VANCOUVER (April 29) — British Columbia will expand its AirCare emissions testing program to include diesel-powered trucks and buses this week, with two mobile teams of inspectors conducting roadside smoke tests starting May 1.

The on-road inspectors will prowl the Lower Mainland region of the province for vehicles that emit gross amounts of dark smoke. Suspect vehicles will undergo a spot-inspection that measures opacity, or how much light can be seen through the exhaust plume. Failing vehicles must be reinspected within 30 days. The owner may not be able to renew its insurance and licence until the vehicle has passed an inspection.

The test itself is a standard SAE J1667 snap-acceleration test. The maximum legal opacity limits in B.C. are 40% for vehicles with 1991 or newer engines and 55% for vehicles with 1990 or older engines (light smoke has a lower opacity than dark smoke).

British Columbia’s AirCare program has been in effect since 1992, but has focused on mandatory periodic testing for cars and light trucks. In May 1998, the provincial government passed legislation to test diesel-powered vehicles with licensed gross vehicle weights in excess of 5000 kilograms.

Unlike the emissions testing program announced last week in Ontario, British Columbia does not require mandatory periodic testing of vehicles. That may change, according to the British Columbia Trucking Association. While Air Care is under the auspices of the Insurance Corp. of British Columbia, the program will likely be turned over to the Greater Vancouver Transportation Authority in September. GVTA chairman George Puil appears to support mandatory periodic tests, the association said.

To learn more about Air Care, contact: ACOR program administration, 604/660-3341; or write: AirCare ON-ROAD, #102 – 4705 Wayburne Dr., Burnaby, B.C. V5G 3L1.