MONCTON, N.B. – GW Driver Training has changed its name to Collège

Trans-Canada College, the first step in a major new initiative to help

address the severe truck driver shortage crisis in New Brunswick.

The company was acquired by Tony and Susan Reeder in 2009 and maintains a

head office in Riverview along with a hands-on training facility in the

Scoudouc Industrial Park.

“This announcement of our new name coincides with the Atlantic Provinces

Trucking Association’s (APTA) annual conference,” Mr. Reeder said. “The APTA

recently formed a Driver Shortage Blue Ribbon Task Force to address the

driver shortage. We believe we can play a prominent role in supplying

much-needed driver resources into the system. The truck transportation

industry is vital to Greater Moncton and New Brunswick’s economy, with some

of the region’s largest trucking companies located here.”

“We will be modernizing and upgrading our facilities and services in order

to meet the growing needs of New Brunswick’s trucking industry,” Mr. Reeder

said. “There are many opportunities for long-term, well-paid trucking jobs

right here at home. We need to ramp up our efforts to ensure our very

important trucking industry has the workforce it needs to meet the needs of

the people and businesses it serves. There’s no need to commute to Western

Canada and leave your family for weeks or months at a time. There are jobs

right here.”

Trans-Canada College also announced today that Brian Baxter, former

president and CEO of Oulton Career College, past president of the New

Brunswick Association of Career Colleges and current co-chair of the

University of New Brunswick’s board of governors, has agreed to chair its

new advisory board and lead the group during the rebranded company’s first

year. The advisory board’s role will be to help guide Trans-Canada College

in its initiatives aimed at meeting the needs of local carriers, employers

and APTA members.

“We want to ensure that the best practices of private post-secondary

education are utilized,” Mr. Reeder said. “Brian Baxter’s deep knowledge of

post-secondary education in a private-sector setting is an immense asset in

our commitment and determination to do just that.”

“Trans-Canada College must keep pace with industry’s changing needs,” Brian

Baxter said. “As a key partner in supplying the industry with fully trained

human resources, we will help to build relationships and collaboration among

key industry stakeholders. This will allow us to ensure that we’re providing

the best possible skills development for our vitally important trucking

industry.”

“There are real jobs out there right now that are going unfilled,” Mr.

Baxter says. “We need to do a better job at recruiting students, training

them and matching them with employers.”

According to the Conference Board of Canada, it is anticipated that 24,700

unfilled truck driver positions will exist across Canada by 2020 if current

trends are not reversed.