As previously reported by OTA, the Ministry of Transportation committed in 2014 to determine ways in which to bring trucks classified as road building machines (hydrovac trucks, water tank trucks, concrete pumpers, mobile cranes and other utility and heavy application trucks) into compliance with all of the Highway Traffic Act (HTA) requirements followed by the rest of the trucking industry, including requirements to pay for licence plates.
This past Wednesday, MTO posted its proposals for 45 -day comment, after which will allow the government to move forward to address this longstanding issue beginning in the 2017-2018 timeframe.
If implemented, the MTO proposals call for the following:
- Provide that certain vehicles in future be considered commercial motor vehicles (and not road-building machines), including the following: mobile cranes built for highway use and vehicles constructed on a truck chassis or truck-type chassis;
- That these vehicles be required to obtain licence plates at full cost based on their registered weight and be operated by drivers holding the appropriate licence class and endorsements;
- That these vehicles be subject to the same roadside, daily and annual safety inspection requirements specified in the HTA for other heavy trucks;
- After 5 years, the operators of most vehicles come full into compliance with the Truck Driver Hours of Service Regulations;
- Special permitting of required vehicles to immediately comply with gross and axle vehicle weight rating specified by the vehicle’s manufacturer followed by further sunset dates by which full HTA weights and dimensions compliance is required.
OTA members with questions can email – operations&safety@ontruck.org