MILTON, ON — The Private Motor Truck Council of Canada (PMTC) has added its voice to supporters of draft Mandatory Entry-Level Training (MELT) standards proposed for Class A drivers in Ontario.

Mike Millian, PMTC president, attended 20 related stakeholder meetings since the fall of 2015, and also proposed updates to related knowledge and road tests, the association notes. The standard is expected to be implemented July 1, 2017.

“While the PMTC still has some areas of concern that they would like to see addressed, such as instructor qualifications, vehicle configurations, advanced standing for experienced drivers, and the issue of training not being required on a standard transmission in the original draft, we have been happy with the response the [Ontario Ministry of Transportation] has given to these concerns,” Millian says.

“Overall the MELT standard is a great win for the industry, should help raise the profile of the job of the Professional Driver in our industry, and will go a long way in removing the unqualified licensing mill training schools from our industry. The standard being proposed out of Ontario has a real chance of being a trend setter that we hope to see repeated across Canada.”