TORONTO, Ont. — The Private Motor Truck Council of Canada (PMTC) has decided against endorsing the Ontario Trucking Association’s (OTA) proposal to mandate speed limiters.

The Ontario Ministry of Transportation called upon the PMTC for its views of the proposal in December and according to the council it decided “not to support it without further information.”

“What we believe is lacking in the proposal, is any definitive proof that truck speeding is a major issue in Ontario,” the PMTC explained in a release. “In fact in, the OTA’s own words ‘trucks are the least likely vehicles to be speeding on Ontario’s highways.’ Following a request from the PMTC, the Ministry of Transportation advised that it is unable to quantify the issue of speeding trucks, which could indicate that it may not be a significant issue.”

The Council points out that 2003 statistics show only 20,600 Class A drivers were ticketed for speeding that year compared to 587,000 regular motorists. Furthermore, 60 per cent of Class A drivers fined for speeding were travelling less than 15 km/h over the limit and there was no way to determine how many of them were charged while driving a passenger vehicle at the time.

“We are not cavalier about speeding trucks,” the PMTC insisted. “Of course they represent a danger. But responsible carriers have established speed policies for their fleets and are already monitoring the speeds of their trucks. So if it is the few ‘bad apples’ scenario, perhaps increased enforcement and penalties could resolve the issue. Until there is proof that truck speeding is a significant, out of control issue, we cannot support a regulation that would require speed limiters for all trucks.”

The PMTC did suggest it would support a policy requiring speed limiters for frequent offenders. PMTC chief Bruce Richards said the majority of the members have overwhelmingly supported the Council’s position.