Heavy Duty Distributor Council under new management

OTTAWA, Ont. -- The Heavy Duty Distributor Council of Canada (HDDC) has announced it will now be managed by the Automotive Industries Association of Canada (AIA).

The agreement took effect July 1. The organization says it shares many synergies with AIA Canada, and engages in common initiatives such as government relations, industry outreach, market research, membership development and the hosting of networking events.

Under the new arrangement, the HDDC board says members will be managed by a group with experience in building a strong voice with government. The group also said it will be building a new business plan around adding member value.

“With HDDC’s potential for growth we are looking forward to working with AIA to fulfill our members’ needs and drive the Council into the next phase of our evolution,” announced Ian Johnston, president of HDDC. “AIA will be entering into this relationship with a strong understanding of the non-profit sector and an understanding of our industry but will allow the HDDC to retain our own Heavy Duty independent identity while utilizing all the synergies the AIA has to offer.”

More information on the groups is available at www.hddc.ca or www.aiacanada.com.

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Heavy rescue tow truck drivers go through 'hell' on new TV series

TORONTO, Ont. -- The treacherous kilometres of B.C.’s Coquihalla Highway will be getting their close-up starting next month when the Discover Channel premieres its new “Highway Thru Hell” TV series.

The new show follows the team of heavy rescue tow truck drivers at Jamie Davis Heavy Rescue as they fight to keep open the 100-kilometre stretch of highway running through B.C.’s Cascade Mountains – touted as one of the most inhospitable trucking routes in North America.

The series premiere, titled “Death on the Coq,” features Jamie Davis Heavy Rescue’s “A” team, Adam Gazzola and Kevin Ritchie, spending a busy morning clearing spun-out semis off the road when word comes that a multi vehicle pile-up has closed down both northbound lanes. While Gazzola scrambles to get the highway open, Davis tries to free a semi from a steep, icy off-ramp. By sundown the crew is exhausted, but the Coq isn’t done with them yet. At 3 a.m., a five-semi wreck at the top of the mountain sends Davis and his 16-year-old son Brandon fighting their way through the traffic backup. This is Brandon’s first night wreck – and the hard reality of heavy rescue towing is driven home when he discovers a driver under one of the trucks, dead.

In addition to the men of Jamie Davis Heavy Rescue, the show’s producers are calling the team’s vehicles the “undisputed co-stars” of “Highway Thru Hell.” One such vehicle, Rescue 52, features a fixed 30-tonne crane, and two powerful winches which extends the reach of the truck for hundreds of metres. “It would take eight standard tow trucks to match the capacity of this single heavy wreck mover – a vital part of the rescue arsenal when a jack-knifed rig is dangling from a 120-metre cliff,” said a recent release from the show.

The original eight-part Canadian series is produced by Vancouver’s Great Pacific TV and will premiere Sept. 4 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on the Discovery Channel.

For more information, visit www.discoverychannel.ca or follow @DiscoveryCanada and @HwyThruHell on Twitter.

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MP calls for mandatory side guards on heavy trucks following cyclist's death

TORONTO, Ont. -- New Democrat MP Olivia Chow is renewing calls for mandatory side guards on trucks after a cyclist was killed in Toronto.

In a letter to federal Transport Minister Denis Lebel, Chow wrote: "Every year, numerous cyclists and pedestrians are victims in often-fatal collisions with heavy trucks. The survival rate could easily and significantly be improved by fitting trucks across the country with side guards, which would prevent vulnerable road users from being trapped in the space between a truck's wheels."

She cited stats indicating 20% of bicycle fatalities in Canada involve large trucks and in urban areas it's as high as 40%. Chow said Transport Canada first examined the feasibility of mandating side guards on heavy trucks in 1998, however no action was taken.

Chow proposed a bill in 2006 that would mandate the use of side guards and in 2010, she introduced a Private Member's Bill which would require their use. Chow said her calls for side guard legislation was ignored because of fears over "decreased competitiveness for Canadian trucking companies."

She noted Europe mandated the use of side guards in 1989.

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National Heavy Vehicle Regulator in Australia

Goodaye all. For years in Australia we have looked at your roads and the respect you mostly get from the public along with the ability to have a decent size sleeper, with some admiration. But it would seem we may be able to take a leap ahead of you with one National Regulator for trucking in Australia. Up till now we have had one for each state and then of course had to deal with the Police Force in each state, then the Dangerous Goods Codes (which are now national but were state controlled) and then Workcover, our health and safety government departments which are currently state based, but due to go national soon. It has been less than perfect.

To be fair we have far fewer states than you and I would imagine many of you would dream of one set of rules instead of 52, but we have been asking for one set of rules for years and this is the biggest and most likely chance we may ever get. A line on a map does not make any difference to the truck or the load, but it makes a big difference to the driver in being able to comply with all the rules laid down by those who do not have to live by them.

It has been estimated that one set of rules for trucking (and this is to be done for shipping and railways as well) will save billions in costs to transport and therefore to our customers. This will reduce costs for those who live outside our capital cities and improve productivity. It is due to start in 2013, a big ask and there were over 300 differences in the current regs, some minor, some major, but the most important issue is, will we get just another level of government intervention that will increase costs, red tape and penalties, or will we actually get some common sense and have one set of rules for all?

We all ready have the west with more flexible vehicle size and hours regimes that they believe work well and due to the large distances, are safe and suitable for the task and they do not want to come backwards to the eastern states laws. Nothing is guaranteed and there is a long way to go, but just maybe, you could follow us for once. I will try and keep you updated. Safe Travelling, Rod Hannifey.

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