US Secretary of Transportation, Mary Peters, looks so pleasant in her Three Amigos photograph along with Transport Canada Minister Lawrence Cannon and the Mexican Secretary of Communications and Transportation Luis Téllez.
I wonder how Minister Cannon feels after the Secretary effectively ignored him. I would not want to be in his shoes and have to report to Prime Minister Harper and Minister Fortier about my failure. He at least got the word "Windsor" in!
Read the Communiqué from the two-day session and you'll understand how the Minister did not get anywhere. Did someone really think that the Secretary would undercut the President of the United States?
CANADA-MEXICO-UNITED STATES
Trilateral Transportation Meeting
Meech Lake, Québec
June 10, 2008
MINISTERIAL DECLARATION
Efficient and integrated transportation systems have been a vital underpinning of the North American success story. Indeed, these systems have supported unprecedented trade flows and have helped to define the strength of our position within the global economy. As we approach the fifteenth anniversary of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), we witness the growth of integrated supply chains and the increasing complexity of global trade. Against this backdrop, we recognize the foresight that accompanied the NAFTA's creation, putting in place a model that many have since emulated.
Ensuring that the benefits that have accrued with the NAFTA endure requires our ongoing commitment to enhance the safe, secure, and efficient flow of goods and people, but will also need a continued focus on sound policies and strategic approaches to the continental transportation system in order to facilitate trade and economic growth among our countries.
Recognizing this, we, the Ministers responsible for transportation in North America, convened our first meeting in Tucson in 2007 in order to better coordinate compatible transportation policies and systems. We committed to intensify our collaboration both bilaterally and trilaterally as appropriate in order to achieve, during the next ten years, significant progress in the areas of aviation cooperation, trade facilitation, transportation safety, and regulatory cooperation and information sharing. We have met for the second time today, at Meech Lake, Quebec, to take stock of progress vis-à-vis our shared priorities and to follow through on efforts begun in Tucson.
Already, real strides have been made:
We are working to enhance safety across transportation modes and to share best practices. We have also taken steps to put in place compatible and environmentally ambitious fuel efficiency standards for cars and light trucks.
On trade facilitation, our governments have launched important national transportation infrastructure initiatives that, taken together, will develop our gateways and trade corridors, better allowing us to maximize the opportunities associated with global supply chains. Mindful of the need to manage our borders in a way that supports commerce and our shared prosperity, we have also taken specific steps to improve the flow of trade across land ports of entry. For example, Canada and the United States have strengthened collaboration to enhance crossing capacity at the Windsor-Detroit Gateway, while the United States and Mexico have taken important steps toward fulfilling components of the NAFTA’s trucking provisions. Finally, anticipating requirements for long-term capacity, efficiency, and sustainability, studies such as that completed on the long-term reliability and sustainability of the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway system stand as key successes. Other studies, such as Ports of Entry United States-Mexico, Analysis of Capacities and Recommendations to increase their Efficiency, are in process and will help to identify opportunities to improve efficiency at borders.
Canada and the United States signed an Open Skies agreement in 2007. Both Canada and the United States have made significant progress in liberalizing their respective air services with Mexico through the expansion of existing air service.
To improve regulatory cooperation and information exchange, the United States has designed a system to provide early notification to Canada and Mexico of the United States Department of Transportation rulemaking in progress.
To build on these achievements, at Meech Lake we engaged in discussions to explore future enhancements to North America's transportation system and shared perspectives on the challenges of infrastructure renewal. These included discussions on strategies to optimize capacity and encourage innovative financing; address the ever-increasing volumes of freight handled by our ports; and address the integral role of ongoing border facilitation efforts to maximizing supply chain efficiencies.
NEXT STEPS
We reaffirm today the objectives set in Tucson, namely: (1) to continue to improve the safety, security, and efficiency of North American transportation systems; (2) to ensure the adoption of new technologies and procedures, and investments in infrastructure improvements; (3) to improve intermodal connections; and (4) to expand the capacity of our freight and passenger transportation systems in partnership with other stakeholders, while minimizing transportation's effect on the environment. To this end, we identify the following specific undertakings:
We have identified the harmonization of vehicle safety regulations, such as "electronic stability control," to serve as a pilot project to study the feasibility of a joint regulatory cooperation among the three countries, taking into account cost-benefit analyses, while, further to their Memorandum of Cooperation on Motor Vehicle Safety, Canada and the United States will identify additional specific areas for collaborative regulatory research geared toward improved crash avoidance and crashworthiness of light and heavy-duty vehicles and harmonized regulations at the bilateral and multilateral levels.
