A passionate champion of the trucking industry, John Stollery, is this year’s recipient of the prestigious OTA/ Trailmobile Service to Industry Award.

Currently chairman of Process Capital Corporation, he is best known for his time as CEO of TNT North America, TNT Canada and TST Solutions (which he and his management team purchased in the late 1990s).

During his time at the helm of some of Canada’s largest trucking operations, Stollery served as chairman of the Canadian Trucking Alliance, treasurer and vice-chairman of the Ontario Trucking Association. He also served as a board member of the Canadian Tariff Committee of the Freight Carriers Association of Canada. In 1996 he was awarded the ‘Transportation Person of the Year for Ontario.’

Stollery is an outspoken proponent of highway safety and was a major force behind the Target ’97 Government-Industry Task Force on Truck Safety. He was instrumental in revitalizing the national trucking lobby group that is now the Canadian Trucking Alliance.

“John Stollery is a tour de force in the trucking industry,” says David Bradley, president of OTA. “He is truly one of the greatest leaders and visionaries that this industry has produced. He has raised the bar in terms of how the industry views itself and how it is perceived by others.”

Commercial insurance rates are going up in Manitoba

Manitoba truckers can expect to shell out more money for insurance in Manitoba next year, as Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) has confirmed a rate hike.

The average commercial vehicle policy will run $392, up from $354 last year.

MPI claims the rise in commercial vehicle rates will go up to even out the share of the load.

According to MPI spokesman, John Douglas, passenger vehicle drivers have been subsidizing other categories for years.

Proposed route could eliminate need for ferries

A British Columbia developer is pushing for a freeway linking the mountain town of Whistler with the Sunshine Coast and Vancouver Island.

Jim McLean, president of British Pacific Properties in West Vancouver, has penned a proposed four-lane route that would run from Squamish to Sechelt and then along the coast through Earl’s Cove, Powell River, Cortes Bay and across Sutil Channel before hooking up with existing roadways at the northern end of Vancouver Island.

The catch is, McLean is proposing that tolls be used to pay for the project. But he insists the highway would consist of a series of bridges that could eliminate the need for ferries running from Horseshoe Bay.

He also contends the proposed route would alleviate traffic congestion on the Sea-to-Sky Highway and Lions Gate Bridge.

McLean hopes that with public support, the first phase of the project can be completed by 2010, with completion of the project slated for 2020. This is not a new idea, however. McLean has been toying with the plan for more than 20 years.

Trimac launches e-commerce order entry and fulfilment service

Calgary-headquartered Trimac Transportation has announced that Inland Cement has integrated its systems with the motor carrier’s new e-business network to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of order entry and fulfillment.

The e-commerce network coordinates Inland Cement’s orders from across all the prairie provinces into one central database. This allows for centralized coordination for the movement of all bulk shipments of cement.

Inland Cement has integrated its order entry system with Trimac’s dispatch system over telecommunications facilities using Internet protocols. This is a groundbreaking initiative for the cement industry and for bulk truck transportation that has increased the speed and accuracy of order entry and reduced order management costs, according to Trimac. The interface has been operating successfully during the busiest part of Inland Cement’s year.

Trimac is one of the first companies in the bulk truck industry in North America to have implemented an e-business network for linking its systems with the Enterprise Resource Planning systems of its customers for real time order entry and fulfillment transactions over the Internet.