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Owner of trucking company involved in Humboldt bus crash charged

Last Updated Oct 10, 2018 at 7:53 pm MDT

The wreckage of a fatal crash outside of Tisdale, Sask., is seen Saturday, April, 7, 2018. Internal government documents show Ottawa considered speeding up a new rule for bus seatbelts after the Humboldt Broncos bus crash. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

EDMONTON – The owner of an Alberta trucking company involved in the fatal Humboldt Broncos bus crash has been charged.

Alberta Transportation Minister Brian Mason says Sukhmander Singh of Adesh Deol Trucking is charged with non-compliance with federal and provincial safety regulations over a six-month period.

Sixteen people were killed and 13 were injured when a semi-trailer and the Broncos hockey bus collided in Saskatchewan last April.

Officials with Alberta Transportation say eight charges have been laid.

A department spokesman says a federal Crown lawyer will be handling the prosecution.

When reached in Calgary, Singh said he didn’t have any comment on the charges.

The news comes as the province laid out plans for new truck and bus training.

Alberta will implement mandatory entry-level training for new Class 1 and Class 2 commercial drivers in the spring of 2019.

Along with the compulsory training, more stringent safety requirements for new commercial truck and bus companies will be put in place.

“We are advancing safety standards in our commercial driving industries to enhance road safety, not just in Alberta, but across the continent, as commercial drivers travel across Canada and North America,” explained Brian Mason, Minister of Transportation. “We’ve worked with our industry stakeholders to make these changes with their support and we are pleased to be moving forward to put them in place.”