New Federal Minister of Transport, Chuck Strahl

Chuck Strahl was appointed Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities on August 6, 2010.

Mr. Strahl was first elected to the House of Commons in 1993. He was re-elected in 1997, 2000, 2004, 2006 and 2008.

In February 2006, Mr. Strahl was appointed Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board. In August 2007, he was named Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Federal Interlocutor for Métis and Non-Status Indians.

Prior to entering politics, Mr. Strahl was a partner in a successful road construction and logging contracting firm, and held the responsibility of managing several operations throughout the Fraser Valley. Mr. Strahl has lived his entire life in the Fraser Valley. He and his wife Deb have four children and ten grandchildren.

Right to Information Request # 8: Top Secret Volunteer MFAV Driver Education Program

New Brunswick Minister of Education Roland Hache has refused a request for information about the apparently "top secret" driver education training program that the government has developed despite a Coroner's Jury recommendation for "nothing less" than trained Class 2 yellow school bus drivers behind the wheels of MFAVs. This has forced us to make Right To Information Request #8 in order to get more information about the Volunteer MFAV Driving Program. Let's see how long it takes to get the information!

July 14, 2010

Hon. Mr. Roland Hache
Minister of Education
Constituency Office
691 Principale Street
Petit-Rocher, New Brunswick
E8J 1G1

Dear Mr. Hache:

I am writing at your suggestion to make a request under the Right to Information Act for information relating to the volunteer MFAV driver training program operated by the Department of Education since 2009.

Attached you will find the $5 fee for making a request under the Right to Information Act.

1. How much did it cost to develop the driver-training program for the MFAVs - that is total costs, from curriculum development, instruction, and vehicle rental, MFAV rental for testing, expenses and per diems for the instructor who has to travel to the different areas of the province to teach the course?

2. How many people took the course in 2009-2010 in the entire province broke down by Anglophone and Francophone school district?

3. Of all the people who took the course in 2009-2010, how many passed and how many failed?

4. What is the average age of the people who took the course in 2009-2010?

5. How many of the people who took the course in 2009-2010 would be described as: teachers, coaches, parents, relatives, former students, or other (for example, concerned volunteer citizens with no connection to the students or the school)?

6. Of all the people who took the course in 2009-2010, how many went on to voluntarily drive the MFAV’s?

7. How many trips did all trained drivers take with all MFAV’s in the provincial fleet, what was the average duration of hours that they drove and what was the total mileage?

8. How many trips made by volunteer drivers would be considered "short trips" and how many would be considered "long trips" ex: over 160 kilometres?

9. Were there any incidents involving volunteer drivers that were brought to the attention of the Activity Organizer, the Principal, the school district Superintendent or the Minister of Education? If yes, please explain.

10. Is there a course evaluation mechanism in place for students of the volunteer driver program? If yes, what does the course evaluation consist of and what kind of comments, good and bad, was made of the volunteer driver-training program?

11. Have there been any adjustments to the volunteer driver-training program as a result of input from the students and / or the course evaluation?

12. Please provide a copy of the volunteer driver training curriculum, the course materials, evaluation, a summary of the volunteer driver training program in 2009-2010, its training schedule for the 2009-2010 school year and the training schedule the upcoming 2010-2011 school year.

Thank you for your attention to this request for information under the Right to Information Act.


Yours sincerely,




Isabelle Hains

cc. Marcella Kelly and Ana Acevedo
cc. Denis Landry, Minister of Transportation
cc. Delalene Harris-Foran, President CUPE 1253

Attachment: $5 fee for Right to Information request

Must be Top Secret! Right to Information Request 6 & 7: Seeking Information on Provincial Fleet of Multifunction Activity Vehicles

New Brunswick Minister of Education Roland Hache (right) has refused a request for information about the apparently "top secret" driver education training program that the government has developed despite a Coroner's Jury recommendation for "nothing less" than trained Class 2 yellow school bus drivers behind the wheels of MFAVs. This has led us to ask more questions about the MFAVs themselves and to make sure we get the right answers, we asked the exact same set of questions to both the Minister Hache, and the NB Minister of Transportation, Denis Landry (middle). Environment Minister Rick Miles is at left in this photo taken in September 2009.

