12/22/2011

Some Light at the End of the Tunnel for Senior Truck Drivers

MTO agrees licence renewal system can be less onerous

TORONTO - In a letter to the Ontario Trucking Association, the province’s Minister of Transportation, Bob Chiarelli, says the government agrees “that commercial driver licence renewal can be made less onerous for senior drivers (drivers 65 years of age and older) without compromising safety” and has asked his parliamentary assistant, Vic Dhillon (MPP, Brampton West) to lead a review to determine what amendments to the renewal requirements are needed and a plan to implement them.

OTA and MTO have been discussing this issue for the past few years and the association is optimistic that a mutually agreeable and beneficial solution is attainable in the short-term.David Bradley, OTA’s president said “the minister is sending the signal that the government is willing to make some changes and given the discussions we have had with the ministry to date, we don’t think we are very far apart in terms of what should and can be done.”

“We are eager to work with Mr. Dhillon early in the New Year to help establish the policy,” says Bradley. “We recognize there will be a regulatory process that has to be followed and that implementation will require system changes and the like, but we hope that by this time next year senior truck drivers in Ontario will be subject to a much fairer and less burdensome licence renewal process.”