My favourite Minister, in my favourite department created a news release. Let’s see what Transportation and Economic Corridors (TEC) had to say!
Alberta is marking more than a year of working with Saskatchewan and Manitoba through the Prairies Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to advance economic corridors and enhance collaboration with Alberta’s prairie neighbours. To date, the three provinces have achieved harmonization of regulations related to commercial carriers that improve both safety and regulatory requirements.
Bullshit! In the world of economic corridors and collaboration among provinces, it's essential to examine the actual progress made under MOU partnership. A year of following an agreement with no new initiatives. Way to go, celebrate accomplishing the bare minimum with a fake news release but, is the reality living up to the rhetoric?
“By keeping the momentum of the Prairies MOU going, we can continue to lead the way in building economic corridors, cutting red tape, and creating jobs. This paves the way to make nation-building projects a reality again in western Canada.” Devin Dreeshen, Minister of Transportation and Economic Corridors
The current state of Alberta TEC operations is not leading the way in anything. This is a department in disarray with no oversight, outdated and costly computer systems and redundant manual processes, not a ministry leading in red tape reduction.
The TPA (third party auditor program) is a disaster, TPA auditors have zero oversight and do not review accurate records because TPA auditors do not have encryption keys, check out my blog, Questioning Accountability: The Controversial Alberta Government TPA Program and its Impact on Trucking Companies.
Alberta Transportation and Economic Corridors Investigators and TPA’s use a paper chart to look up and convert hours of service information because the computer program (ARC) does not accept time by the second, check out my blog, Transportation and Economic Corridors data entry debacle, another waste of taxpayer dollars.
Alberta Transportation and Economic Corridors does not have accurate safety fitness information because Alberta cannot share complete enforcement information from other jurisdictions due to a computer problem see my blog, Don’t look behind the curtain! unveiling the Alberta Transportation safety scam.
As the rhetoric of fake progress clashes with the realities on the ground, it becomes apparent that mere fake news releases and empty promises are insufficient. It is imperative for the leadership group of Alberta TEC to address the systemic shortcomings, enhance regulatory coherence, and prioritize the needs of commercial carriers. By exposing the disparities between official TEC statements and on-the-ground realities, I aim to advocate for substantial reforms, fair treatment of commercial carriers, and a transparent approach to governance in the transportation sector. It’s time to drain the swamp.
This is a quote from the Transportation and Economic Corridors Annual Report 2022-2023, “Innovation is core to TEC’s mandate. In 2022 ‑ 23, TEC delivered on a range of cutting-edge initiatives.” Cutting edge initiatives and you have professional auditors doing data entry because the computer system doesn’t accept time to the second? Really?
Why is Alberta Transportation paying professional auditors to do hours of manual data entry? I can tell you why!
Professional auditors, who command professional wages due to their extensive experience and education, are currently dedicating hours and hours to manual data entry tasks, highlighting the inefficiency of the current process.
The current system ARC (assessment of regulatory compliance) is designed to accept time entries only in 15 minute increments of an hour (8.25, 8.50, 8.75), which is completely unfeasible and inefficient process in 2024. ELDs (Electronic Logging Devices) record a driver's time in real-time by the second using data from the truck engine (ECM). Auditors are required to look up converted time information from a paper chart and then enter the data into ARC. In 2024 there exists a more advanced and streamlined solution that should be implemented.
During hours of service reviews, a 30-day sample of drivers RODS (Record of Duty Status) is reviewed and recorded. However, the existing computer program, ARC (Assessment of Regulatory Compliance) was not created to handle time by the second. The ARC system requires auditors to refer to a Conversion Chart in the ARC help manual to translate minutes into the appropriate decimal value for data entry. This cumbersome process not only consumes investigative resources but also contradicts the efficiency goals that technology is meant to enable.
Below is taken from the ARC help manual used by Investigator’s and Third Party Auditors (TPA).
All “Hours” fields in the New ARC take time in decimals of an hour only. For proper calculations please ensure the appropriate decimal of an hour is entered in New ARC.
Conversion Chart
Find the minutes you need to enter under the “Minutes” column and beside it in the right side column is the appropriate decimal conversion. Add this decimal conversion to the total full hours and you will have the appropriate time in decimals of an hour to enter in your field.
Consider this - a standard 5-driver audit sample can lead to 450–900 minutes or 7.5–15 hours simply being spent on manual data entry. These 7.5 – 15 hours represents just entering time, if a violation is detected a descriptive narrative of the violation is also required. If every calendar day has a violation, which happens all the time, that is a significant waste of resources. ELD systems generate a CSV files in Excel format that contain all the relevant information needed by Investigators and Third Party Auditors.
It is evident that there is a clear need to modernize and integrate ELD systems into the audit process to streamline operations, improve accuracy, and save valuable time and resources. By transitioning to a more technology-driven approach, the Transportation and Economic Corridors sector can enhance efficiency, reduce errors, and ultimately improve overall regulatory compliance.
Transportation and Economic Corridors could have been a leader in technology based solutions but, shortsightedness in leadership will keep Alberta auditors using a abacus. It is crucial that leadership drive progress and innovation within critical sectors like transportation auditing.
