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CHANGING OF THE GUARD: The turn of the century saw a shift from horsepower to motorpower.1899 - First commercial truck built in Canada is ordered by Toronto's Still Motor Company. 1904 - Ontario requires its first licences.1919 - Pneumatic tires begin to appear on trucks.1923 - Air brakes unveiled by Westinghouse.1927 - Truck regulation begins in Ontario.1932 - British Leyland brings diesel power to Canada.1941 - Trucking deemed "essential to the successful prosecution of the war" in response to the first driver's shortage.1945 - Detergent oils and two-way radios come to trucks.1950 - Nation's first mass railway strike in August proves that trucks can handle long hauls, breaking new ground for the industry.1962 - The CB comes to Canada, and Trans-Canada highway opens.1970 - The federal government introduces safety standards.1980 - The U.S. industry deregulates, and an oil crisis pushes the engine focus to fuel-efficiency.1981 - Truck News is born.1982 - The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance develops common out-of-service standards that will become the benchmark for mechanical fitness.1985 - Detroit Diesel introduces electronic engines with the Detroit Diesel Electronic Control.1987 The Motor Vehicle Transport Act is passed, as a first step in Canada's deregulation of its trucking industry. The federal government also calls for the use of logbooks.1989 - Canada-U.S. Free Trade deal is signed, and cross-border traffic begins to grow.1990 - Thousands of truckers block borders to protest working conditions, and regulations from free trade to deregulation..1994 - The North American Free Trade Agreement signed.1996 - Drug testing comes to cross-border fleets, and Canada's trucking industry becomes top employer of Canadian men.

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Truck News is Canada's leading trucking newspaper - news and information for trucking companies, owner/operators, truck drivers and logistics professionals working in the Canadian trucking industry.


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