In April we wrote to the New Brunswick Minister of Education, Roland Hache, requesting a meeting with him to discuss the implementation of Recommendation #6 of the Coroners Inquest into the death of our sons. Click here to read our letter to Roland Hache, dated April 15, 2010.

We also asked for details on the New Brunswick government sponsored driver training program for volunteers who offered to drive the 21 and 24 passenger Multi Function Activity Vehicles.

We received a response from the Minister on May 14 telling us in no uncertain terms that he didn't think he had to discuss the Coroners Inquest recommendation and that if we wanted to know anything about the volunteer driver training program, we'd have to make a Right To Information Request. Click here to read Minister Hache's response dated May 14, 2010.

That lead us to believe that there is more to the volunteer MFAV driving program than meets the eye, so we decided to make two separate requests, one about the MFAVs specifically which you can read below, and one about the Volunteer MFAV Driver Education program, which you can read by clicking on the following link.

We sent the same letter to the Transportation Minister, Denis Landry, just in case some of the questions cross over into his department.

What we have learned about Right to Information Requests is that if you don't ask the right question to the right person, it doesn't get answered.


______ Right To Information Request # 6________________

July 14, 2010

Hon. Mr. Roland Hache
Minister of Education
Constituency Office
691 Principale Street
Petit-Rocher, New Brunswick
E8J 1G1

Dear Mr. Hache:

I am writing under the Right to Information Act to request answers to the following questions about the Multi Function Activity Vehicles (MFAVs) operated by the province of New Brunswick for transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events in the 2009-2010 school year.

Attached you will find the $5 fee for making a request under the Right to Information Act.

I am also sending this same letter to the Minister of Transportation, Denis Landry in case there are some questions, which cross over into his department.

1. In total, how many 21 passenger and 24 passenger Multi Function Activity Vehicles were operated by the province for use by the Anglophone and Francophone school districts in the New Brunswick Department of Education during the 2009-2010 school year?

2. Which Anglophone and Francophone school districts had MFAVs in 2009-2010 and how many MFAVS did each school district have?

3. Using the two Bathurst High School MFAVs as an example, can and does the Bathurst High School loan its two MFAVs to other schools in the district, or are the two MFAVs exclusive to Bathurst High School students only? In other words, can other schools in the district that do not have MFAVs of their own borrow the vehicles to transport students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events or do they have to find alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events?

Further to this are the MFAV’s loan to other organizations. Is there a fee for the loan of the MFAV’s? Example Church groups or Non-profit organizations.

4. In the Anglophone and Francophone school districts which had MFAVs in 2009-2010, were there times over the course of the school year when the school districts had to employ alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events (for example, did they hire a Class 2 unionized yellow school bus driver to drive a yellow school bus or a bus with more than 24 seat capacity)?

5. If the answer to #4 above is "yes, there were times when the school districts had to employ alternative means", what were these alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events and how many times did this occur in 2009-2010, broken down by Anglophone and francophone school districts?

6. Further to question #5, if the answer to #4 is "yes, there were times when the school districts had to employ alternative means", how many times did Anglophone and Francophone school districts which had MFAVs employ Class 2, unionized yellow school bus drivers to drive yellow school buses or buses with more than 24 seat capacity to transport students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events?

7. In the Anglophone and Francophone school districts which had MFAVs in 2009-2010, but which had to use alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events, please identify the sources of funding to pay for the alternative transportation costs, for example, at the Department of Education, at the School District level, the school level and / or student councils?

8. In the Anglophone and Francophone school districts which had MFAVs in 2009-2010, but which had to use alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events, was there a budget set aside at a) the Department of Education, b) at the school district level, c) at the individual school level, d) at the student councils or e) all of the above to pay for transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events?

9. If the answer to the above is "yes, there was a budget set aside at a) the Department of Education, b) at the school district level, c) at the individual school level, d) at the student councils or e) all of the above", what was the total amount set aside in the budget and how much of it was used to pay for alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events, broken down by Anglophone and Francophone school districts.

10. In all the Anglophone and Francophone school districts which operate MFAVs, what schools actually used the MFAVs in 2009-2010 and how many trips did they make in total transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events?

11. In the Anglophone and Francophone school districts which operated MFAVs, how many trips were considered "short" trips and how many were considered 'long trips" ie. over 160 kilometres.

