PARADISE ISLAND, The Bahamas — Ray Haight, executive director of MacKinnon Transport, has been elected as the 2008-2009 chairman of the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA). The swearing-in ceremony took place March 4, during the association’s Annual Convention at The Atlantis Resort in The Bahamas.

Haight, the founder of Southwestern Express, was first introduced to MacKinnon Transport, Ltd. in 1990, when an accounting firm introduced him to one of the company’s principals. Haight merged his company with MacKinnon’s, and by 2000, the two companies had become MacKinnon Transport, Inc.

Haight first got involved with the Truckload Carriers Association in 1990. He has volunteered his time to the board of directors and the executive, finance, and recruitment and retention committees. He was the chairman of the recruitment and retention committee in 2004 and has served as an officer of TCA since 2006.

In December 2002, he was elected chair of the Professional Truck Driver Institute (PTDI), a position he would hold for the next six years. Under his leadership, PTDI became a completely revitalized organization, one that was more visible to the government, to the press, and to the trucking industry in general. He guided the organization to establish a Standards Review Committee, create a better brand, devise a steady source of income, and generally re-examine itself and all of its operating practices. During his tenure, he oversaw the creation of an Apprenticeship program in Canada that could potentially turn into a pilot program for the entire trucking industry. For his dedication and hard work, PTDI presented Haight with the Lee J. Crittenden Memorial Award on March 3 during TCA’s Annual Convention. For the full story click

During his year as TCA chairman, Haight plans to increase TCA’s presence in the educational arena. He hopes to create a new learning centre that will sponsor studies in areas such as operations, safety, insurance claims management, transportation-related accounting, HR practices and administrative structure that trucking companies can use to position themselves for success. He also plans to investigate distance-based learning as a way for TCA members to minimize time out of the office while still participating in quality training programs. In forecasting his year in office, Haight speculates that issues such as privatization and tolling of the nation’s highways, hours of service, entry-level driver training, new rules affecting the issuance of commercial driver’s licenses, electronic on-board recorders, speed limiters, fuel surcharges, and the US-Mexico Cross-Border Demonstration Project will be just a few of the topics that TCA will examine and educate its membership about.