CALGARY—Loosened standards for agricultural truck and school bus drivers to receive their Class 1 or 2 driver’s licences are off the table according to the Alberta government.

Mark Jacka, chief of staff for Transportation Minister Ric McIver, confirmed on Saturday that the United Conservative government is no longer considering separate standards for farm sector and school bus drivers to receive certification. This decision comes after families of the victims in the 2018 Humboldt Broncos bus crash arrived at the Alberta Legislature earlier this week to call for a renewed commitment to stronger safety measures for all drivers in the province.

Sixteen people were killed and 13 were injured when an inexperienced Calgary truck driver collided with a bus carrying the Humboldt Broncos junior hockey team in April 2018. After this crash, Alberta implemented a mandatory training program for all new Class 1 and 2 drivers.

The United Conservative government was considering looser rules for agricultural workers and school bus drivers, after hearing concerns from these drivers that they were having difficulty meeting the new safety requirements. But Jacka said on Saturday that these drivers will still be required to complete the province’s mandatory training program.

“Minister McIver wanted to clarify that farmers and school bus drivers will not be permanently exempted going forward. Our goal is to work with those groups to ensure orderly transition to the new system,” Jacka said.

Drivers known as “transition drivers” who received their licences after the training program was announced but before it became mandatory are required to take the program by early 2020. New agricultural and school bus drivers are still allowed to apply for extensions to complete the training later in 2020.

But in September, some of these transition drivers received letters from the province saying transition drivers with clean records — no demerits, violations or suspensions — won’t have to take the new training. Around 5,500 commercial drivers qualify as transition drivers and, therefore, may avoid this training under those conditions.

On Friday, McIver said transition drivers with clean records will be placed on a two-year probationary period that will require them to to retest if they receive any kind of infraction during that period.

All drivers who got their Class 1 or 2 licence after Feb. 28, 2019 will still be required to take the new training.

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