The Standing Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forestry released its new report this week titled Made in Canada: Growing Canada’s value-added food sector, which highlighted the central role trucking plays in the agriculture and food sector.

CTA appeared before the committee in the fall to raise awareness on these issues and the committee subsequently made several trucking-related recommendations to the Government of Canada:

• The Committee recommends the Government of Canada work with the provincial and territorial governments to maintain and expand an efficient road network throughout the country by specifically expediting the timelines for twinning Alberta’s Highway 40 and Quebec’s Highway 185 from Saint-Antonin to Saint-Louis-du-Ha! Ha! to reduce transportation costs through the use of Long Combination Vehicles to and from the Atlantic Provinces.
• The Committee recommends the Government of Canada work with provinces/territories to harmonize regulations for the trucking industry in order to minimize delays for trucks moving from one province to another.
• The Committee recommends the Government of Canada modernize the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Canada Border Services Agency inspection and registration systems in order to reduce processing times for trucks crossing the border with the United States.

As the report notes, in some instances there is a patchwork of provincial/territorial regulations that can create barriers for the trucking industry. Key recommendation for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) aimed at speeding up processing times for trucks crossing the border with the United States are also captured in the report.

Expansion Highway 185 from Saint-Antonin to Saint-Louis-du-Ha! Ha!, Alberta Highway 40, along with improvements to border infrastructure were also part of CTA’s 2018-2019 infrastructure priority list which was provided to the committee for consideration.

“CTA is pleased to see the Committee recognize the central role trucking plays in the economy and welcomes the recommendations made in the final report,” says CTA president Stephen Laskowski. “Going forward, CTA would welcome an opportunity to work with the Government of Canada to look at implementing the recommendations the Committee has made.”

For a copy of the Standing Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forestry’s new report, click here.

CTA’s 2019-2020 Infrastructure Priorities list, developed in partnership with the Provincial associations, will be released shortly.