OTTAWA – – Never mind that the Federal budget introduced this week held precious little for truckers.

Whatever it might have offered is completely academic anyway, because the opposition won’t support the budget and we’ll probably be facing an election real soon. That’s the gist of the official budget response from the Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) boss David Bradley.

In the past few years, the CTA has been putting forth pre-budget pitches to the Feds in the hopes of influencing the government. Recently, the CTA has zeroed in on touting investment in aftermarket technologies and alternative fuels.

The name of the CTA’s game: Reducing GHGs and improving the efficiency of big trucks.

This past Tuesday’s budget (as lame duck as it was) allocated $48 million to "develop transportation sector regulations and next generation clean transportation initiatives."

According to the CTA, neither the bureaucrats nor political staffers in the relevant departments could shed any light on whether or how this money might be used.

Also, the CTA stated, the budget contained an equally vague announcement of an additional $252 million "to support regulatory activities to address climate change and air quality."

"Perhaps there is something here to build upon, perhaps not," says David Bradley, CEO of the trucking alliance. "It’s all academic for the time being."

CTA was disappointed that once again there was no movement on capital cost allowance (CCA) rates for tractors and no mention of the Conservative’s 2008 election promise to cut the excise tax on diesel fuel by 50%.

For what it’s worth, the budget did include $228 million over three years to fund repairs and maintenance of the Jacques Cartier and Champlain Bridges in Montreal.

Another $150 million was allocated to the construction of an all-season road between Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk. The government also said it would legislate to make permanent the $2 billion per year provided to municipalities for infrastructure.

The finance minister announced that the plan was to return to a balanced budget by 2015-16 at the latest. In an effort to reduce government spending the budget highlighted the results of a strategic review of departments to achieve cost savings.

The department expected to achieve the highest dollar savings is Human Resource and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC), which is expected to reduce spending by $495 million between 2011 and 2014. This equates to 48 percent of total projected government savings.

Other budget measures of potential interest to some motor carriers:

* The scheduled reductions in corporate income taxes will
go ahead as previously announced;

* Work sharing agreements will be extended by up to
sixteen weeks and a consultation process on EI rate setting mechanisms
will be undertaken;

* It is projected that spending on Marine Atlantic will be
cut by $5.4 million between now and 2014.

Finally, the government said it proposes to amend to Canadian Human Rights Act and the Canada Labor Code to prohibit federally regulated employers from setting a mandatory retirement age unless there is a bona fide occupational requirement.