TruckNewsTalk

The Enforcement Province There seems to be a lot of handwringing and anger about the scourge of bad poorly trained and sometimes fake licensed truck drivers on our highways…and the suggestions and strategies to fix the problems. There have been, as usual, plenty of disagreements about what needs to be done to make our highways safer. The one seemingly logical simple solution that obviously evades us is… ENFORCEMENT. Enforcing minimum training standards and enforcing verifiable testing and licensing. It's a bigger problem in Ontario than just about anywhere…but there is one province where it's not nearly as huge an issue. I talked to my friend Benoit Therrien about how Quebec's system works to make highways safer. Benoit is a 20-year veteran driver and the owner and main host of the hugely popular Truck Stop Quebec radio station, on air and on line 24 hours a day. Listen and comment.

Slightly Revised Trucking journalist Jim Park and podcast creator Stan Campbell will discuss the proposed Red Seal idea for truck drivers on this TruckNewsTalk podcast. Anything that cleans up the crooked schools and suspect testing and licensing would be a move in the right direction. However, other ideas have been tried and failed. Are there options? We have a lot of questions. In addition, Stan has a crazy idea he thinks would solve the bad schools and suspicious licensing problems forever. It's sure to get dismissed by just about everybody. Let's just say...control is hard to surrender. We invite you to please comment. We will pass on your comments and suggestions. Send email messages to stancampbell@outlook.com.

Safety Sam Lately there have been far too many stories about crooked driving schools and unsafe drivers on our road. In the big move lately to rid the trucking industry of quickie budget schools, we sometimes forget that Canada is a long list of excellent driving schools from coast to coast. Schools that can almost guarantee a good career with a reputable fleet. New and prospective drivers assume that truck driving schools teach you how to drive a big rig. Unfortunately there is an assumption that if you how to handle a truck with a load on the highway and streets, then, you’re good to go. What prospective students may not get is how among top fleets, there is a laser focus on safety. It seems to be one of the areas that the El-Cheapo schools ignore. However, workplace safety not only applies to the trucking industry. I talked to lady who well connected in the transportation industry and works for a company that is all about safety….and not only about trucking. The company is NATT Safety Services. My guest’s name is Samantha Clark. I took the liberty to call her “Safety Sam” because Sam knows safety probably better than anyone. Listen to my conversation with Samantha.

Ace and Red Seal Truckers What the hell is going on in the trucking world? · Unsafe equipment operating on our highways.· Fake safety inspection decals?· In a recent highway inspection, a third of trucks were placed out of service.· Truckers’ licences suspended after uncovering dishonest testing and training· Quickie Driving Schools and driving tests being approved for unqualified drivers Finally, maybe good drivers have had enough. For example, in Quebec, truckers staged a slowdown protest on highways to demand action. After all, the growing number of dangerous drivers is impacting the vast majority of good professional safe drivers. Now, the four-wheeler public is beginning to notice. So…who is going to fix this mess? Well, I reached out to one guy who is not afraid the speak his mind and maybe ruffle some feathers….Mike “Ace” McCarron. We keep asking the government to step up, but maybe we need to look in the mirror. Listen to Mike “Ace” McCarron. Download it. What do you think of the Red Seal idea? Obviously from what Mike says, not everyone is on board. If you disagree, then what’s your idea? Doing nothing is not an option. stancampbell@trucknewstalk.com

The Best Fleets to Drive For (and a few that aren't) This may sound like a repeat TNT Podcast. Yes, we do this every year around this time but this year there are some differences. According to the trucking industry, there is still and shortage of “qualified drivers” so the competition among companies is fierce. Of course, fleets want to attract the best drivers…and if you are a recruiter, you should be able to brag that your company is listed as one of the best fleets to drive for. If you are driver, naturally you want to work for a company that pays well, offers great benefits but most of all, listens to you. It’s time for drivers to nominate their companies and help create the list of the Best Fleets to Drive For. In this TNT Podcast, I will talk to Carriers Edge CE, Jane Jazrawy about how drivers can nominate their employer, and about who qualifies and who doesn’t, and how the Best Fleets to Drive For list is credible. To nominate your company…do as I did. Just Google it. Best Fleets to Drive For. May the best fleet win! Thanks to Howes Products, makers of Diesel Defender, a diesel Fuel Lubricator & Injector cleaner with advanced IDX4 Detergent.

