Higher Ontario speed limits don’t apply to trucks
If you can’t drive 105, well, you’re out of luck.
The Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (MTO) confirmed to trucknews.com June 26 that higher speed limits of 110 km/h, announced for an additional 938 km of 400-series highways will not apply to commercial truck traffic.
Heavy trucks will continue to be required by law to have their top speed governed at 105 km/h, the MTO confirmed to trucknews.com in an email last week.
In fact, the province introduced legislation late last year that would increase the minimum fine for speed limiter offenses on commercial vehicles from $250 to $1,000.
The increased fine for speed limiter violations was welcomed at the time by the Ontario Trucking Association.
“The Ontario Trucking Association is primarily focused on supporting measures that increase highway safety and strengthen penalties for high-risk offenders and repeat violators of our traffic laws,” OTA chairman Mark Bylsma said when the higher fines were proposed.
“It’s now more important than ever to increase oversight and ensure compliance. We’re particularly encouraged the Bill would increase minimum fines for offences related to enforcement of speed limiters on commercial vehicles. These devices are meant to protect the traveling public from speeding trucks, and we welcome meaningful fines for violating the speed limiter requirement.”
Have your say
This is a moderated forum. Comments will no longer be published unless they are accompanied by a first and last name and a verifiable email address. (Today's Trucking will not publish or share the email address.) Profane language and content deemed to be libelous, racist, or threatening in nature will not be published under any circumstances.
As a person who has worked, operated, instructs, and tests the use of commercial vehicles on our highways, I’m all for regulation of speed. My concern regarding the present system is that our highways are continually blocked by commercial vehicles trying to pass at an incremental speed of 1-2 KM/per hr when a truck is a little slower than the the one in front of him. It’s not uncommon to see all lanes or even passing in the far left lanes of the 400 series highways creating congestion and also dangerous manoeuvres by cars in order to pass.
Since there is so much truck traffic between Toronto and Quebec instead of building a high speed train we should build a highway dedicated for trucks only. Infact build it to Windsor also. They could run 120 at least cars would not be involved in accidents
I had a driver taking a load to Ontario. I was getting speed alerts and he has a speed limited active on his truck. He was getting “pushed” by other truck drivers on the road (tractor/trailer). He even pulled over a couple of time to let the traffic go by after another tractor-trailer tried to pass him on a curve on a double yellow. He said even the police on the road were flying by him (he was doing 105 km/hr). Another trucker told him that he had to speed up and that it was OK to do 110, 115, or 120 km/hr on the highway (posted speed limit is 100 km/hr).