No. H118/01
For release September 20, 2001

$17.8 MILLION IN FUNDING FOR NATIONAL SAFETY CODE

HALIFAX - Transport Minister David Collenette today announced $17.8 million in funding to assist provinces and territories with implementation of the National Safety Code (NSC) for motor carriers. The Minister made the announcement today in Halifax during a meeting of the Council of Ministers Responsible for Transportation and Highway Safety.

"The National Safety Code is an excellent example of federal, provincial and territorial cooperation to enhance the safety of the travelling public and the competitiveness of the motor carrier industry in North America," said Mr. Collenette. "The Memorandum of Understanding on the National Safety Code endorsed by the Council of Ministers today reaffirms our commitment to achieving greater national harmony in regulations affecting the motor carrier industry in Canada."

The National Safety Code is a comprehensive code of minimum performance standards for the safe operation of commercial vehicles. Developed in 1987 and administered and enforced by the provinces and territories, the NSC encourages trucking safety, promotes efficiency in the motor carrier industry, and harmonizes safety standards. The standards include hours of service, load securement, vehicle maintenance and safety rating.

In addition to today's funding, Transport Canada has contributed $51 million to the provinces and territories to support the NSC. The latest round of funding, to be spent between 2001 and 2004, will be directed towards managing motor carrier operations in accordance with the new NSC safety rating provisions of the Motor Vehicle Transport Act.

"Although domestic traffic has increased by 50 per cent and international traffic has doubled over the past ten years, the collision record of motor carriers has remained relatively stable," added Mr. Collenette. "Transport Canada's continued support of the National Safety Code contributes toward a safe national transportation system."

Funding for this initiative was provided for in the February 2000 budget and is therefore built into the existing financial framework.

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Contact:

Anthony Polci, 
Director of Communications, 
Office of the Minister of Transport, Ottawa,
(613) 991-0700

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BACKGROUNDER
NATIONAL SAFETY CODE

In 1987, the federal, provincial and territorial ministers responsible for transportation agreed to develop and implement a National Safety Code (NSC) to encourage trucking safety, promote efficiency in the motor carrier industry, and achieve consistent safety standards in this area across Canada. The NSC was based upon a consolidation of existing provincial and territorial legislation and regulations, supplemented with new initiatives designed to further enhance safety across the country.

Safety-related NSC standards cover safety ratings, facility audits, driver and carrier profile systems, trip inspection reports, driver hours of service, commercial vehicle maintenance and inspections, and load security. The code's administrative standards cover self-certification for drivers, single-driver licensing, a classified driver licence system, medical standards, knowledge and performance testing, and a driver-examiner training program.

Between 1987 and 2000, the federal government contributed $44 million towards the development and enforcement of NSC safety standards. Federal, provincial and territorial officials developed and agreed upon the allocation of these funds. Federal funding is subject to each province and territory meeting performance targets and information requirements.

In addition, $7 million in funding was approved in 1999-2000 for the upgrade and enhancement of technologically advanced provincial and territorial systems required to capture, integrate and transmit carrier, driver and vehicle data from roadside inspections and facility audits. Once captured, on-road data is forwarded to the carrier’s home jurisdiction for incorporation in the carrier’s safety performance assessment.

The latest round of funding, to be spent between 2001 and 2004, represents a program contribution of $17.8 million. Funds will be directed towards assessing motor carrier safety in accordance with the new NSC safety rating provisions of the Motor Vehicle Transport Act.

The funding for 2001-2004 has been allocated as follows: