A private members’ bill calling for improved road safety in Northern Ontario doesn’t go far enough, according to the Ontario Trucking Association (OTA).

The bill tabled by NDP members called for enhanced truck safety in the north, something OTA says current Transport Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria is already calling for.

“The bill announced this week by the NDP only calls for 12-hour presence [at the Thunder Bay scale], which will do little-to-nothing to stop the underbelly of our industry from continuing to put fellow road users at risk everyday along the Trans-Canada Highway, which is the key link to Canada’s east-west trade network,” said OTA president and CEO Stephen Laskowski. 

Sarkaria has told OTA he supports 24/7 operation of enforcement scales throughout Ontario, particularly at the Thunder Bay location.

The bill also calls for improved snow removal and maintenance on Hwys. 11 and 17, and improvements to commercial driving training. Sarkaria has written to federal transport minister Chrystia Freeland suggesting the highways are of national interest.

He urged that the federal and provincial governments make this highway a joint priority and establish a cost sharing agreement in the national interest to ensure it is maintained and cleared in the winter to the same standards as 400-series highways, OTA pointed out in a release.

“The required focus on truck safety, training standards and the infrastructure prioritization of 11/17 are extremely important to OTA and the Ontario trucking industry. Success will require provincial leadership and federal cooperation,” said Laskowski.