Enforcement officers placed almost one in three trucks out of service (OOS) during a massive two-day blitz in Milton, Ont.
Inspectors checked 517 trucks on Oct. 7-8, at Woodbine Mohawk Park and identified 260 (50%) of them with prescribed defects. They placed 161 trucks (31%) OOS.
Marc Taraso, commercial vehicle inspector with the Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS) commercial vehicle unit, said more than 125 police officers and ministry inspectors from police services and agencies across the Greater Toronto Area and Southwestern Ontario participated in the initiative.
Areas of concern included driver licensing, daily trip inspections, and violations of the Dangerous Goods Transportation Act, along with truck-oriented issues such as mechanical fitness, load security, and vehicle and load weights. Brake and tire defects made up the bulk of the mechanical issues observed.
Taraso said the aim was to bring in a mix of commercial vehicles for inspection. He pointed out the highway tractors, car carriers, local delivery box trucks, and landscape operators towing their equipment that filled the parking lot.
“We’re trying to get a good cross-blend of trucks from across the industry to get a good idea of how safe the trucks are on our roads,” he said.
He added the blitz allows officers to inspect a large volume of trucks in a short amount of time. It also puts truck drivers on notice that these can pop up at any time in any place.
Inspectors from the Ministry of Finance conducted 273 inspections for violations of the Fuel Tax Act/International Fuel Tax Agreement and the Tobacco Tax Act.
A total of 316 charges were laid for various defects and infractions, with a further 120 warnings. Fifteen trucks were also found to be in such a deteriorated state that the license plates were seized, forcing the truck owners to make repairs to recertify and re-plate the vehicles.
“The year 2025 marks the 25th anniversary of our commercial vehicle enforcement blitz,” Kevin Maher, HRPS deputy chief of specialized support, said in a news release. “These proactive inspections prevent collisions and save lives, the results of which speak directly to our shared commitment to commercial vehicle safety and enforcement.”
Since 2010, the HRPS enforcement blitz has conducted 6,482 CVSA inspections, placed 2,445 commercial motor vehicles out of service (a 36% OOS rate), issued 5,668 charges, and removed 238 license plates from trucks.
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