Transportation Minister Brian Mason was on hand at a press conference at the AMTA Calgary office July 10, asking for input as the province moves forward with a plan to improve the training, testing and oversight of all drivers, particularly those in the commercial trucking industry.

Construction of the West Calgary Ring Road, scheduled to begin in 2019, will complete the circle around Calgary and alleviate traffic congestion in the commercial heart of Alberta.

The Alberta Motor Transport Association celebrated it’s 70th annual Professional Truck Driving Championship in style June 23 – on the newly paved five-acre training area of the association’s new facility at Edmonton International Airport.

CTA: Recognizing that distracted driving is a growing safety issue across Canada, Transport Canada hosted a National Distracted Driving Roundtable in Montreal with key industry stakeholders, including the Canadian Trucking Alliance and the Quebec Trucking Association.

Alberta Government: Four projects, expected to be up and running this fall, will receive a total of more than $1.4 million over two years as part of the Rural Transportation Pilot Program funded through Budget 2018.

Tremcar West’s Edmonton facility is Transport Canada certified to test and ABSA certified to repair and perform alterations on pressure vessels as well as perform repairs and modifications on pressure piping.

June 9 saw some of the province’s most skilled bus drivers showcasing their work at the School Bus Roadeo in Medicine Hat.

A total of 60 drivers from across Alberta competed in events such as parallel parking, turning, steering and written exams.

CTA: It’s time for all levels of government across Canada ensure new trucking firms entering the industry are prepared to operate safely while focusing enforcement resources on the small percentage of carriers who appear to have no intention of becoming compliant, says the Canadian Trucking Alliance.

The Alberta Government is moving ahead with expansion of the southwest leg of Anthony Henday Drive in Edmonton

The southwest leg of Edmonton’s ring road was designed for a capacity of 40,000 vehicles per day. Originally, this traffic volume was anticipated to occur in 2020. However, rapid development in southwest Edmonton resulted in capacity being reached in 2009. Today, that portion of the ring road carries approximately 80,000 vehicles per day.

Trucks for Change Network: This Father’s Day, boost team spirit at your workplace by Wearing Plaid For Dad. It’s a great way to combine a fun dress-down day with team-building and a great cause, using a common thread – PLAID!

CTA: Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) published the Gazette II notice for Phase II Heavy-duty Vehicle and Engine Greenhouse Gas Emission Regulations. The objective of the Regulations made Under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA) is to reduce GHG emissions in Canada from new on-road heavy-duty vehicles, engines and trailers by establishing more stringent emission standards to help protect Canadians and the environment.

Trucking HR Canada has released a new driver training toolkit and will hold a supplementary, free webinar on June 13th to educate employers on how to best use the resource in their workplace.

Alberta Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) is seeking information pertaining to a serious incident investigation with respect to the following details:

Press release: Canada’s third Salute to Women Behind the Wheel took place at Truck World on April 21, bringing together 41 female commercial drivers for the celebration. The group included women of all ages, with years of experience ranging from less than one year to more than 40 years. Their combined experience totaled 600 years, proving that while women drivers may be few in number they are not new to trucking.

CVSA: The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) International Roadcheck will take place June 5-7, 2018. Over that 72-hour period, commercial motor vehicle inspectors in jurisdictions throughout North America will conduct inspections of commercial motor vehicles and drivers. This year’s focus is on hours-of-service compliance.

CTA: The Canadian Trucking Alliance recently wrote the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators (CCMTA) and the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s Region V (Canadian jurisdictions), stressing the importance of graduated education for motor carriers and drivers as the trucking industry transitions to an electronic logging device (ELD) mandate and away from paper logbooks in Canada.

CTA: The Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) and its member associations continue to work with governments across Canada to raise the bar for truck driver training by introducing Mandatory Entry Level Training (MELT) for truck drivers. As the Humboldt tragedy brought nation-wide attention to the issue of commercial driver training, the governments in Western Canada have now joined Ontario in taking leadership along with their partner provincial trucking associations.

CTA representatives appeared two weeks ago before the Committee on National Security and Defense on Bill C-45, the Cannabis Act, to discuss the potential impacts legalizations will have on the Canada-US border.

AMTA Carriers Bison Transport, SLH Transport, Canada Cartage, Rosenau Transport, Westcan Bulk Transport, Arrow Transportation Systems and Caron Transportation Systems were seven of the 52 Carriers named to Trucking HR’s Top Fleet Employers Program for 2018.

Hiway Refrigeration Ltd. of Port Coquitlam British Columbia, announced April 13 it had reached an agreement to acquire Eskimo Refrigeration Ltd. – an AMTA member since 1971 – headquartered in Calgary, Alberta.