12. What is the total mileage of all the trips made by MFAVs in all the Anglophone and Francophone school districts during the school year 2009-2010.

13. Which Anglophone and Francophone school districts didn’t have MFAVs in 2009-10?

14. In the Anglophone and Francophone school districts, which did not have MFAVs in 2009-2010, what alternative means of transportation did the Anglophone and Francophone school districts use to transport students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events?

15. In the Anglophone and Francophone school districts, which did not have MFAVs in 2009-2010, please identify the sources of funding used to pay for alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events?

16. In the Anglophone and Francophone school districts which did not have MFAVs in 2009-2010, was there a budget set aside at, a) the Department of Education, b) at the school district level, c) at the individual school level, d) at the student councils or e) all of the above for transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events?

17. If the answer is "yes, there was a budget set aside at a) the Department of Education, b) at the school district level, c) at the individual school level, d) at the student councils or e) all of the above", what was the total amount set aside in the budget and how much of it was used to pay for alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and
co-curricular events, broken down by Anglophone and Francophone school districts.

18. How much was spent by Student Councils to pay for alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events in 2009-2010?

19. How much was sent by Student Councils for the maintenance, repair and purchase of MFAVs in 2009-2010?

20. What is the total operating budget for the provincial fleet of MFAVs used by the Anglophone and Francophone school districts?

21. Finally how many MFAV’s were operated by all school districts prior to January 12, 2008. Which school districts and schools.

Thank you very much for your attention to this letter and I hope to hear from you soon regarding this Right to Information request.

Yours sincerely,




Isabelle Hains

cc. Marcella Kelly and Ana Acevedo
cc. Denis Landry, Minister of Transportation
cc. Delalene Harris-Foran, President CUPE 1253

Attachment: $5 fee for Right to Information request

____ Right To Information Request to Denis Landry ___


July 14, 2010

Hon. Mr. Denis Landry
Legislative Building, Centre Block
706 Queen Street
Fredericton, New Brunswick
E3B 1C5

Dear Mr. Landry:

I am writing under the Right to Information Act to request answers to the following questions about the Multi Function Activity Vehicles (MFAVs) operated by the province of New Brunswick for transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events in the 2009-2010 school year.

Attached you will find the $5 fee for making a request under the Right to Information Act.

I am also sending this same letter to the Minister of Education, Roland Hache, in case there are some questions, which cross over into his department.

1. In total, how many 21 passenger and 24 passenger Multi Function Activity Vehicles were operated by the province for use by the Anglophone and francophone school districts in the New Brunswick Department of Education during the 2009-2010 school year?

2. Which Anglophone and francophone school districts had MFAVs in 2009-2010 and how many MFAVS did each school district have?

3. Using the two Bathurst High School MFAVs as an example, can and does the Bathurst High School loan its two MFAVs to other schools in the district, or are the two MFAVs exclusive to Bathurst High School students only? In other words, can other schools in the district that do not have MFAVs of their own borrow the vehicles to transport students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events or do they have to find alternative means of
transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events?

Further to this are the MFAV’s loan to other organizations. Is there a fee for the loan of the MFAV’s? Example Church groups or Non- profit organizations.

4. In the Anglophone and Francophone school districts which had MFAVs in 2009-2010, were there times over the course of the school year when the school districts had to employ alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events (for example, did they hire a Class 2 unionized yellow school bus driver to drive a yellow school bus or a bus with more than 24 seat capacity)?

5. If the answer to #4 above is "yes, there were times when the school districts had to employ alternative means", what were these alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events and how many times did this occur in 2009-2010, broken down by Anglophone and francophone school districts?

6. Further to question #5, if the answer to #4 is "yes, there were times when the school districts had to employ alternative means", how many times did Anglophone and francophone school districts which had MFAVs employ Class 2, unionized yellow school bus drivers to drive yellow school buses or buses with more than 24 seat capacity to transport students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events?

7. In the anglophone and francophone school districts which had MFAVs in 2009-2010, but which had to use alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events, please identify the sources of funding to pay for the alternative transportation costs, for example, at the Department of Education, at the School District level, the school level and / or student councils?