I was a teenager in the mid 50’s. I remember weird stuff, like dimmer switches, fender skirts, milk delivered to our door, adjusting the TV rabbit ears and crazy rules, like…women were not allowed in taverns. I specifically remember a place called The Steel City Tavern where only men were allowed to enter. It was not a good time for women. I remember once, when my buddy Howard and I saw transport truck pass by, driven by a woman. Wow! Look at that! A woman driving that big truck! We have come a long way since the 50’s and 60’s…but obviously, not far enough. Slowly, a few women ventured into truck driving, but it was a tough life…not because of the driving but because of sexual harassment and verbal attacks from male drivers who believed that women had no business in the trucking business. A few truckers today still believe that. It was in the late 70’s and early 80s’ that things began to change, thanks to efforts of a tough yet personable lady, Ellen Voie, along with her best friend, Char Pingel. It was the birth of the organization we know today as Women in Trucking. Ellen was a visionary as she knocked down closed doors. Over the years, her dedication became notable when one sees the awards and accolades, she received. After resigning from the Women in Trucking Organization two years ago Ellen decided to write about the events in her life that lead up to the formation of the Women in Trucking organization. Her autobiography is entitled, “Dispatcher to Disrupter”. One woman’s journey to drive gender diversity in the trucking industry. My conversation with Ellen right after a message from Howes Products, makers of Diesel Defender, a diesel Fuel Lubricator & Injector cleaner with advanced IDX4 Detergent. By the way, Ellen Voie was the very first inductee in the Howes Hall of Fame in 2020.

Thank you President Trump! We appreciate what you have done for Canada. Thanks to you, we are becoming stronger and more self-reliant. (this is my attempt at sarcasm) One of the positive results of your bullying and tariffs is that we have begun to eliminate some of our own tariffs. Okay, we don’t call them tariffs but there have been restrictions on trade within our own country and they have existed for years. We call them trade barriers…and for the purpose of this podcast, it’s about how those trade barriers negatively affect the trucking industry. However, getting rid of the roadbocks will take time, involving the usual government bureaucracy and foot-dragging. In this TNT podcast, I am talking to someone who has been a strong voice in breaking down those provincial barriers. He is Mike Millian, President of the Private Motor Truck Council of Canada. Thanks to Howes Products, makers of Diesel Defender, a diesel Fuel Lubricator & Injector cleaner with advanced IDX4 Detergent who help make this TruckNewsTalk Podcast possible.

TRUCKING FAKE NEWS BREAKING NEWS! Donald Trump has just resigned the Presidency of the United States. In other news, Prime Minister Mark Carney has just announced that all trucks in Canada must be electric by the end of 2026. Unbelievable? Well, just as believable that what we read and see on the internet…on Facebook, Instagram, X, Telegram, podcasts, and the hundreds of questionable news outlets? Remember that old joke, “if you believe that, I’ve got a bridge to sell you.” Some people don’t trust the Toronto Star, or the New York Times because they are too left-leaning…or others didn’t trust the National Post or the Wall Street Journal because we saw them as too right leaning, but that was simply because their biases…but now we see and read outrageous stories that are outright lies masquerading as truth…and thanks to AI they even include video that looks so real and convincing that they fool thousands, and then those thousands share it. I’m normally no conspiracy theorist, but I wonder if it’s a scheme to cause us all to mistrust everything, including mainstream media. I know…there are many who claim that the mainstream media are just as deceptive. It’s true that the mainstream media can be biased…very biased…but I don’t believe that they create untrue stories. Plus, we know who they are, and we can therefore call them out. Meanwhile, most of those basement-dwelling nefarious fake news sites hide under assumed names. The rise in fake news has even affected people in the trucking industry. Truck News Magazine contributor Jim Park has an example of a story that caused mild panic in Canada’s trucking world. In this TNT Podcast I will talk to Jim about that story. Thanks to Howes Products, makers of Diesel Defender, a diesel Fuel Lubricator & Injector cleaner with advanced IDX4 Detergent

2020 was a scary year and we didn't know if this was the way it was going to be forever. People were dying by the thousands, riots broke out, and truckers were heroes, bringing us everything we needed in spite of the disease raging throughout the world. Listen to our Trucker Radio news and talk segment from back then, which later morphed into what is now the TruckNewsTalk (TNT) podcast. www.trucknewstalk.com

