OTA asks Queen's Park for new offences and police powers to clear highway blockades
In its submission to Ontario's consultation on barrier-free access to key infrastructure, the association says blockades trap drivers in their cabs and burn through their legal hours.
The Ontario Trucking Association wants the province to give police clear new powers to stop and clear intentional blockades of highways, bridges and other critical infrastructure.
In a submission released Nov. 9 to the Government of Ontario's public consultation on Facilitating Barrier-free Access to Key Economic and Community Infrastructure, OTA said it strongly endorses targeted legislated prohibitions, expanded police authorities and new provincial offences to deter and resolve deliberate disruptions of roads and other economic infrastructure.
OTA said trucking moves more than two-thirds of all surface freight in Ontario, and that unlawful obstructions of highways, bridges and municipal connecting roads create immediate safety hazards, disrupt just-in-time manufacturing supply chains and hurt the province's reputation as a reliable trade partner.
The hours-of-service problem
The association put the cost to drivers at the centre of its case. "Unlawful road blockades turn routine deliveries into regulatory compliance and operational crises for professional drivers and carriers whose trucks are trapped in gridlock through no fault of their own," said Geoff Wood, OTA's senior vice-president of policy.
Wood said obstructions force drivers to exhaust their legally mandated hours-of-service limits, cut them off from safe rest facilities and leave them trapped in their cabs, with delays that carry over into later schedules. He added that blockages also stop emergency vehicles and heavy towing equipment from reaching collisions elsewhere in the province.
OTA president and CEO Stephen Laskowski said the association supports the right of Ontarians to protest peacefully and lawfully, "but it is unacceptable when it is used as an economic weapon which affects critical public transportation infrastructure."
What OTA wants built into the law
Before any rules are written, OTA is asking the province to:
- Cover municipal roads. Make clear that the new provincial enforcement powers apply to municipal roads and city arteries that feed major provincial highways.
- Agree a plan with Ottawa in advance. Open formal talks with the federal government on a binding cooperation plan so cross-border assets can be secured without jurisdictional delays.
- Map the choke points with industry. Consult the transport sector to define and protect critical logistics points, including truck inspection stations, border plazas, railheads, ports, airports, fuel infrastructure and major retail distribution centres.
OTA said it will work with the Ministry of Transportation and the Ministry of the Solicitor General as the proposal moves forward. The full submission summary is on the Ontario Trucking Association website.