8. In the anglophone and francophone school districts which had MFAVs in 2009-2010, but which had to use alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events, was there a budget set aside at a) the Department of Education, b) at the school district level, c) at the individual school level, d) at the student councils or e) all of the above to pay for transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events?

9. If the answer to the above is "yes, there was a budget set aside at a) the Department of Education, b) at the school district level, c) at the individual school level, d) at the student councils or e) all of the above", what was the total amount set aside in the budget and how much of it was used to pay for alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events, broken down by Anglophone and Francophone

School districts.

10. In all the Anglophone and Francophone school districts which operate MFAVs, what schools actually used the MFAVs in 2009-2010 and how many trips did they make in total transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events?

11. In the Anglophone and Francophone school districts which operated MFAVs, how many trips were considered "short" trips and how many were considered 'long trips" ie. over 160 kilometres.

12. What is the total mileage of all the trips made by MFAVs in all the Anglophone and Francophone school districts during the school year 2009-2010.

13. Which Anglophone and Francophone school districts did not have MFAVs in 2009-2010?

14. In the Anglophone and Francophone school districts, which did not have MFAVs in 2009-2010, what alternative means of transportation did the Anglophone and Francophone school districts use to transport students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events?

15. In the Anglophone and Francophone school districts, which did not have MFAVs in 2009-2010, please identify the sources of funding used to pay for alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events?

16. In the Anglophone and Francophone school districts, which did not have MFAVs in 2009-2010, was there a budget set aside at. a) the Department of Education, b) at the school district level, c) at the individual school level, d) at the student councils or e) all of the above for transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events?

17. If the answer is "yes, there was a budget set aside at a) the Department of Education, b) at the school district level, c) at the individual school level, d) at the student councils or e) all of the above", what was the total amount set aside in the budget and how much of it was used to pay for alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and
co-curricular events, broken down by Anglophone and Francophone school districts.

18. How much was spent by Student Councils to pay for alternative means of transporting students to extra-curricular and co-curricular events in 2009-2010?

19. How much was sent by Student Councils for the maintenance, repair and purchase of MFAVs in 2009-2010?

20. What is the total operating budget for the provincial fleet of MFAVs used by the Anglophone and Francophone school districts?

21. Finally how many MFAV’s were operated by all school districts prior to January 12, 2008. Which school districts and schools.

Thank you very much for your attention to this letter and I hope to hear from you soon regarding this Right to Information request.

Yours sincerely,


Isabelle Hains

cc. Marcella Kelly and Ana Acevedo
cc. Roland Hache, Minister of Education
cc. Delalene Harris-Foran, President CUPE 1253

Attachment: $5 fee for Right to Information request

BATHURST MOM WELCOMES FEDERAL REVIEW OF 15 PASSENGER VANS

The Northern Light
Page A2, July 6, 2010

An announcement by Transport Minister John Baird that the federal government will study the use of 15 passenger vans for school transportation is being applauded by a Bathurst mother.

Minister Baird's announcement, made last week, is a "huge step forward that will change the face of student safety in Canada," said Isabelle Hains in a news release.

"I'm cautiously optimistic that the minister will do the right thing and ban these 15 passenger vans in schools," she added.

Mrs. Hains lost her 17 year-old son Daniel in a tragic 15 passenger van collision, along with six members of the Bathurst high School Phantoms basketball team and the coach's wife, on Jan.12, 2008. Sin then, she has become a strong advocate for change to student transportation safety in Canada.

She travelled to Ottawa in May to witness the introduction of Bill C-522 by New Democrat Yvon Godin, Member of Parliament for Acadie-Bathurst, which called for the prohibition of 15 passenger vans for student transportation.

The vans have already been banned for such use in New Brunswick and other provinces.

Mrs. Hains was joined in Ottawa by Stella Gurr, a mother from Nanaimo, B.C. who lost her son Michael, in a 15 passenger van collision outside of Brandon, Manitoba in September 2008.

Both women cite studies done years ago by national Highway transportation Safety Agency in the United States that recommended 15 passenger van be prohibited for student use. As a result, 43 states have banned the vehicles for student transportation.

"These vehicles were designed for cargo," said Mrs. Hains.

