Trucking firm in fatal collision failed to comply with safety laws: province

The Manitoba government cited “ongoing deficiencies in safe operation” when it revoked the safety fitness certificate of the trucking company whose driver has been charged in Wednesday’s fatal crash in Brandon, the province has confirmed.

The certificate was also revoked for Conquer Transport Inc. in November 2021 because of “non-compliance with highway safety laws and the regulations applicable to motor carriers,” a government spokesperson told the Sun Friday.

The province became aware in February 2022 that the trucking company “continued to operate in the province under a safety fitness certificate and vehicle registration from Alberta,” the spokesperson said.

“The carrier had made an adjustment to their company name when applying for their new safety fitness certificate. Manitoba has been in regular communication with that province regarding this carrier since that time,” the spokesperson added.

The spokesperson in a followup email said the company name was changed to Conquer Transportation Inc.

The Sun called a phone number listed for the owner of Conquer Transport and left a voicemail on Friday. When the Sun attempted to call again later in the day, the voicemail function had been disabled.

Meanwhile, the province said it is supporting an active police investigation.

“Manitoba Motor Carrier Enforcement is currently providing technical assistance to the Brandon Police Service in the review and auditing of (the) driver’s hours of service logs,” the spokesperson said.

Brijpal Panwar, 35, was charged with dangerous driving causing death after a northbound semi-truck on Highway 110 failed to stop at a stop sign that was affixed with a flashing red light and crashed into an SUV crossing the intersection along Richmond Avenue East on Wednesday, according to police. He remains in custody.

The driver of the SUV, a 49-year-old woman, was killed in the collision.

Naylor on Thursday described the firm the semi-truck driver worked for as “irresponsible.”

“They should not be allowed to operate in this province. However, they have continued to operate here, and so I have been advocating with the federal government to get companies like this off of the road,” she said on Thursday.

The province was in the process of refining its Safety Monitoring Framework when the certificate for Conquer Transport was revoked in 2021, a provincial spokesperson told the Sun. The framework “now includes sending information to other provinces when a carrier has their safety fitness certificate suspended or revoked in Manitoba.”

Both Naylor and the Manitoba Trucking Association are calling on Ottawa to create a database that would prevent companies from re-establishing elsewhere in Canada after having their licence revoked in one jurisdiction.

“I want to see a national system that ensures that bad actors cannot run away from their poor history and their poor performance,” Aaron Dolyniuk, the association’s executive director, said Friday.

“So, the consequences follow them, and they can’t sidestep the rules that exist that are important to the safety and the competitiveness of our industry and the safety of our highways for everybody,” he said.

He said a national registry would make it more difficult or even impossible for people to re-establish themselves and their companies in other jurisdictions.

Naylor said she had been advocating for the database in “every meeting with the federal and provincial ministers since I’ve been in this position.”

Federal Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon didn’t respond to a request for comment by press time on Friday.

Dolyniuk said a federal database, which all provinces and territories would have access to, could track equipment, people and ownership coming in and out of the database.

He called the trucking company being able to continue operating “unacceptable.”

“The system was designed as a provincial system, and each provincial system was designed as such,” Dolyniuk said. “It was not designed for people to exploit it the way that has been taking place, and it demonstrates that there are gaps in the system that need to be dealt with.”

Off the top of his head, Dolyniuk said he can think of four or five companies that have re-emerged after having their licences revoked and said he’s sure there are more.

Dolyniuk said the trucking association is “deeply saddened” that the Brandon woman was killed in Wednesday’s collision.

“It’s unfortunate, because it shouldn’t have happened, because this company … should not exist,” he said.

Canada Packers, which operates its pork processing plant just east of the intersection, said on Thursday that its thoughts are with the woman’s husband, family and all who loved her. The woman was an employee of the company.

The intersection has had traffic lights installed but covered with tarps since last summer. Naylor on Thursday told the Sun that the lights should be activated this summer, as the province is waiting for a part and work needs to be completed on a nearby rail line’s signalling.

The intersection had been the scene of another fatal crash in October 2021, when a driver failed to stop at a stop sign.

Last year, occupants of a car involved in a crash were described by the Brandon Police Service as lucky to be alive.

Another crash in 2014 between two semi-trucks sent one driver to hospital and caused 10,000 litres of diesel fuel to be spilled on the roadway.

» alambert@brandonsun.com