*For immediate release:*

RAC Directors Allan Boyd, VE3AJB (Ontario North/East) and Phil McBride,
VA3QR (Ontario South), had a very productive meeting with Ontario Ministry
of Transportation officials on Wednesday, May 31, 2017.

The purpose of the meeting was to consult with industry stakeholders on
Ontario's Distracted Driving Law and, specifically, the current five-year
exemption for the handheld use of two-way radios set to expire on January
1, 2018. The meeting resulted in a very productive exchange of information.

At the meeting, Radio Amateurs of Canada stressed the following information
:

- Radio Amateurs of Canada is the national organization representing
66,000 Amateur Radio operators across Canada, more than 20,000 in Ontari
o
alone.
- Public service and emergency communications are vital parts of our
hobby and today the desire to be able to provide this support to their
communities is the leading motivator in those who choose to prepare for
and
pass the Government of Canada examinations required to be authorized to
operate Amateur Radio equipment.
- Radio Amateurs, through the Amateur Radio Emergency Services (ARES),
work closely with community emergency preparedness organizations to be a
ble
to provide communications support to first responders when disasters and
emergencies occur.
- Public service and emergency communications frequently require
communicating while mobile and consequently it is vital that Amateur Rad
io
operators be allowed use our radios while in control of a motor vehicle.
- Radio Amateurs in Ontario also support community events that raise
funds for charities or promote community involvement at events such as
cycling events, running and ski marathons, auto rallies, parades, canoe
and
sailing races, Halloween patrols, and the list goes on.

At the meeting RAC presented Ministry officials with a detailed information
package outlining RAC’s position as well as letters of support from
Ontario
Amateurs and other stakeholders who depend on Amateurs for emergency
communications and community support as outlined above. The letters were
sent to RAC after a call for support was issued by Directors Boyd and
McBride in preparation for the meeting.

RAC Directors have participated in similar discussions across the country
in each province that has enacted distracted driving legislation. Ontario
is the only jurisdiction that does not have a permanent exemption.

Following the meeting, RAC President Glenn MacDonell, VE3XRA, sent a letter
to Claudio DeRose (Director, Safety Policy & Education Branch, Ontario
Ministry of Transportation) to thank MTO officials for taking the time to
meet with RAC officials. He stressed that this is “an important iss
ue for
the tens of thousands of Amateur Radio operators who live in or visit our
province� and he encouraged the Ministry of Transportation to make
the
exemption for two-way radios permanent.

Information is now with the Ministry and the Ontario RAC Directors are
waiting to hear if any further consultation is required. We will keep RAC
members and the Amateur community updated as this issue unfolds. Stay tuned
to the RAC website at http://wp.rac.ca for more information.

*Additional background information:*

Distracted driving regulations continue to be an area of interest for many
Canadian Radio Amateurs. These regulations are made and enforced by
Provincial governments and can vary considerably from province to province
and over time. Radio Amateurs of Canada has prepared a list of links to
current regulations in all provinces that have established them. They can
be found at: http://wp.rac.ca/distracted-driving-regulations-update/

Radio Amateurs of Canada representatives in our regions often work to
clarify regulations where Amateurs may be caught up in them or when the
regulations are being created or modified. A committee was formed to
monitor the legislation and work with government officials on a province by
province basis to look after the interests of Canadian Amateurs. This
committee is under the direction of RAC British Columbia/Yukon Lead, Bill
Gipps, VE7XS. Two provinces are the focus of current activity: British
Columbia and Ontario.

In British Columbia, Bill Gipps, VE7XS, together with two local Amateurs
(Chris Scholefield, VE7QCS and Dave Miller, VE7HR), met several times with
representatives of the BC Government to discuss BC distracted driving
regulations and their application to Amateur Radio. The BC Government
completed their stakeholder engagement and published a new document in
February 2017 which clearly spells out that Amateurs can use “push
to talk�
buttons, on our Amateur Radios, while operating in our motor vehicles.

RAC will continue to provide additional information about distracted
driving regulations on the RAC website as it unfolds. If you have any
questions or concerns or you would like to send a letter of support, please
feel free to contact your Director at any time at the address shown on page
4 of The Canadian Amateur magazine and on the website at
http://wp.rac.ca/board-of-directors/.

Allan Munnik, VA7MP/VE7RMP
Director British Columbia/Yukon
Radio Amateurs of Canada
22444 72nd Avenue
Langley, BC V2Y 2K4

Allan Boyd, VE3AJB

Director Ontario North/East
Radio Amateurs of Canada
27 Red Mill Road, Box 208
Little Current, ON P0P1K0


Phil McBride, VA3QR
Director Ontario South
Radio Amateurs of Canada
134 Longfield Road
Acton, ON L7J 2K4


*Glenn MacDonell, VE3XRA*
*President*
*Radio Amateurs of Canada*




*Alan GriffinRAC MarCom Director*

*wp.rac.ca* http://www.rac.ca/
720 Belfast Road, #217
Ottawa, ON K1G 0Z5
613-244-4367, 1- 877-273-8304