TORONTO, (Feb. 23, 2005) — A proposed bill that would expand a truck drivers’ pre-trip checklist will make it easier for truckers to identify mechanical problems and equipment defects, says an Ontario Ministry of Transportation official.

As Today’s Trucking reported yesterday, the Transit and Road Safety Bill would implement a new National Safety Code Standard that hikes a truck operators’ required pre-trip inspection checklist from 23 to 70 items.

“In most cases, the driver is the person who conducts this inspection, and often at locations away from their home terminal,” Glenda Prudom, team leader of the MTO’s Carrier Safety Enforcement Branch, told Today’s Trucking this morning. “In these situations, it’s not possible for the driver to actually see and inspect all the components of some vehicle systems — for example, all the components of the braking system.”

Therefore, says Prudom, the new rules will improve the inspection process by clarifying and detailing the specific defects within vehicle systems that a driver is expected to look for and inspect. “This list includes over 70 specific defects that a driver is expected to look for,” she says.

A more detailed list of the 70 checklist items would be made available if the bill is approved by Cabinet, which may also make regulatory changes to the proposals.

A revision of the regulatory wording is currently being undertaken as part of a national review of the National Safety Code Standard through Transport Canada’s regulatory body, the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators.