Ontario Truck Training Academy
http://www.otta.ca/
Profile of Career College/Trade School
We are registered college under the Private Career Colleges Act through the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities. We have been in the business of training drivers for commercial driving since 1998. We have an excellent success rate (currently stands at 80% on first attempt) with a job assistance program (currently at 98%). We currently are the only Truck Training School with an Excellent CVOR rating with the Ministry of Transportation.
OTTA (Ontario Truck Training Academy) train’s applicants how to get their A,B,C,D, and Z licenses. As a pre-requisite to instruct at our Academy our instructors require 25 years commercial driving experience. (As you may or may not know currently in Ontario there is no government mandate as to the rules that one can become an In-Cab Tractor Trailer Instructor, unlike the G license mandate. The tractor trailer instructor only requires a valid class AZ license, no instructor license. So therefore anyone can get a job teaching at school for truck driver training.) The ratio’s that we strive by are 15-1 in-class, and one-on-one for in-cab training. As an Academy we do not believe in group training for the in-cab portion. We find the amount the student actually learns during the group observation time is not a necessity.
Our in-class curriculum uses the Professional Truck Drivers Institute (PTDI) text book, and in class lectures. Students take courses for Transportation of Dangerous Goods (TDG), and Commercial Driver Improvement Course (CDIC), were they earn certificates that are pursuant with industry standards. Each student will complete a TTSAO (Truck Training Schools Association of Ontario) final exit test (consists of multiple choice questions), this test ensures the quality of training that the student is receiving, and that the student has met the learning objectives. When the student graduates they will receive a TTSAO diploma. Students who graduate with a Truck Training Schools Association diploma are automatically given a two to three year Safe Driving record by some of Canada’s leading commercial insurance carriers, thus making them the premiere hiring choice for transportation companies covered by those insurers. Ontario Truck Training Academy’s curriculum exceeds the minimum diploma requirements for the TTSAO Diploma.
Students learn on various pieces of equipment with a wide variety of engines and transmissions, such as 10, 13, and 15 speed transmissions. We offer a variety trucks in our fleet such as Mack’s, Kenworth’s, Freightliner’s, Fords, Internationals, and Sterling’s.
Additional Pre Trip (circle check time) is completed separate from the behind the wheel time. Though you have to insure that the truck is safe to drive prior to driving the truck, having pre trip inspections additional will maximize the behind the wheel exposure. Students also have advanced backing time where students learn Blindside, Serpentine, Straight, and dock backing.
During the past year our students have had use of our newly acquired second simulator. This simulator teaches defensive driving hands on with a variety of life like simulations, Everything from DUI’s on the road, a deer crossing, fog, hail, snow, rain, and tire blowouts. The student can feel all simulation in the steering wheel and the motion of the seat. This simulator can cost in excess of a half a million dollars and has been purchased by many large North American trucking firms to train their experience drivers, such as Schneider National, Bison, Pepsi, UPS, and J.B Hunt, along with a wide variety of Law Enforcement, Peace Officer, and Fire Departments.
OTTA has been providing training for Sir Sanford Fleming students in Lindsay that are taking the Heavy Equipment, Drilling, and Arboriculture since 1996. With locations in Oshawa, Lindsay, and Peterborough, we are an HRSDC approved school and we work closely with career councillors to offer the best training for our students.
Though OTTA does not get paid for student placements we are actively involved in placing our students. Student placement is on the top of our priority list with companies calling us daily for our graduates. We currently work with approximately 25 different employers that hire our graduates and are willing to submit a testimonial regarding our training. Once a graduate is hired to work at a company the company will then provide additional training for the employee to go through prior to hitting the road on their own.
Campus/School Location(s)
- Ontario Truck Training Academy - Oshawa
- Ontario Truck Training Academy - Peterborough
