Canada takes up impoundin
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by Miles Brignall
• On the back of last week's announcement that the UK Government is to start impounding illegal trucks comes the news that the Canadian province of Ontario has started its own scheme.
From last week, trucks caught during roadside checks near Toronto and found to have serious defects will automatically be impounded for 15 days. Trucks caught twice will be held for up to two months.
The move to impounding follows a number of accidents involving trucks in the Toronto area—four people have been killed in wheel-loss incidents alone since 1995.
Trucks are currently involved in a quarter of all traffic deaths.
A spokesman for the Ontario Provisional Police defines serious defects as those involving brakes, steering, frames and tyres. "We are trying to get the shipping companies to look at the trucking firms they hire and stop using the ones with a poor safety record," he says. "If they don't, their goods just won't be arriving on time."
Eight further pounds for confiscated trucks are due to be opened in Ontario this year.
11 The Department of Transport is expected to launch its consultation document to discuss how it should impound illegal vehicles within the next three to four weeks.