TORONTO, Ont. — Evan MacKinnon, CEO of MacKinnon Transport Inc., Guelph, ON, was appointed chairman of the Canadian Trucking Alliance at the CTA annual general meeting, held this week.

MacKinnon, who has served on the CTA board for over 10 years, and the executive for eight years says that the transformation of his company, from a small, specialized domestic regional carrier to an award-winning, top 100, transborder carrier, parallels the transformation of CTA in recent years.

"Our industry has changed over the past 15 years; to compete and succeed carriers have had to adapt, and so has CTA," says MacKinnon.

MacKinnon has played a pivotal role in the re-structuring and revitalization of CTA. He credits his rise to a leadership role within CTA to the relationships with carriers and provincial association staff from across the country over the years.

"The contacts and friendships I have made because of CTA have been invaluable to my business and to me personally. I know that in assuming the chairmanship I have the support of carriers and the provincial trucking associations from across the country" says MacKinnon.

During his term, MacKinnon would like to see more carriers become involved in CTA, either directly, or through their provincial association.

"As effective as CTA and the provincial associations are, there are enormous challenges that confront the trucking industry which demand a greater resource allocation. There can be no free-riders; we need everyone to contribute to the work of the associations," says Mackinnon.