsidy matches the operator’s consumption rate. For example: if the carrier rates per mile are equal to 6.5 miles per gallon and the Operator’s truck consumes 6.5 miles, per gallon the net take home will be negligible. If the carrier’s customers also provide a fuel surcharge (after carrier percentage removed) equal to the price increase, the net take home will not reflect anything less for the Operator than normal. The difficulty comes when the rate of fuel subsidy is higher than the Operators 6 • OVER THE ROAD
consumption rate (i.e. 6.5 mpg for truck consumption and the carrier rate is 7.5 or 8.0 or higher). This means that when the fuel costs increase $1.00, the subsidy will only compensate $0.85. Or, if the Operator gets paid percentage of the freight charged, the customers do not compensate enough for the higher fuel costs. Too many inexperienced carriers are more concerned with the bottom line of their own company than the survival of their Operators. Many of them are on pure survival mode and have been for a couple years. These are the carriers Operators must avoid at all costs. In my 2015 book ‘Choosing a Trucking Company’, I go over examples and formulas that expose the dangerous contracts that are out there. I remember reviewing one carrier’s contract and found that to keep the fuel costs the same, an Operator must get 11.5 mpg, obviously an impossibility. The main thesis of my advice to Operators is to not necessarily work for the highest paid contract but you must certainly avoid the lowest paid. Another thing before I move onto the third split. Carrier contracts are only a piece of paper. They mean nothing without ethical owners and decision makers. To find out if a carrier is ethical, they must be tested through tough
OCTOBER 2026
times. Fortunately (or unfortunately), we have experienced tough times now for several years. Crooked behaviour should be exposed by now. Behaviour like significant delay in the increase of subsidy as fuel prices jump (say weeks or even months), false charges on a pay statement, missing revenue or any of a whole host of fabrications. Choosing a carrier for their ethical behaviour is an absolute must. Finally, we have the Operators who are making bank in this turbulent environment. Operators whose carrier subsidizes fuel at a reasonable rate say 6.0-6.5 mpg and the Operator averages 8.0-8.5 mpg or $1.32 deposited for every added $1.00 in fuel costs. Though these severe examples are available, admittedly they only range about 8 to 15% of what is out there. It must also be understood that the 8.0-8.5 mpg is consistent and predictable. About a year before I wrote my second book, I realized that finances (contract rates) are almost always NOT the reason a driver stays/ leaves a carrier. It has to do with respect, not money. Money is A reason but not THE reason. The reason an Operator chooses a carrier is a personal referral or a cup of coffee with a friend who drives for that carrier. It is trust in a human being, something AI can very rarely duplicate. Survival long term depends on the Operator’s ability to manage cash and think for the future. Short term thinkers nearly always lose their shirt… pants and jet ski. Our firm is just in the middle of year ends for hundreds and hundreds of Operators. There are those Operators who make $150,000 a year in taxable income (even AFTER NonTaxable Benefits of $45,000+). I personally
OCTOBER 2026
see to it they are advised in the most efficient method of dealing with high income. Advice is mostly the same but not always. If a client consistently makes $150k and desires to build up cash in their corporation, then corporate income (corporate taxes) are the way. If they wish to build after tax wealth they would have to declare about $74k in T4 income first, THEN corporate income and eventually dividends to remove earnings from the company. Each step must be understood. It is not that complicated. If your accountant doesn’t teach you the plan... take my advice... your ACCOUNTANT doesn’t care about your taxes or your success. A great accountant should also be a good teacher. If at first you don’t understand, ask, ask again. Don’t stop till you understand. About the Author: Robert D. Scheper is a leading Accountant and Consultant exclusively serving the Lease/ Owner Operator industry in Canada. His first book in the Making Your Miles Count series “taxes, taxes, taxes” was released in 2007. His second book “Choosing a Trucking company” is the most in-depth analysis of the independent operator industry today. He has a Master degree (MBA) in financial management and has been serving the industry since he and his wife came off the road in 1993. His dedication, commitment and strong opinions can be read and heard in many articles and seminars. You can find him at www.makingyourmilescount. com or 1-877-987-9787. CHECK OUT THE PODCASTS AT “YOUTUBE.COM/@MAKING YOUR MILES COUNT”
JOBS FOR TRUCKERS • 7
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8 • OVER THE ROAD
OCTOBER 2026
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YOUR CANADIAN SOLUTION! JOBS FOR TRUCKERS • 9
SAFETY DAWG Chris Harris
Too Much Safety? We are not far off from the annual truck
However, not all companies wait for this
meetings are generally held the same
meetings more frequently; some have
driver safety meetings in Canada. The
weekend as the American Thanksgiving.
