Port of Vancouver to ‘slightly’ delay truck ban over 10 years | The Canadian News

Truckers driving vehicles over 10 years old will not be barred from the Port of Vancouver next month as originally planned.

The Rolling Truck Age Program, which was intended to help the port meet its climate goals, was due to go into effect on February 1, but it drew a furious backlash from the trucking industry.

“We recently heard some concerns about the start date of our program from industry and Transport Canada, and recognize that the pandemic, recent flooding and ongoing global supply chain issues may have created some near-term challenges for people looking to buy qualifying products. trucks,” Vancouver Fraser Port Authority Vice President Duncan Wilson said in a statement.

“Therefore, we are slightly postponing our program start date, to provide additional time and engagement opportunities for the industry, and hopefully mitigate some of those challenges.”

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Wilson said the port authority will provide more details about the delay in the coming days.

According to the port, limiting access to vehicles 10 years old or younger would have reduced the fleet’s particulate emissions by 93 percent. He said that 80 percent of the vehicles serving the port were already in compliance with the policy.

The Port of Vancouver says it warned the industry in 2015 that the policy would take effect this year.

Truckers have said the high cost and limited availability of newer vehicles would have left many of them unable to upgrade and thus out of work or unable to work at the port.

With 20 percent of trucks still out of compliance and with little opportunity for upgrades, Unifor said the policy would have resulted in a loss of hundreds of trucks serving the port, further exacerbating supply chain problems. BC’s already significant supply.