HARRIET TUBMAN AWARD TO TRUCKERS I’ve doing some history reading lately, and discovered an event in US history that may sound very familiar in 2025… and there is a connection to Canada. In 1850, something called the Fugitive Slave Act was passed which penalized police and other officials who did not arrest someone who had allegedly escaped from slavery, even in northern states where slavery was outlawed. Habeas corpus was declared irrelevant. No day in court or jury was permitted and the alleged fugitive from slavery could not testify. The law resulted in the kidnapping and conscription of free Blacks back into slavery, even from free states. There was one woman who stood out and fought to free slaves and escort them to freedom though the underground railroad. Her name was Harriett Tubman. She risked her life in some 13 missions to rescue approximately 70 enslaved people, including her family and friends, using the network of antislavery activists and safe houses known collectively as the Underground Railroad. During the American Civil War, she served as an armed scout and spy for the Union Army. In her later years, Harriet Tubman was an activist in the movement for women's suffrage. So how does this fit in a Truck News Talk Podcast? Well, I happily support all organizations that are active in the front lines in the fight against human trafficking…otherwise known as slavery. One of those we all know well as Truckers Against Trafficking…aka T.A.T. TAT! The people at TAT, in an effort to reward observant and caring truck drivers, have developed something called the Harriett Tubman Award. I think it an award befitting a brave woman who fled abusive slavery and violence to save others from the same fate. My guest is Heather Fry, Director of Industry Training at TATnonprofit.org.

The Microbiologist Truck Driver I want to tell you a bedtime story. Once upon a time there was a microbiologist. Her name was Myrna Chartrand. Naturally she was highly educated. After all she was a scientist who studied microscopic life forms and processes including the study of the growth interactions and characteristics of microscopic organisms, but one day Myrna turned in her chair and walked away from it all to become…a truck driver! My TNT podcast preambles are sometimes lengthy so this time I will simply introduce Myrna Chartrand and let her tell you her story right after a message from Howes Products, makers of Diesel Defender, a diesel Fuel Lubricator & Injector cleaner with advanced IDX4 Detergent

In the past 18 years since I got involved in hosting a trucking show, I’ve met hundreds of interesting people and made a few friends along the way. One of my friends wears a closet full of hats. I knew him when he was about to give it all up, but then…something happened. If you listen podcasts, then I’m sure you know him. He creates a podcast too…but a whole lot more. A LOT more! His name is Bruce Outridge. I invite you to listen to my conversation with Bruce. What's he really all about?

Kim’s Cool School A few weeks ago, I talked to Andy Roberts, the owner at Mountain Lake Transport Institute about the their problems attracting driver students in a world where some questionable schools are offering driving courses at half price or less and graduating them in half the time, which allows dramatically poorly trained people behind the wheel of an 80,000 pound vehicle on our highways…and in western Canada, that could mean on icy mountain roads. Nowhere is this as big a problem as in southern Ontario…the epicenter of trucking in Canada. There are now around 300 truck driving schools. How does a wannabe truck driver know which ones are good and lead to a good paying job with a great company, and which one will take them down the alley to a bad unsafe trucking company and maybe eventually to a catastrophic crash. Advice to anyone who wants to drive professionally…do your homework! You have to know that if the training school is offering a deal that seems to good to be true and shorter hours than everyone else…you are destined for eventually failure…or worse. Enough about my view from the outside. I talk to a guy who knows about trucking schools better than just about anybody…and not only about the schools but the companies that hire the unsafe, uneducated driver. It’s my old friend Kim Richardson, the co-founder of Kim Richardson Transportation Specialists with his wife Lisa in 1989. We know it as KRTS. Thanks to our friends at Howes Products, makers of Diesel Defender, a diesel Fuel Lubricator & Injector cleaner with advanced IDX4 Detergent.

Donald, the Prophesy & Crap Okay, there is no simple way to describe this TNT podcast. It begins with a prophesy then segues to an interview with trucking journalist and driver, Jim Park about Music City, the Trump tariffs and saving trucking costs and the earth with cow crap. Yes, we are all over the map on this one. You just have to listen.

Fabiana – The Rescue Lady “Disaster and Pandemonium on the highway.” Big rigs off the road and trailers upside down. Who you gonna call? Rescue 51 and Fabiana! It can be a mess out there and it’s not getting better. Much of the carnage is due to the growing number of unsafe poorly trained drivers released onto our highways. Some drivers churned out by crappy driving schools have never driven on ice and snow….so, they end up in the woods, sometimes rolled over and in worst case scenario, injured or killed, not to mention the damage and/or loss of the vehicle and cargo. So who is going to get them back on the road again. Well, at least get the truck back on the road. The driver is another issue. My guest is Fabiana Quinteros. To be more exact is it Fabiana Quinteros Ireland, along with his partner husband they own Rescue 51 Towing & Recovery just outside Barrie Ontario. Fabiana is not just a pretty face in the office…she gets out there in the ditches and the weeds in the cold winter nights with guys hauling a tractor trailer out trouble. Fabiana did not grow up with wintery nights. She is originally from Uruguay in South America. I will talk to Fabiana. Thanks to Howes Products, makers of Diesel Defender, a diesel Fuel Lubricator & Injector cleaner with advanced IDX4 Detergent.

