To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:
Whereas long haul truck drivers on Ontario highways have few places to stop and rest, to avoid fatigue in order to keep our highways safe for everybody; and
Whereas in the province of Ontario, drivers are required to stop and rest or sleep after a usual maximum 14 hours of driving; and
Whereas it is unsafe and potentially dangerous to not have rest areas available when drivers must rest; and
Whereas southern Ontario is short over 1200 overnight truck parking spaces for truckers to rest; and
Whereas the Ministry of Transportation has only produced 13 new overnight truck parking spots since 2018, and has outlined a plan for only a few hundred spaces to be created in the next five years, mostly in locations not identified by experts as especially high need; and
Whereas according to reported OPP statistics, fatalities from truck collisions have risen by approximately 40% in the past year; and
Whereas without adequate rest parking, drivers will continue to drive tired, face stress, fatigue, experience negative health impacts, face fines, and incur significant costs in the search for parking; and
Whereas the trucking industry will continue to face degrading effects of parking shortages with increased operating costs, diminished profits, and severe costs for drivers, especially independent operators; and
Whereas the trucking industry is degraded economically by parking shortages and related driver shortages, negatively affecting the supply chain and Ontarian's access to basic needs such as food and medicine,
We the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to commit to creating enough overnight truck parking spaces to improve road safety, creating an Ontario-level task force focused on municipal partners and the trucking industry, and requiring companies to ensure that parking is provided for their drivers and independent contractors and/or to ensuring that drivers are reimbursed for any parking costs which they may incur.
Download and print the petition here.