MILTON, Ont. — On the second day of physical speed limiter enforcement in Ontario, there weren’t any more ‘elephant races’ than usual among trucks in the right lanes on the busiest stretch of Highway 401; little evidence of increased four-wheeler road rage; and no identifiable uptick in rear-end car-truck collisions.

Contrary to some prophecies, the first week that fines were issued to truckers whose vehicles are not governed at 105 km/h was relatively incident free — although, clearly, there’s still a handful of significant enforcement issues that needs to be ironed out by policy makers.

For one thing — as a todaystrucking.com reporter first learned while spending last Thursday afternoon with a group of accommodating and friendly truck inspectors at the Trafalgar scale in Milton, Ont. — it appears that some truckers may still be able to travel faster than 105 km/h for the time being, even if their maximum engine speed is properly programmed.

Here’s why: The Ontario Ministry of Transport opted for simple, EZ-Tap read-only devices (at least during the infancy of the rule), which are limited to reading and displaying only a handful of engine parameters, including engine speed, the cruise control setting, and horsepower rating.

However, as the law acknowledges, in order to physically limit a truck’s speed at 105 km/h, several other calibrations beyond engine speed must also be set in accordance to specific targets, such as the rolling radius of the tires, transmission and gear ratios, drive axle differential and other parameters the current ecm readers are unable to scan. 

The Ez-Tap reader spits out engine speed
settings wirelessly in a matter of seconds.
But does it do enough to ensure full compliance?

So, depending on those calibrations — altered either erroneously, as an attempt to tamper, or innocently as a way to get better fuel economy — a truck can physically reach road speeds above 105 km/h and the current EZ Tap reader could still determine the truck is technically compliant.

MTO senior enforcement policy adviser Mike Dodds acknowledged much of this, but says these ecm readers aren’t necessarily "the be all and end all" solution. He hints that in time more advanced readers will be more widely available.

(Incidentally, todaystrucking.com also learned that not every weigh scale in the province will be equipped with an ecm reader off the bat, although — likely for the same reasons speed traps aren’t previously announced — MTO staff declined to say how many are currently deployed).

Besides, says Dodds, if it’s suspected the speed limiter system has been "tampered" with, officers have the authority to detain the vehicle for a more comprehensive inspection using advanced OEM software.

Plus, reminds inspector Jason Leeman, OPP officers still have the power to fine drivers under the speed limiter rule without hooking up an ecm reader if the truck is clocked on the highway going over 115 km/h. This so-called "deeming provision" allows police to legally assume that a vehicle moving at that speed does not have a speed limiter set.

Leeman — a mild-mannered truck cop with an obvious respect for the truckers he deals with daily — is the inspector trained to check for speed limiters at the Trafalgar facility. Mostly, he’s writing tickets to the companies that own the vehicles, directing non owner-op drivers to pass the whopping $390 fine to their boss.

In these first 36 hours since the rule took effect, Leeman says he’s checked between 30 and 40 trucks for speed limiters. About 30 percent, he says, have been in violation — the majority being owner-ops or delivery drivers of small private fleets.

Seemingly, it should be noted, there’s an awareness gap between the typical smallish, private fleet driver and your average over-the-road driver or owner-operator. 

MTO inspector Jason Leeman expects
more than a couple court challenges,
although the fact that CVOR records aren’t
affected may keep the lid on appeals.

One delivery driver — whose straight job was escorted into the MTO yard by an OPP officer who paced him doing over 105 km/h — seemed genuinely oblivious that the rule took affect on July 1. While he says he "may have heard rumblings," over the last few months, he says he hasn’t paid close attention to the enforcement schedule. The same, obviously, goes for his bosses back at the office in Woodbridge, Ont.

One veteran owner-op who welcomes speed limiters is Cecil Burry. He had his Detroit Diesel programmed just over a month ago and can’t say his life has changed much at all.

He’s also a heavy-hauler pulling precast concrete and reports no significant degradation in towing power — although he admits he doesn’t travel along many steep grades. "I could see where you might have a problem on some steep hills because sometimes you need that extra speed to get over a hill and not hold up traffic."

That said, he thinks mandatory limiters are a good idea and, generally, he hasn’t witnessed any more tailgating than usual or frustration directed at slower truckers from four-wheelers as some detractors have been predicting.

As far as the controversy surrounding the rule goes, Leeman says there hasn’t been any fireworks at his yard. "About half of the trucks already had it before (July 1). Basically, the guys that have it don’t have a problem with it and the guys that don’t, think they shouldn’t need to have one," he says. "Then there’s a handful of others who come in that meant to get it done, but have been slow to do so. I’m sure they will now."

Still, that doesn’t mean that some non-compliant drivers haven’t tried to plead ignorant. One guy, Leeman alleges, unscrewed the access point  and pushed the port up into his dashboard so it could not be reached by the ecm reader. Then, he threw his hands up and blamed the mechanic. In case anyone is thinking it, be warned:

"It only makes our job easier," says Leeman. "We don’t even have to spend time plugging (the reader) in. We can still fine you for not being able to provide access to an ecm port."

That’s one loophole you can’t get away with.