KING CITY, Ont. — The Private Motor Truck Council of Canada and Zurich awarded a pair of private fleets for their best-in-class safety practices during PMTC’s annual conference in King City yesterday.

The competition is open to all Canadian private carriers. Judging is conducted by an independent panel and follows established criteria with a focus on the company’s overall safety regime and it’s over the road record.

Winning in the Large Fleet category was Maple Leaf Foods, represented by Larry Pachereva, Maple Leaf’s fleet safety and compliance supervisor. The company is coming off of a Most Improved Fleet win in the 2011 competition.

“Maple Leaf Foods is a longstanding and active member of the PMTC, and it is a pleasure to see their efforts toward fleet safety pay off,” PMTC officials said in a release.

Maple Leaf operates 174 tractors, 180 trailers, and 10 straight trucks, with the majority of its operations taking place within a 160 km radius. Its fleet accumulated nearly 12 million kilometers in the past year, up slightly from the previous year.

Taking home top prize in the Medium Fleet category was TMH Logistics/Tona Transport, represented by Conrad Schulz, transportation operations manager, and Paul Richardson, fleet operations supervisor. Tona Transport operates 35 tractors and two straight trucks with most of its activities within 800 kilometers. In the most recent year, they ran just over seven million kilometers. It’s efforts in 2011 paid off with an overall safety violation rate of only 9.7%, “an outstanding achievement,” according to PMTC officials.

“Along with Zurich, we at the PMTC congratulate the management and drivers of these fleets. The effort of everyone involved with these fleets points to their desire to keep road safety foremost in their operations, and their collective efforts pay off. Both 2012 award winners TMH Logistics/TONA Transport and Maple Leaf Foods deserve our congratulations,” said PMTC president, Bruce Richards.

“The support of Zurich for these private fleet safety awards is a tangible sign of their commitment to supporting truck safety, a commitment that has been part of the PMTC’s mandate since our inception in 1977. The process of applying for one of these awards provides a type of checklist for fleet managers to see what the best-in-class fleets are doing to maintain their safety programs.”