THE United Truckers Association (UTA) said on Wednesday that it is treating the recent Port of Vancouver (PV) Rolling Truck Age Program (RTAP) deferral as an inflammatory announcement that has the potential to permanently destabilize the Metro Vancouver drayage sector.
It said that instead of meaningful consultation with Independent Operators (IOs) unfairly targeted by the implementation, the Port of Vancouver, under the guidance of Transport Canada, announced a revised April 2023 start date for the RTAP.
While the UTA is happy with the intervention of federal Transport Minister Omar Alghabra and MPs Randeep Sarai and Taleeb Noormohamed, there are a number of inflammatory factors with the potential to act as a powder keg, according to UTA spokesperson Gagan Singh.
“This is the second implementation delay announced within the past year, which signals PV’s ongoing lack of interest in meaningful dialog with UTA members,” said Singh. “Instead of providing time for compliance as is being claimed, the newer and more punitive standard of truck age is forcing IOs into further cost and marketplace difficulty.”
More specifically, the RTAP start date will require replacement trucks to be 2016 or newer. This is as opposed to the 2014 standard which would have been acceptable with a 2022 program implementation, he said.
The Port’s rationale flies in the face of current rules and regulations across British Columbia, where the other 98% of BC’s commercially-licensed trucks face no equivalent measures.
The UTA continues to appeal for intervention by Transport Canada via a binding sectoral steering committee premised on fairness, market viability and supply chain sanctity.
The UTA is demanding equality by being held to the AirCare On-Road Program that currently applies to all commercial trucks operating in BC.
The UTA said it is extending one last plea for Alghabra to take control of this file before labour action with the potential to cause billions of dollars in negative impact occurs.
“Passive leadership that does not prioritize long-term supply chain stability must be considered gross negligence on behalf of Canada’s economy,” said Singh. “Without a change of course, long-term labour instability will be the inevitable future for the PV.”
