Every time Travis McDougall enters his transport truck, he wonders if he will arrive home safely.
His growing concerns about road safety, particularly in the northwest of Ontario, led him to create truckers for safer roads with fellow driver Jeff Orr in 2023.
The safety of the roads has been a great concern in the region for years, since the roads of a single lane surrounded by trees, rocks and water are not so indulgent during an incorrect movement behind the steering wheel.
“There is no road or way of changing its direction to avoid a closure of 12 hours,” said McDougall, who lives in Ayr but drives by Canada.
“It really prevents the locals and prevents the economy when these roads close for several hours due to these collisions.”
There were 21 fatal collisions on the roads of the region last year, according to the Provincial Police (OPP) region of northwest Ontario, which resulted in 25 deaths and 213 injuries. Of these, 13 involved tractors-refers.
The defenders and local leaders are asking the provincial government to make a series of changes, and with an election campaign ending on Thursday, bets are higher.
“We have to wait for consequences for bad choices,” McDougall said. “[The] The industry needs to know that application officers are out there. “
Concerns with the license, lack of application
Commercial motorized vehicles (CMV) in Ontario receive training from private truck management schools in the province. To receive licenses, they are subjected to tests through Drivetest, operated by the Serco parent company.
TO Recent research conducted by CBC Market He explored a series of concerns with Sercus, including bribery role and counterfeit documents. A list of responses from Sirco and Provincial Ministries involved It can be found here.
A Filtering Memorandum to the CBC market by an industry source says that the system to test truck drivers in Ontario has been compromised by bribes, counterfeit documents and manipulated tests.
McDougall said the Market The investigation validated the concerns it had for years. He has received copies of the scripts given to the training drivers by truck management schools, which indicates “what they need to say to a driving test examiner to approve the test.”
“You are supposed to enter these exams with knowledge, not because you will memorize the right words,” he said.
Your organization wants a public investigation on Serco and the contract it provides to the province.
Highway 11/17 runs through the city of Nipigon. Mayor Suzanne Kukko sees the impact of collisions in that first -hand corridor and wants to see the CMV tests carried out by officials of the Ministry of Transportation (MTO) instead of private companies,
“They really have no interest in whether these people pass or not, right? They are more objective,” Kukko said about MTO.
Last March, the province opened a new $ 30 million CMV inspection center In the nearby Shuniah. But according to McDougall, it is more common to see the closed than open center.
“We cannot consider that execution officers are enforcing the rules or regulations when they are not there,” he said.
The safer road truckers are asking the center to be open at least 16 hours a day, something that Kukko said he supports.
“It is a great resource for our region and for Nipigon,” he said. “But to be effective, it must be open more than it is.”
Responding to the conditions, recommendations of the working group
She has heard the worries of the experienced plow operators about being penalized for using too much salt, even if the conditions require it, he said.
“I think there should be some flexibility.”
Wendy Landry served as co -president of the Transportation force of northern Ontariowhich delivered 62 recommendations in January 2024 with the aim of improving the safety and transport of roads in the region.
Landry, mayor of Shuniah and president of the Municipal Association of Northwest Ontario (NOMA), said she met with provincial ministers last month on how to adopt more of those recommendations, some of which include:
- Roads 2+1, which are three -lane roads with a central lane that changes direction every two or five kilometers.
- Four -lane roads.
- Improvement of CMV training, including the introduction of simulators to prepare drivers for all climatic conditions.
- Working with the federal government to create more consistent license processes throughout the country.
- Introduction of a graduated license system for CMV controllers.
However, he said, it is also important to consider the support factors that are outside the transport industry, such as hiring more OPP and specialized officers for research, as well as EMS staff who can respond quickly and clean collision scenes.
CBC News asked the candidates in Thunder Bay, Superior North and Thunder Bay, Atikokan what they plan to do to improve road safety. Answers were received from six of the eight candidates.
No matter who wins the Ontario elections, said McDougall, wants road safety to be a priority in the next government mandate.
“We need to send inspectors to the training schools ensuring that they are doing what they are supposed to do,” he said, “and then the true application on our roads, true application; not what we have now.”
