OOIDA board approves partnership with Canadian owner-operator group

OOIDA board approves partnership with Canadian owner-operator group    The board of the Missouri-based Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association voted unanimously to establish an affiliation with the Owner-Operator’s Business Association of Canada (OBAC.)
   Each association will keep its autonomy in name and membership, officials said, but a partnership means a common voice on trucking issues like border crossing, government affairs, regulations and judicial processes.
   “We are anxious to move forward with this affiliation as it will be a great benefit to our Canadian members,” said Jim Johnston, OOIDA president and chief executive officer. “An OOIDA/OBAC partnership will enable us to have an increased presence with the Canadian government, which will benefit both our U.S. members that travel to Canada and our Canadian members as well.”
   “We’ll be looking at the excellent array of OOIDA’s programs and services to determine what might be modified or adapted for the Canadian market, or used as templates to build our own,” said Joanne Ritchie, executive director at Ottawa, Ontario-based OBAC. “Insurance and fuel programs will be important, as these represent critical, big-ticket items for owner-ops.”