Truckers take to Queen’s Park to protest DriveTest strike

TORONTO — Traffic flow flanking Toronto might be slower than the normal commute this morning as a few dozen truckers creep along the highway to protest the three-month long strike at Ontario driver licensing centres.

Two convoys, expected to include as many as 100 trucks and buses, is being organize by the Truck Training Schools Association of Ontario (TTSAO).

According to the Toronto Star, the first convoy rolled out at 8:00 am from Oakville, traveled along the QEW and onto the Gardiner Expressway.

The other began east of Toronto in the Peterborough-Oshawa area, and is traveling on Hwy 401 Markham and Kingston will be coming on Highway 401 westbound, to the Don Valley Parkway.

The two convoys expect to meet in downtown Toronto between 10:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. and will circle around Queen’s Park for several hours, reports the Star.

TTSAO President Gus Rahim, says truck driving schools are fed up with the DriveTest strike, which is now in its 11th week.

New truck drivers haven’t been able to test for their licenses and begin looking for work in this recession and many training centres have had to lay off staff because of the strike.

"This has to stop," he said.

Serco DES, the British-based company that which owns and operates the province’s DriveTest facilities, and the United Steelworkers have not negotiated an end to the strike since mid-September.