On Tuesday, OMCA conducted the 1st licence status check of the year. The licence status for over 46,000 drivers was checked against the MTO driver database and a report was provided to each subscriber identifying drivers with a licence discrepancy. Subscribers could then contact drivers whose licences have been downgraded or suspended to pre-empt any possibility of a driver getting involved in an accident or incident while holding an improper or suspended licence. As with past status checks (this was our 21st quarterly check) many subscribers were surprised by their results, thankful that our system caught these problems before anything happened. For the third time, the status check report flagged any driver having a "Code W" medical condition that prohibits them from driving a bus or truck in the U.S. The next Quarterly Status Check will be Monday May 26, 2014.
Get new concepts, cost-saving measures and alternatives for managing your organization at the 2014 OTE. Click here to view full program details or select Read More at the bottom of this article.
Plan to attend OTE April 13-16, 2014 in Toronto! Registration fees remain unchanged since 2011! Conference details and registration info are available online at the OTE site.
Once again, OTE will only accept online registrations. Register now at https://ote.ca/registration/conference_registration.cgi. Hard copy, faxed and scan/emailed registration forms cannot be accepted.
OTE is an excellent place for information, ideas and networking. Why reinvent the wheel? Find out from others in the bus industry how they are dealing with current and ongoing challenges. Set time aside to attend the only trade show in North America combining the school bus, motor coach, public transit and specialized transportation industries all under one roof - Tues. April 15. Guest passes for bus company employees will be sent soon for free trade show admission. Register today! For more information, visit the OTE website at www.ote.ca. Hope to see you there!
•	What drives coach insurance rates?
•	Emerging issues in workers compensation - how will they impact you?
•	MTO's new Driver Certification Program (DCP) - is your organization ready?
Join Sands Bethlehem for exciting group tours!
We're talking - over 3,000 slots and 180 table games. Visit our 10 restaurant options, including three from legendary chef, Emeril Lagasse. Then, relax in your own luxurious room or visit the Outlets at Sands Bethlehem and enjoy a little shopping.
Not long ago, central reservation centers (CRCs) brought in the most sales for the hotel and lodging industry, but people now plan trips online and use online travel agents (OTAs) such as Expedia and Priceline.
In January 2012, something remarkable happened at the prestigious Theatre Royal Haymarket in London, UK. After lengthy workshops with over 30 medically discharged military personnel and a professional playwright and director, a new play entitled THE TWO WORLDS OF CHARLIE F was unveiled at two fundraising evenings. The audience, which was comprised of many of the UK's leading actors, theatre practitioners and seasoned theatergoers, was astonished to witness such a powerful and unforgettable examination of the cost of war. The response was so great that the show was taken to the 2012 Edinburgh Fringe Festival, where it too received standing ovations, five-star reviews, full houses and was awarded the festival's coveted Amnesty International Award for Freedom of Expression.
Groups Shouldn't Stay Anywhere Else!
There is no better way to visit Atlantic City - by yourself or with a group - than by bus or motor coach. Hop on one with one of the participating bus companies and you'll receive front-door service to Resorts Casino Hotel.
The number of international tourists who spent a night in Toronto set a new record last year, peaking at more than 1.4 million, according to Tourism Toronto. The total — which doesn't include people visiting from the United States — was marked by a majority of visitors from the United Kingdom, and a sharp increase in the number visiting from China.
The Dubeau family has been transporting residents of Penetanguishene and area since Confederation. It was recently announced they are getting out of the bus business with the sale of Getaway Coach Lines to Hammond Transportation of Bracebridge.
Grab Your FRIENDS & Getaway!
When you want to getaway, go with the original, go with the classic, Go Girlfriends Getaway™ to Greater Reading, PA!
The Heart of the Continent Partnership (HOCP) has announced that it is partnering with National Geographic Society (NGS) to create an online regional geo-tourism initiative, highlighting northwestern Ontario and northern Minnesota. The finished results will include physical tourist maps, an in-depth website, and smartphone applications. The site will be linked in to existing National Geographic Society geo-tourism sites and their homepage.
Niagara Falls will commit $300,000 towards two tourism initiatives. As part of the annual $18 to $20 million the city is estimated to receive for hosting two casinos, Niagara Falls Tourism requested the Honeymoon Capital fork out $250,000 for destination marketing and $50,000 to host a tourism trade show in 2015. It would match contributions made by the tourism agency.
There is no shortage of ideas on what city council should include in its $1.3-billion budget. Council held a marathon session to hear appeals from the public and they included tackling climate change, more bus service, help for an agency that helps immigrants, supporting gender equity, creating a lobbyist registry and some good old fashion belt-tightening.
There are several aspects of travel that annoy me no end: airports' obsession with deodorant, notes in bathrooms urging me to help the hotel save the planet, food poisoning. Few things, though, irritate me as much as the contumely heaped generally upon escorted tours and specifically on coach holidays.
There's some room for improvement in the towing industry in Ontario. There's a patchwork of regulation in the province, made up of 444 municipalities, most of which do not have towing regulations. (Even the handful that do, are not harmonized).
Karen Stintz says her administration would pursue a downtown relief subway line, reform the land transfer tax, support a joint Toronto-U.S. bid for the 2026 World Cup and explore a "hybrid" solution for the eastern part of the Gardiner Expressway. Stintz, the three-term midtown councillor who chaired the Toronto Transit Commission from 2010 until she resigned recently, is running for mayor.
Strolling through the art deco-styled Toronto Coach Terminal today, one notices a cathedral window that sits atop a flight of stairs overlooking the main waiting area. Lighting up with the late afternoon sun, it bears the name Gray Coach Lines, a reference to the bus operator that originally called the terminal home back in 1931. Now you're more likely to see a Greyhound than a Gray Coach at Bay and Edward streets, but for 64 years the latter was a common sight on Toronto roads and Ontario highways.