Who We Are
The founding members of Safer Roads Canada are experts in occupational health and safety, transportation engineering and roadways, first responders, the trucking industry, and those who have lost loved ones in fatal crashes involving large commercial vehicles. Collectively, we are dedicated to advocating for improvements to commercial driving regulations and training, as well as public education so that others don’t experience the anguish of not having a loved one come home.
President
Chris is a firefighter, ex-NHL hockey player and runs the Chris Joseph Hockey School in Edmonton, Alberta, but his most treasured role is as a husband and father. Chris’ son Jaxon was a talented Junior A hockey player before he was killed in the Humboldt Broncos bus crash in 2018.
Since that time, Chris has been a tireless advocate and spokesperson for making our roads safer through mandatory training of Class 1 truck drivers and seat belts on buses.
Directors
Directors at Large - Saskatchewan
Carol and Lyle are passionate about road safety and better training of commercial Class 1 drivers after their daughter Dayna, Athletic Therapist for the Humboldt Broncos, died due to injuries sustained in the 2018 bus crash. Residents of Saskatchewan, Carol works in the school system in Muenster and Lyle spent several years working as a semi-truck driver. They are familiar with the trucking industry in Saskatchewan, and Lyle offers unique insights from his experience.
Lyle and Carol also advocate for the use of seat belts on coach buses along with other Humboldt Broncos families.
Mark Wilson
Director at Large - Ontario
Mark is a retired Canadian Registered Safety Professional (CRSP) after a 30 -year career in occupational safety as a trainer and Safety Program Developer. Mark and his family also operated a cattle and crop farm in Northern Ontario over the same 30-year period. Mark was also a Volunteer Fire Fighter for 25 years.
For the last 10 years Mark has been a road safety advocate after his family lost their Son and Brother, Danny, who was a passenger in a vehicle involved in a crash on highway11 in Northern Ontario. Hwy 11 is a busy part of the Trans Canada highway that carries a significant amount of commercial truck traffic.
Mark is now the Volunteer Resource Member for the GEMS Committee (Going the Extra Mile for Safety) in Temiskaming Shores Ontario which advocates for 2+1 roads. He is also a director of Safer Roads Canada, with representation across Canada, that advocates for system improvements to the trucking industry in Canada including better driver training and licencing. Mark is also a member of the Vision Zero Alliance in Ontario; a group established by Parachute Canada and the Ontario Traffic Council to encourage and influence road authorities to adopt safe system design to reduce fatalities and serious injuries on their roads and streets.
Technical Director
Ahmed is a professor of Transportation Engineering at the University of Manitoba and licensed professional engineer in Manitoba. His research aims to improve the resilience and sustainability of road infrastructure and to advance road safety by enhancing road surface friction and drainage. Ahmed provides technical expertise to the group backed by his experience in transportation research and policy development for municipal and provincial governments, the Transportation Association of Canada, and the construction industry.
Former Board Members
Pattie Fair
Founding Board Member
Pattie is an occupational health and safety professional, formerly with WorkSafeBC, now providing safety auditing services through Harbow Enterprises Inc. in Alberta.
While health and safety have been a part of Pattie’s professional life for a long time, advocating for mandatory training of commercial drivers and classifying the profession of truck driver as a trade became a personal mission after her husband Steve and their dog were killed when an inexperienced semi-truck driver lost control and hit them on Highway 1, east of Revelstoke in 2017. As a result of this crash, Pattie launched a House of Commons petition calling on the federal government to take key measures to make the commercial trucking industry safer and more accountable.
Brenda Jones, APR
Founding Board Member
Brenda is a public relations consultant with Nyac Public Relations on Vancouver Island, and she teaches writing to college and university students. Brenda draws on her extensive background in journalism and communications to combine credible research and data with compelling anecdotal evidence to highlight the need for changes to Canada's road safety regulations.
Some of her students plan to work as semi-truck drivers, which motivates her to advocate for regulations to ensure they are well-trained and safe.
Ginny Hunter
Founding Board Member
Ginny, the proud matriarch of a blended family with five grown children, lost her talented, hockey-loving stepson Logan Hunter in the Humboldt Broncos bus crash in 2018. Ginny worked for several years in sales, marketing, fund development and corporate fundraising before moving to the Okanagan in B.C. She brings those professional skills and dedication to lobbying government and working with the trucking industry and other key stakeholders to make our roads safer.
Her husband, Lawrence, is great supporter of these initiatives as well.
