John G Smith

John G. Smith is Newcom Media's vice-president - content and design, and previously served as the editorial director of Today's Trucking, trucknews.com, and Transport Routier. The award-winning journalist began covering the trucking industry in 1995.

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Lessons to Learn: Western provinces review driver training standards preview image Lessons to Learn: Western provinces review driver training standards article image

Lessons to Learn: Western provinces review driver training standards

TORONTO, Ont. -- Sukmander Singh, the owner of Adesh Deol Trucking, revealed little about his driver involved in the Tisdale, Sask. truck-and-bus collision that killed 16. The man he knew through common friends had been licensed for a year. The month working for Singh’s two-truck operation reportedly included about 15 days of additional training. The cause of the April 6 crash that killed so many members of the Humboldt Broncos has yet to be determined. No charges have been laid, although Adesh Deol’s second truck was taken off the road pending an investigation. But the collision – and the driver’s relatively limited experience – has spurred discussions about driver training standards in Canada’s prairie provinces and beyond.
Military Might: Highway Star sees the promise in second careers preview image Military Might: Highway Star sees the promise in second careers article image

Military Might: Highway Star sees the promise in second careers

TORONTO, Ont. -- Doug McGowan submitted no fewer than 101 resumes, but not one fleet had called him back. It just didn’t make any sense. During his time in the military he drove everything from armored vehicles to military pattern trucks, and learned how to work tire chains in punishing environments north of the Arctic Circle. Shouldn’t that count for something? The sign promising jobs for “propane seasonal drivers, Class 5 with air” screamed out like an insult. He submitted his resume and clean abstract to that very business two weeks earlier, and hadn’t heard a thing.  But McGowan went back again. And again. And again. Four times in all. The job that emerged became his first stop in a second career.
Largest Truck World draws massive crowds preview image Largest Truck World draws massive crowds article image

Largest Truck World draws massive crowds

TORONTO, Ont. – Almost 19,600 people attended the largest Truck World trade show in history at Toronto's International Centre from April 19-21. The 14,807 visitors interacted with 4,788 exhibitor representatives. And there was plenty to see in the sold-out venue that included 525 exhibits -- requiring the addition of a fifth hall, and featuring 179,000 sq.-ft. of booth space across nearly 400,000 sq.ft. overall. The event is jointly produced by Newcom Media (the publishers of Today’s Trucking) and Hannover Fairs, a division of DeutscheMesse. The 14,807 visitors interacted with 4,788 exhibitor representatives. And there was plenty to see in the sold-out venue that included 525 exhibits -- requiring the addition of a fifth hall, and featuring 179,000 sq.-ft. of booth space across nearly 400,000 sq.ft. overall.  The event is jointly produced by Newcom Media (the publishers of Today’s Trucking) and Hannover Fairs, a division of DeutscheMesse.
Montreal blitz targets belts, phone use preview image Montreal blitz targets belts, phone use article image

Montreal blitz targets belts, phone use

MONTREAL, Que. – Drivers of heavy vehicles around Montreal were under the watchful eyes of enforcement teams who were riding an unmarked coach on Tuesday, during a blitz run by Controle Routier Quebec with the support of provincial police. The higher vantage point gave the teams a clear look at whether drivers were using cell phones behind the wheel or not wearing seatbelts. Both offences will see steeper penalties in coming weeks. "Most people now use their cell phone on their thighs,” said Marie-Josée Michaud, public relations officer for Contrôle Routier Québec. In a patrol car, that can be difficult to see, but there’s no problem from the higher position in a bus.

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