In a letter received by the Manitoba Trucking Association yesterday and shared with the Canadian Trucking Alliance, the province of Manitoba is confirming their new requirement for trucks to display their National Safety Code (NSC#) number will apply to out of province trucks that operate into and through Manitoba.
The letter also goes on to state the following:
Out-of-province carriers are not exempt from this requirement when travelling in Manitoba. Out-of-province carriers are required to mark their vehicles with their NSC, or equivalent number issued in their jurisdiction (i.e. CVOR or NIR), when traveling in Manitoba. This new requirement for regulated vehicles does not come into force until July 1, 2025, to allow motor carriers time to change their vehicle markings.
Manitoba’s regulated vehicle operator identification requirements are:
- A distinctive mark or graphic that readily identifies the registered operator placed in a conspicuous place on each lateral side of the vehicle.
- The NSC number of the registered operator placed in a conspicuous place on each lateral side of the vehicle.
- Each letter or figure must be a minimum of 5 cm tall and 5 cm wide and must contrast with the background it is placed on.
- The regulated vehicle identification requirements apply to power units (i.e. trucks or truck tractors), not to semi-trailers.
For additional details from the province of Manitoba, please click here
Manitoba’s efforts are part of a larger initiative undertaken by the Council of Ministers Responsible for Transportation and Highway Safety and the Canadian Council of Transport Administrators (CCMTA) to address items related to Carrier Safety Fitness Certificates.
The issue of Carrier Safety Fitness Certificates and the provincial/territorial truck safety regimes has also been an item flagged as an inter-provincial trade barrier by the Canadian Trucking Alliance and the need for more co-ordinated oversight, accountability and enforcement to address the underground economy and abuse of carrier safety regimes.
Having a requirement to display the NSC number will assist roadside enforcement officials in identifying the carrier they are dealing with. CTA supported this concept at the outset of the Ministers and CCMTA Safety Fitness process along with a host of other precision enhancements that can be addressed by provincial and territorial officials in the short, medium and long term to bring further accountability and oversight to trucking across the country.
The NSC# becomes an additional tool for roadside enforcement officials to identify non-compliant carriers who mis-use rental or lease agreements, fictious owner-operator agreements, or questionable broker practices to mask the carrier who is actually operating the vehicle.
CTA and the provincial associations will continue to work with the Council of Ministers and CCMTA as their process continues with the review of National Safety Code Standards 7, 14 & 15.