Ontario to Introduce Legislation on Speed Limiters

The Ontario government will introduce legislation this fall to adopt a proposal put forward by the Ontario Trucking Association almost two years ago to make 65-mph speed limiters on trucks mandatory, OTA said last week.

The limiters will be used on virtually all tractor-trailer units that operate into, out of and within Ontario so that trucks will not be able to exceed 105 kilometers per hour, about 65 mph.

Ontario is the first jurisdiction in North America to formally announce its commitment to legislate such a requirement, OTA said. The plan has been tied to environmental and climate-change actions in Canada. (Click here for previous coverage.)

Quebec has proposed the measure as part of its climate change plan and other trucking associations throughout North America are endorsing speed-limiter proposals consistent with OTA’s, and now the Ontario government’s policy, the group said.

A number of jurisdictions, including the US Department of Transport and Transport Canada are studying the issue and groups like OTA are hopeful that now that Ontario is officially on board, others will follow and eventually a North American standard can be achieved.

“This is a great step forward for highway safety and for the environment,” OTA President David Bradley said in a statement.

In the United States, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is reviewing petitions backed by American Trucking Associations that would require speed limiters set at 68 mph.

(Click here for previous coverage.)