John G Smith

John G. Smith is the editorial director of Newcom Media's trucking and supply chain publications -- including Today's Trucking, trucknews.com, TruckTech, Transport Routier, and Road Today. The award-winning journalist has covered the trucking industry since 1995.

Avatar photo

Feds to toughen impaired driving rules under pot laws

TORONTO, ON - The federal government has officially unveiled its plans to legalize recreational marijuana by July 2018, and promises as well to introduce some of the toughest impaired driving laws in the world - complete with roadside saliva tests. Under the proposal, police would be able to demand oral fluid samples if they believe drivers have drugs in their body, and with reasonable grounds would be able to demand a blood sample. Punishments for those found driving under the influence of drugs including cannabis will become more severe, said Ralph Goodale, minister of public safety, during a press briefing on Friday. There are also plans for a "wide-ranging" campaign to raise awareness about the dangers of driving while impaired.

OTA weighs in on proposed Thunder Bay truck ban

TORONTO, ON - The Ontario Trucking Association is asking Thunder Bay, Ontario to consider safety zones and photo radar rather than banning truck traffic on several routes. The comments made in a letter to Mayor Keith Hobbs and city council come as the municipality debates a ban on trucks using routes such as Dawson Road and Arthur Street. A proposed bylaw would require those bypassing Thunder Bay to use Highway 11/17 and 61. The debate has emerged on and off over a decade.
Stormy truck route debate rages in Thunder Bay preview image Stormy truck route debate rages in Thunder Bay article image

Stormy truck route debate rages in Thunder Bay

THUNDER BAY, ON - A longstanding dispute over truck routes in Thunder Bay, Ontario is heading toward another city council vote later this month, and the stakes are particularly high for Santorelli's. The truck stop has been in business for 65 years - 45 of which have been under the current owners -- and welcomes truck traffic along Arthur Street. So do the 35 employees working in the restaurant and accompanying tire shop. But city council is looking to close much of Arthur Street and Dawson Road (Highway 102) to anything above 15,000 kilograms, squeezing more trucks onto the east-west Harbour Expressway that runs between the two routes. It isn't the first time a traffic change has affected the business. The truck stop dates back to a time when Arthur Street was part of the TransCanada Highway. Thirty percent of the business was lost when the nearby Harbour Extension was opened in 2008, says Lorne Kellar, Santorelli's controller. But it isn't the first time that the idea of further restricting the city's truck traffic has passed through council chambers, either.

Trending Topics