The Private Motor Truck Council of Canada (PMTC) and Aviva Canada announced the awards for Canadian Private Fleet Safety as part of the PMTC's annual conference on June 18th in Niagara Falls, ON.

The competition is open to all Canadian private carriers, and membership in the PMTC is not a requirement. Judging is conducted by an independent panel and follows established criteria with a focus on the company's overall safety regime and its over the road record.

The 2025 award winners were:

• Small Fleet, under 25 Power Units: Hydrogen Technology & Energy Corporation
• Mid-Sized Fleet, under 75 Power Units: Flying J Canada Transport Inc.
• Large Fleet, 75 and over Power Units: Giant Tiger Wholesale Ltd.

"The members of the PMTC appreciate the support of Aviva for these private fleet safety awards. The awards are a tangible sign of the commitment of Aviva and the PMTC to truck safety, a commitment that has been part of the PMTC's mandate since our inception in 1977.

"The process of applying for one of these awards provides a checklist for fleet managers to see what the best in class fleets are doing to maintain their safety programs. Even if you do not believe you will win an award, there is an immense benefit to going through the process of entering", said PMTC President Mike Millian.

"Along with Aviva, we at the PMTC congratulate the management and drivers of these fleets," Millian went on to say. "The efforts of everyone involved with these fleets, and many others in the PMTC membership, points to their desire to keep road safety foremost in their operations. All of the 2025 award winners and applicants deserve our congratulations."

Millian also expressed the PMTC's appreciation to Aviva for making these awards possible, saying that "Aviva is an example of a company that promotes and supports the safe operation of truck fleets – we, along with the trucking community, appreciate their involvement and support."

Additional information on award winners follows.

Hydrogen Technology & Energy Corporation

HTEC has operated its private fleet in Canada for 5 years. Its fleet consists of 1 tractor, 3 straight trucks and 1 trailer, with 5 fleet related employees running 90,000km's in 2024.

HTEC's Fleet Operations division plays a critical role in supporting the company's mission to build and operate Canada's hydrogen infrastructure network. Their team is responsible for the safe, efficient, and compliant transportation of compressed hydrogen to fueling stations and industrial customers across the B.C. region.

Their operations prioritize safety, sustainability, and continuous improvement. Through rigorous adherence to Transport Canada regulations, CVSE standards, and industry best practices.

New hires at HTEC must maintain a valid class 1 license, have less than 6 points on their license and no excessive speeding violations in the last 24 months. They must pass a road test as well as a pre-employment drug test.

New hires go through 3 weeks of orientation and mentorship training, starting with one week in class and online. The 1st day is an orientation in person meeting where the new hire meets all relevant staff of various departments and visits various locations at headquarters. Days 2 to 4 are online training in areas such as, HSE Training, WHMIS, Petroleum Orientation Safety Training, Smith System Driver Training & TDG.

At the end of the first week, drivers are required to complete a training checklist, which must be verified by the fleet supervisor before proceeding to further training stages.

The new hires then move into 2 to 3 weeks of field training. All drivers are accompanied by a qualified HTEC employee. Trainees observe as a passenger in week 1 and will begin driving, if deemed ready, in week 2. During this time the driver is evaluated on several critical skills, such as site work, hazard analysis, positioning at delivery, controlling the unloading zone and all areas of proper loading/unloading. This is on top of the evaluation constantly of the drivers safe operating procedures while operating the vehicle on and off highway.

To ensure drivers stay fresh and have safety at the top of mind, HTEC holds regular toolbox talks to discuss relevant safety topics, reinforce training, address field observations & provide regulatory & procedural updates. They also use messaging platforms, email bulletins and fleet management systems to share updates and ensure real time communications with all drivers. They also combine annual and on-going formal training to ensure skills stay current and no ones becomes complacent.

HTEC has created a strong safety culture built on trust, accountability & open communication. Everyone on the team plays a critical role maintaining a safe work environment. This plan has worked well, as HTEC has a B.C. Provincial Safety Rating score of 0% and has had only 1 accident in the last 2 years, which was non preventable as they were hit while stopped.

Flying J Canada Transport Inc.

Flying J has operated its private fleet in Canada for 25 years. It consists of 64 power units and 70 trailers running 7.4 million kilometers in 2024.