A 15 Passenger Ford Econoline Van like the one in which seven members of the Bathurst High School basketball team and the coach's wife were killed on January 12, 2008.

MP Godin, who also welcomed Transport Canada's decision, said in his own news release that the security review will include such steps as evaluating the safety and stability of 15 passenger vans, as well as brake tests and rollover threshold tests.

"The testing will show once and for all that these vehicles are not safe for transporting passengers," said Mr. Godin.

The 15 passenger Ford Econoline van in which seven members of the Bathurst High School basketball team and the coach's wife were killed on January 12, 2008.

Minister Baird also announced that the issue of 15 passenger vans will be raised at the transport Ministers conference in Halifax, N.S. in September 2010.

Mrs. Hains said she plans to be there.

"Students depend on adults to make the right decisions to keep them safe," she concluded. "We believe the Minister will make the right decision."

Last month, safety advocate Bryan Murphy was brought to Bathurst for a public presentation on the 15- passenger vans, which he successfully lobbied to have banned in Cowichan, B.C. The mechanic, school bus driver and union representative said it's imperative for the safety of Canada's children that the vans be outlawed for school use.

Safety advocate Bryan Murphy speaks in Bathurst, New Brunswick, June 15, 2010.

"I've come to realize, based on the number of accidents and the research that I've done, it's shown me that these vehicles aren't safe," Mr. Murphy said in an interview.

He, too, was in Ottawa for the introduction of MP Godin's bill.

( With files from Benjamin Shingler of CanadaEast News Service.)

Nanaimo News Bulletin: BC Mom and Student Safety Advocate Hopeful About 15 Passenger Van Review by Transport Canada

Nanaimo residents Stella Gurr and Bryan Murphy with Isabelle Hains of Bathurst, New Brunswick, in Ottawa, Ontario, May 27, 2010. Gurr, Murphy and Hains were in Ottawa for the introduction of Bill C-522 by MP Yvon Godin (Acadie-Bathurst), which calls for the banning of 15 passenger vans for student transportation across Canada. Following the introduction of Bill C-522, federal Transport Minister John Baird announced Transport Canada will undertake a safety review of 15 passenger vans and said the topic will be discussed at the upcoming Transport Ministers' meeting in Halifax, September 29-30, 2010.

Click here to read article "Ottawa to review safety of 15-passenger vans" in the Nanaimo News Bulletin

By Jenn Marshall, Nanaimo New Bulletin

Two Nanaimo residents fighting for a ban on the use of 15-passenger vans are hopeful a federal safety review will take the controversial vehicles off the road.

Transport Minister John Baird announced the safety review last week. It will include consulting with provincial and territorial governments, assessing the safety and stability of the vans, as well as other vehicles used to transport students to extracurricular activities, and brake testing and testing to determine the vehicle rollover threshold.

Nanaimo residents Stella Gurr and Bryan Murphy are heavily involved in the fight against using the vans. Both went to Ottawa recently to hear the first reading of new legislation that would prohibit use of the vans to transport students or the importation of the vans.

Gurr got involved after her 26-year-old son was killed when the van he was in rolled over in Manitoba in September 2008 – just months after another 15-passenger van rollover took the lives of eight high school students near Bathurst, New Brunswick.

Guss is cautiously optimistic about the review, but noted it focuses on use of the vans for students, rather than broader public use.

Transport Canada also plans to launch an awareness campaign about safe use of the vehicles after the review is completed, which Gurr worries will mean continued use of the vans.

“That’s the line that really bothered me,” said Gurr. “I feel there’s no safe use of them, period. I believe the review needs to strike right at the heart of the problem – the actual design of the van.”

Murphy, a mechanic and bus driver for Nanaimo school district and treasurer of CUPE local 606, has travelled around B.C. on behalf of his union to speak with communities about the dangers of the vehicles.

He wants to attend the Council of Ministers meeting in September in Halifax, where leaders from across Canada will discuss the issue.

“The last time they did a review was in 2001 and there’s a lot of information that’s available now that wasn’t available then,” he said. “The vehicles are unstable. If this is an opportunity to find a way to make it work, that’s really disappointing.”

Murphy’s research on the vans, which indicates that the vehicles’ high centre of gravity makes the vans prone to rollovers when drivers lose control, was enough to convince Cowichan trustees to ban the vehicles. Nanaimo trustees have not taken a similar step.