This is because in the United States, they close the doors of so many factories on Wednesday afternoon of Thanksgiving and they remain closed on Thursday
(Thanksgiving Day) and Black Friday. This
gives the employees of many warehouses, shippers, receivers and factories a four-day weekend.
Canadian truck drivers usually make their last delivery on Wednesday and then
hurry home on Thursday or Friday. For
Canadian trucking employers, this means that they can get a very high percentage of their drivers to a safety meeting at that time, without losing freight to a
competitor. Many of the cross-border
trucking companies do the same thing.
Guest speakers are in high demand for the American Thanksgiving weekend. 10 • OVER THE ROAD
weekend. Some companies have safety
two in-person safety meetings per year.
Others have three in-person meetings and some even have four in-person meetings in a year.
That is why I am asking, can we have too much safety?
Many companies also use online training platforms such as Infinit-i for training.
They then use a combination of in-person
meetings and an online platform. Many of these companies are now training every month. Is this too much?
And why do companies train? After all,
you are a truck driver, and you consider yourself a professional. You have had
your licence for quite some time. You are experienced. The answer is because they
are required to. That is the answer, and it is
OCTOBER 2026
simple. According to Occupational Health
I have sat through some terrible and
employees.
I try my best to be spirited and a little
and Safety, employers must train their What if you are not employed but are part of Driver Inc.? It is my opinion
that the company that you are working with, is still required to train you. And
besides, it is not just Workplace Safety or
Occupational Health and Safety that says
boring training sessions. As a trainer,
entertaining. There are not many ways to tell the drivers to leave more space and
to slow down. Leaving space and going a little slower are the key essentials to safe
driving so they need to be discussed, but it can be done in an entertaining way.
that employees must be trained. There
So as the American Thanksgiving weekend
be Federal or Provincial. Then look at
few days off. And enjoy the training,
are also the Labour Boards. This could
the insurer of the trucks. They are always asking about training for the new hires
and the ongoing training of the existing drivers. It is the insurer who also really
likes remedial training for the drivers that
have a violation or infraction. It is not just the government that demands training, it is also the insurance companies.
Is all this training too much? Can too
much knowledge be a bad thing? I for one
gets closer, I wish all drivers a wonderful because until we get to a point where
there are never any more collisions, then we need to keep doing safety training! Be Safe Chris Harris Top Dawg, Safety Dawg Inc.
905-973-7056
chris@safetydawg.com
@safety_dawg (twitter)
say NO. There is never too much training. I do think that there are boring trainers and terrible training. The boring and
the terrible make it a punishment for
the drivers to attend training sessions. This is one of the reasons truck drivers
sometimes don’t like the annual training
meetings. They don’t learn anything new. OCTOBER 2026
JOBS FOR TRUCKERS • 11
Index Ayr Motor Express . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
GPS To Go . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8,9
Beyond Transportation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Making Your Miles Count . . . . . . . . . . . 6,7
Brian Kurtz Trucking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Trans-West . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Chris Harris - Safety Dawg Inc. . . . . . . 10,11
TransX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
DeckX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Trucker Buddy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
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OCTOBER 2026
Now Hiring AZ Owner Operator TEAM Drivers USA Long Haul in GTA area
We’re hiring AZ Owner Operator Team Drivers for long-haul routes across Western USA & Western Canada. If you’re looking for a company that values efficiency, transparency, and driver success, we have the perfect opportunity for you!
Why Drive with Trans-West?
What We’re Looking For
• Real Team Service Company – Easily run up to 20,000 miles/month
• Minimum 1 year of AZ (USA, Western Canada) driving experience
• Competitive Pay – Paid after each trip, direct deposit every Thursday (no holdbacks)
• Clean Clearinghouse Record
• Empty miles paid • Fuel Surcharge – Provided and adjusted weekly
• Valid AZ (CDL) License – With a clean driving record
• Exclusive Fuel Discounts – Fuel card with full Trans-West discount
• Owner Operator Experience – Proven track record in freight transportation
• Company Coverage – We cover plates & insurance
• Flexibility – Ability to adapt to changing schedules and routes
• Must be eligible to drive into the USA
• Premium Equipment – Satellite communication, ISAAC ELD, BestPass bridge transponder • Secure Parking – Available in the GTA paid by Trans-West • IFTA Managed & Paid by Trans-West • Decals Paid • This is a full-time position that pays $325,000.00-$400,000.00 per year
How to Apply Call our recruiting team at 416-606-8296 for more information Or e-mail us your application: hiring@groupetranswest.com
JOIN A COMPANY THAT RESPECTS YOUR TIME, OCTOBER 2026 YOUR WORK, AND HELPS YOU SUCCEED VALUES ONFOR THETRUCKERS ROAD! JOBS • 13
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OCTOBER 2026 www.transx.com