The fleet hauls fuel to its travel centers around the country. New hires to Flying J are put through a 1.5 hour road test, coupled with an interview & reference checks beforehand. If a driver is hired, they begin a 3 day in class & online orientation program. Once that is completed the driver goes through 3 weeks of one on one driver training with a final sign off with a supervisor involving observed load, drive & unload.

Flying J also conducts 30, 60 & 90 day unannounced unloading observation, then 2 additional observations throughout the year.

In person, driver meetings are held on a regular basis to ensure drivers stay up to date on the fleets protocols, as well as the ELD tablet being used to ensure messages get to drivers on a timely basis. The fleet also does Journey Management with its drivers as well as the yearly COR audit.

Flying J does a root accident/incident reporting, review & remedial process with every accident, which is followed up with training such as the Smith System Defensive Driver training or remedial fuel handling. They have their Certificate of Recognition with the Province of Alberta WSIB & are into year 3 without a lost time injury. Flying J offers a $1k quarterly bonus to their drivers, with 97% of the drivers receiving the full bonus. Samsara Driver score is used to calculate the driver bonus, as well as observations & hours of service audits. The fleet uses driver & front facing cameras with cell phone, seatbelt, distracted driving and drowsy driving AI active in all units.

The Flying J fleet has an incredible Alberta R Factor score of only .034, which places it in the lowest risk category of carriers, and an accident ratio of .811 accidents per million km's.

Giant Tiger Wholesale

Giant Tiger has operated its private fleet in Canada for 38 years. Giant Tigers team consists of 256 fleet related employees. The Fleet consists of 176 Tractors, 4 straight trucks, 3 light commercial vehicles 633 trailers, and operated over 25.1 million km's in 2024.

Giant Tiger is a Canadian owned discount store that was opened in 1961 and now has over 260 locations and 10,000 team members across Canada, with its fleet in operation since 1987. Each Giant Tiger store is locally owned & actively involved in their community.

Giant Tiger has a safety policy that is reviewed annually, or sooner if new locations open or when operating or legislative changes occur. New drivers must be a minimum of 25 years of age, submit their drivers abstract as well as their commercial vehicle abstract, and have no more than 2 demerit points to be considered for hire. Criminal record and reference checks are also done, as well as a three hour road test that is graded on a tablet using a scoring system. Once hired, each driver goes through a minimum 50 hour on-boarding program, which is extended if the driver trainer feels it is required. Training includes company policy, health & safety, product handling, defensive & fuel efficient driving, WHMIS, HOS, trip inspections, annual winter driving refresher training, sleep management, electric pallet jack, among other topics. Each driver must also pass self-assessment at the beginning of each shift as per the "Fit for Work policy". The fleet is equipped with telematics on all trucks that track hours of service, speed, sudden stops and fuel mileage. Carriers Edge modules are used for annual refresher training & supplement biannual in person safety meetings & other regular refresher training as needed or required. Annual ride alongs are also completed with all drivers with Giant Tigers in house trainers.

Giant Tiger provides its staff with regular safety bulletins as needed to provide relevant information, tips & resources to enhance awareness. Drivers are also communicated with through mobile applications, such as email, Microsoft Teams & messaging apps, as well as Geo Tab, to ensure drivers receive relevant information in a safe & timely manner.

All incidents are reviewed by a Joint Health and Safety Committee as well as an incident review team comprised of the hiring manager, safety manager, fleet manager & a senior driver. If an incident is found to be at fault, in class and in cab training is conducted.

The team has a million mile club that showcases all drivers in the club in their lounges across the country, & each driver is supplied with a leather jacket. In addition, drivers receive a bonus for all clean level one, two or three inspections. Giant Tiger was also a recipient of the Geotab Innovation Award for Excellence in 2024, recognizing their proactive & data driven approach to fleet safety & management. The award celebrates top-performing fleets that are setting the standard through connected vehicle technology & actionable insights.

Giant Tigers' level of commitment is achieving amazing results, as their accident to incident ratio is .43 accidents per 1 million km's with an incredible Ontario CVOR violation rate of 2.44%.

Additional information contact: Private Motor Truck Council of Canada Tel: 905-827-0587 225 Main Street East Fax: 905-827-8212 Milton, Ontario. L9T 1N9 website: www.pmtc.ca email: info@pmtc.ca