The argument against banning the vehicles is that they are the most cost-effective way to take students to and from extra-curricular events.

An e-mailed response from Transport Canada states that if any class of vehicle is found to be dangerous based on safety history and casualty statistics, the department could impose regulations to address the cause of the problem.

Provinces regulate vehicle use, while Transport Canada regulates the design and construction of new vehicles based on performance criteria.


Click here to read article "Ottawa to review safety of 15-passenger vans" in the Nanaimo News Bulletin

Safety advocate hopes Ottawa will do the right thing'

Stella Gurr of Nanaimo, British Columbia and Isabelle Hains of Bathurst, NB went to Ottawa in May to witness the introduction of Bill C-522, a bill to ban the use of 15 passenger vans for student transport. On June 25, Minister of Transport John Baird announced he will study the use of 15 passenger vans for student use.

Transportation: Feds agree to study use of 15-passenger vans by schools

BATHURST - A Bathurst mother is praising the Canadian government's decision to study the use of 15-passenger vans for school transportation.

Click here to read original article in the Telegraph Journal on line

Federal Transport Minister John Baird announced this week the government will review the safety standard applicable to 15-passenger vans, with the intent to increase awareness of passenger safety among school board authorities.

"By launching this review, we can determine the best safety options for students during their trips and help to prevent tragedies on our roads," Baird said in a statement.

Isabelle Hains, who became a leading safety advocate after losing her 17 year-old son Daniel in a tragic 2008 crash involving one of the vans, called the announcement a "huge step forward" that will change the face of student safety in Canada.

"I'm cautiously optimistic that the minister will do the right thing and ban these 15-passenger vans in schools," said Hains, who travelled to Ottawa last month to support a private member's bill introduced by Acadie-Bathurst New Democrat MP Yvon Godin. The bill called for the prohibition of 15-passenger vans for student transportation.

Baird said the review will include consultation with provincial and territorial governments, an assessment of the safety and stability of 15-passenger and multi-function activity buses, and brake testing and vehicle rollover threshold testing.

Upon completion, Transport Canada will undertake a safety awareness campaign to heighten knowledge of the safe use of the vans.

In addition to the study, Baird also announced that the issue of 15-passenger vans will be raised at the transport ministers' conference in Halifax in September.

Hains said she plans to attend the conference to remind the ministers of the terrible toll these vehicles have had on families across Canada.

She welcomed the proposed awareness campaign mentioned by Baird, but cautioned that there is no safe use of 15-passenger vans.

"Students depend on adults to make the right decisions to keep them safe," said Hains. "We believe the minister will make the right decision and ban these vehicles forever in schools across Canada."

Despite their questionable safety record, the vans are popular transportation for school boards, sports teams and daycare centres.

In recent years, the United States National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has issued numerous safety warnings about the vans, which are now banned for the transporting of children in 43 American states. The United States government also prohibits the sale of the vans to schools and daycares.

Only three provinces in Canada have banned the use of 15-passenger vans for student transportation. Nova Scotia stopped using the vehicles in 1986 after two accidents resulted in the deaths of students. New Brunswick banned their use following the Bathurst tragedy. Quebec took the initiative in the summer of 2008 and will not allow 15-passenger vans to be used by schools.

Click here to read original article in the Telegraph Journal on line

MAX104.9 FM Bathurst: VAN BAN LOOKING GOOD

The feds are reaping the early rewards for their decision to take a careful look at the use of 15-passenger vans for student transportation.

Click here to listen to original story on MAX104.9 FM in Bathurst

Federal Transport Minister John Baird announced this week that the DOT will review the vans, and increase awareness of passenger safety among the school board authorities.
Isabelle Hains who became a leading safety advocate following the 2008 Boys in Red tragedy, called the announcement a "huge step forward."

Acadie-Bathurst MP, Yvon Godin, also deserves his share of the kudos for bringing forth a private members bill aimed at banning the vans for student travel nationally.
When the testing is said and done Transport Canada will undertake a safety awareness campaign to boost the knowledge of the safe use of the vans.

In addition to the study, Baird also announced that the issue of 15-passenger vans will be raised at the transport ministers' conference in Halifax in September.