Bon School-Bad School There has been a lot of talk and deep concern within the trucking industry about the rapid growth of quickie cut rate trucking schools releasing poorly trained drivers onto our highways. It is not only a concern to the trucking industry, but it should be a concern to every driver whether a trucker or four-wheeler. Those poorly trained drivers are often hired by equally shady trucking companies operating unsafe equipment and therefore offering rates far below standing rates…meaning unfair competition. Some shippers and receivers don’t care as long as they get their stock quickly and a good price. There is now another victim…the reputable truck driving schools. Young potential truckers and often immigrants just want to get their license as quickly and cheaply as possible. They make a choice between a $3500 school versus a 10,000-dollar school, one that gets you in and out the door and to your license on less than half the time. Meanwhile, the reputable school’s classroom size drops dramatically. In fact, some classes had to be cancelled. Talked to one very reputable school in western Canada. It might the best school in Canada. It’s the Mountain Transport Institute. They even have students come from the US to train there. The owner is Andy Roberts. Thanks to by Howes Products, makers of Diesel Defender, a diesel Fuel Lubricator & Injector cleaner with advanced IDX4 Detergent.

LUCKY CHUCK’S SCHOOL OF TRUCKING Are you impressed by that unbelievable chance to drive a tractor trailer up and down our highways without having to deal with all those pesky rules and regulations? And safety? What’s the big deal with safety when the load just has to be there, and you make a decent dollar. Okay, maybe I am being a little over dramatic…or maybe not. Back when we produced the Trucker Radio Show, we invented a bogus crooked driving school, we called, “Lucky Chucks School of Trucking.” Well, it might have been a make-believe trucking school, but it was pretty close to reality. Lately, there has been an increased concern regarding the number of shady fly-by-night driving schools turning out unqualified drivers onto our highways, often resulting in injuries and loss of life, not to mention loss of equipment and cargo. Especially in the Mississauga and Brampton area in Ontario, unscrupulous truck training schools are offering cut rate truck driver training courses to get a prospective driver just enough info and training to pass a test. While the Torontoland area is in the epicenter of these scam schools, it does happen elsewhere across the country. The one possible exception seems to be in the province of Quebec, although a small handful of shady schools exist. There is a good reason why crooked truck driving schools are almost non-existent is Quebec. That difference between Quebec and the rest of the country raises an important issue…sorry…question. I wanted to find out more about what makes Quebec different, when it comes to professional driver training and why the whole country doesn’t follow. I talked to Steve Bouchard. He is an Editor at Newcom Media’s Transport Routier in Montreal. That conversation is coming up right after this message from Howes Products, makers of Diesel Defender, a diesel Fuel Lubricator & Injector cleaner with advanced IDX4 Detergent

THE GHOSTS OF TRUCKER RADIO The Trucker Radio Show was a syndicated program that combined music, news, information, interviews, and entertainment, airing for 17 years on radio stations across Canada and the USA. What was its mission? Did it truly benefit truck drivers and the trucking industry, or was there a strategy that was misunderstood? Did we waste our time? Absolutely not! Above all, we enjoyed ourselves for most of those 17 years. Our guests included truckers, fleet owners, critics, and supporters, each bringing their unique perspectives. In this TNT Podcast, we will showcase some of the voices from our guests. Some were serious, many provided valuable insights, and a few were quite entertaining. Perhaps you were one of those voices. Join us as we present a medley of familiar voices from the years since 2006. You might hear their thoughts for the first time. We extend our gratitude to Howes Products for being our longest-standing supporter, almost from the very beginning.

Sex Investors. Want to end sex trafficking? Stop investing in this multi-billion-dollar illegal industry. It’s simple. No buyer means no victim which means no sex trafficking. Yes, it’s simple, but it’s not easy. Most sex buyers are men, yet only six percent of men purchase sex. That means that there is an opportunity for the other 94 percents of us men who do not buy sex to speak up. sychology. He has spoken to groups all over North America on the subject of human trafficking.On this podcast, we focus not so much on identifying victims and traffickers, but the men who provide the money to keep sex-trafficking a growing ilIn this TNT TruckNewsTalk Podcast I chat with Dylan Wecht, TAT Public Sector Engagement Specialist, and Field Trainer. Dylan is well qualified to speak about human trafficking. Not only is he a lawyer but holds a degree in criminal justice and plegal industry. No Buyer = No Victim = No Sex Trafficking. For more information on the buyers: https://tatnonprofit.org/addressing-demand/