SPECIAL REPORT: Alberta still no go on HOS: Minister
BANFF, Alta. — While other Canadian provinces have already adopted federal hours-of-service rules, Alberta says it still doesn’t have a timetable of when it will mirror Ottawa’s regulation which came into effect Jan. 1, 2007.
Speaking to carriers of the Alberta Motor Transport Association at its annual conference in Banff, Transportation Minister Luke Ouellette said he’s “not rushing to make any changes to (Alberta’s HOS) just yet.”
Alberta remains the only province that has not set a date to amend the provincial Drivers’ Hours of Service Regulation.
the ‘wide range of opinions’ on HOS
Ontario, PEI, and Newfoundland enshrined provincial versions of the federal regulation on Jan. 1, while other provinces committed to rolling out the rules between February and April.
In those provinces that have adopted the regulation, there remains educational enforcement where drivers stopped at roadside are provided with the required information to help understand and comply with the rules.
Ouellette said his ministry is still wrapping up consultations with stakeholders. He added that he’s made progress with factions of the industry that oppose the new rules, which restrict drivers who have accumulated 13 hours of driving time or 14 hours of on-duty time, including driving, in a day.
“There’s still a wide, wide range of opinions on hours-of-service,” said Ouellette.
The AMTA has been lobbying hard for quick adoption of the federal rule as to not have two separate regulations for carriers operating both in and out of province.
As for mirroring speed limiter legislation currently under consideration in Ontario and Quebec, Ouellette said he’s “parked it for a while.” However, he did add he plans to have a discussion on possible mandatory or voluntary use of speed limiters once a Transport Canada report studying the effects of speed limiters of traffic patters and speed differentials is complete.
On a more positive note for Alberta carriers, Ouellette commend the AMTA’s campaign to get the once beleaguered Partners in Compliance (PIC) program up and running again.
PIC — a voluntary, self-assessment program created so that the safest, most proven compliant carriers could bypass scale enforcement — is slated to commence in June.
Ouellette also expressed his excitement over a new truck driver certification program set to kick off the same month.
The two-year pilot at Red Deer College, named the Professional Driver Certificate Program, offers classroom theory as well as driver-training based on the Canadian Human Resources Trucking Council’s Earning Your Wheels program.
The same day Ouellette addressed the AMTA, the Ministry of Advanced Education and Technology also announced a $15-million boost to apprenticeship funding, which could help apprentices in the skilled trades access the technical training portion of their apprenticeship program.
The investment, which is an increase of 53 percent from last year’s budget, will also fund learning resources, supplies and services to support the additional training seats.
The new funding will be provided to institutions offering apprenticeship programs, in addition to base operating grants.
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