Anybody that drives a truck that has not been evaluated property
Quebec announces two new measures to curb dangerous trucking, particularly with regard to inadequately trained Ontario drivers.
Starting this Thursday, Ontario truck drivers with less than two years of experience who wish to move to Quebec and exchange their Ontario licence for a Quebec Class 1 licence will be required to pass the driving exams administered by the Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ).
If they fail this exam twice, they will then be required to complete mandatory training before obtaining their licence. This training recently became mandatory in Quebec for anyone wishing to obtain a Class 1 licence authorizing them to drive a heavy truck.
Related:
The decision was made following a report last May by Ontario’s Auditor General, Shelly Spence, which highlighted serious shortcomings in trucking training and oversight in that province. Spence had also cited Quebec’s stricter rules as a model to follow.
In addition, the issue of temporary workers will be addressed by a working group whose objective, according to the press release issued by the SAAQ, will be to “strengthen road safety requirements related to driving by temporary foreign workers” in order, it is said, “to increase the number of workers who adopt safe driving practices.”
André Durocher, director, CAA-Québec Foundation for Road Safety, said the new rules were a step in the right direction given that the province has seen a lot of deaths involving heavy vehicles in the past two years.
“It’s sending a message,” Durocher said. “But, road safety is a series of measures.”
He added that more needs to be done, especially in making the trucking companies aware of the changes.
However, Stéphane Emond, owner of the driving school Centre de formation routier de Montréal, says that the rules need to go beyond how long a driver has had their licence.
“Even though if it’s three, five years, it doesn’t mean that he’s been driving for three, five years,” Emond said. “He could have his driver’s license, nobody reevaluated the person.”
“Anybody that drives a truck that has not been evaluated properly is potential danger (it’s) as simple as that,” he added.
Emond would also like drivers who don’t pass the exam on their first attempt to take the full training rather than being given a second attempt.
These measures are in addition to others, such as the mandatory training introduced last December, which followed two fatal accidents involving heavy trucks. Tanya and Elliot Lalonde lost their lives on Aug. 27, 2025, on Highway 30 in Boucherville, when their car was struck by a heavy truck. Madeline J. Darby died in similar circumstances on July 15, 2025, in L’Ange-Gardien.
These two deaths prompted the Quebec government to ask the chief coroner to launch a public inquiry. The inquiry, whose hearings began at the end of last March and will continue through November, is presided over by Coroner Dave Kimpton.
Additional measures have been implemented. In particular, Quebec announced last October that highway patrol officers will now be equipped with service weapons and, in February, began a redeployment of personnel, including the opening of a secure checkpoint in Sainte-Luce, in the Bas-Saint-Laurent region, managed in collaboration with the Sûreté du Québec (SQ).
In addition, highway patrol officers conduct ad hoc operations in collaboration with the SQ, particularly near the border with Ontario.
Durocher said in addition to safety on the road, Quebec also stands to lose tax revenue under the current system with inexperienced truck drivers from Ontario.
“The drivers that operate under the driving system, not only are they exploited, but they’re also not paying taxes to PELPA, pay for our healthcare system, unemployment, insurance, etc.,” he added. “It becomes unfair competitions for those companies who operate legitimately.”
Last June, a zero-tolerance policy for alcohol was also implemented for drivers of heavy vehicles who are in the learner stage (probationary and learner’s permits), regardless of their age.
–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews
