Canuck driver, fleet honored by truckload group

PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas — A Canadian driver for Guelph, Ont.-based MacKinnon Transport was named the grand prize winner in the 2007 Company Equipment Driver of the Year at the annual Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) conference.

Doug Ladds has been a truck driver for 24 years, working for MacKinnon Transport since 1994. During his career, he has logged more than 3.6 million accident-free truckload kilometers. A member of his company’s Driver-trainer team for 14 years, Ladds is now the head driver trainer.

The Company Equipment Driver of the Year contest honors the top company drivers based on their excellent safety records, unblemished work histories, and community and industry involvement.

Ladds is a member of the executive board for the MacKinnon Transport Drivers Association. Ladds is also the first driver to attain the President level of MacKinnon’s Road Masters Program, an initiative designed to recognize both a driver’s safety-first attitude and his general knowledge of the trucking industry.

He is also currently serving a two-year term on the Ontario Trucking Association’s Road Knight Team, a select group of ten truck drivers who speak to the media, students, civic groups, driving schools and other interested parties about the trucking industry, safety and sharing the road with trucks.

In 2001, Ladds received TCA’s Highway Angel Award for assisting three young motorists in a burning vehicle.

In the contest application presented to TCA on Ladds’ behalf, Jeff Lehmann, safety and compliance manager for MacKinnon Transport, writes: “Doug Ladds is genuinely concerned about the Transportation Industry. He portrays the image of a tractor-trailer driver with a courteous, professional attitude. This is reflected by his continued efforts to enhance and elevate his personal knowledge and also to share his experience within the industry.”

As the Grand Prize winner, Ladds will receive a Cummins engine-powered Dodge Ram pick-up truck; all-expense paid trip for two to the Grand Ole Opry; a GPS navigation system; $10,000 in cash, $5,750 in truckstop gift cards, and a $500 truck parts gift certificate.

Meanwhile, Winnipeg-based Bison Transport was named the grand prize winner of the 33rd Annual National Fleet Safety Award for truckload companies with more than 25 million miles.

This is the third year in a row Bison has won the award.