Working to find ways to reduce congestion at major border crossings, Canada, Mexico, and the United States will undertake pilot projects using a new framework to guide the implementation of intelligent transportation systems technology at border sites designated as priorities by each country pair.
We recognize the importance of supporting and promoting strategic infrastructure projects at borders to improve competitiveness of North America. Close coordination/cooperation is key to the successful development of these projects. Through our established bilateral transportation border working groups, we will undertake, in cooperation with our states, provinces, and border agencies, infrastructure planning initiatives to facilitate efficient and secure movement of goods and people across our borders.
In the area of regulatory cooperation, our officials will convene a trilateral multimodal regulatory cooperation meeting in the coming months to discuss the United States Department of Transportation's recent pre-notification innovations and other potential collaborative strategies. As well, our officials will meet trilaterally to review respective rail safety regulations, to develop, by the end of 2008, a plan to move forward to enhance compatibility where appropriate. The U.S. will continue a rulemaking process that proposes to allow Canadian insurance companies to issue commercial motor vehicle insurance policies covering Canadian motor carriers operating in the United States, achieving reciprocity with Canada's treatment of U.S. insurers and motor carriers.
Under the NextGen Trilateral Strategy Group (NTSG) of the North American Aviation Trilateral, we will, through our respective aviation agencies or organizations, identify the current status of continental NextGen key capabilities in order to make recommendations on harmonization, priorities, and pilot projects.
We will continue to share research, information, and lessons learned on Public Private Partnerships and other innovative infrastructure finance and development approaches so as to enable, facilitate, and encourage the use of private capital
Finally, we recognize that improving freight mobility is one of the keys to maintaining our competitive position in a globalized economy and we are developing policies, programs, and strategies to enhance the efficient movement of freight. Our officials will convene a trilateral meeting to compare our evolving national policies and priorities for improving respective freight systems with the objective of assuring that our approaches are complementary and supported through coordination, information exchange, and other appropriate actions.
CONCLUSION
We, the Ministers responsible for transportation in North America, recognize that the challenges and opportunities of trade and transportation require our sustained attention in order that we may effectively anticipate future transportation needs, and assure North America's place in global trade. Our discussions at Meech Lake build on the close collaboration begun in Tucson, and we remain convinced that continuing cooperation and coordination among Ministers will bring benefits to our countries.
We commit to continuing our work together in a spirit of cooperation and goodwill.
I wonder how Minister Cannon feels after the Secretary effectively ignored him. I would not want to be in his shoes and have to report to Prime Minister Harper and Minister Fortier about my failure. He at least got the word "Windsor" in!
Read the Communiqué from the two-day session and you'll understand how the Minister did not get anywhere. Did someone really think that the Secretary would undercut the President of the United States?
CANADA-MEXICO-UNITED STATES
Trilateral Transportation Meeting
Meech Lake, Québec
June 10, 2008
MINISTERIAL DECLARATION
Efficient and integrated transportation systems have been a vital underpinning of the North American success story. Indeed, these systems have supported unprecedented trade flows and have helped to define the strength of our position within the global economy. As we approach the fifteenth anniversary of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), we witness the growth of integrated supply chains and the increasing complexity of global trade. Against this backdrop, we recognize the foresight that accompanied the NAFTA's creation, putting in place a model that many have since emulated.
Ensuring that the benefits that have accrued with the NAFTA endure requires our ongoing commitment to enhance the safe, secure, and efficient flow of goods and people, but will also need a continued focus on sound policies and strategic approaches to the continental transportation system in order to facilitate trade and economic growth among our countries.
Recognizing this, we, the Ministers responsible for transportation in North America, convened our first meeting in Tucson in 2007 in order to better coordinate compatible transportation policies and systems. We committed to intensify our collaboration both bilaterally and trilaterally as appropriate in order to achieve, during the next ten years, significant progress in the areas of aviation cooperation, trade facilitation, transportation safety, and regulatory cooperation and information sharing. We have met for the second time today, at Meech Lake, Quebec, to take stock of progress vis-à-vis our shared priorities and to follow through on efforts begun in Tucson.
Already, real strides have been made:
We are working to enhance safety across transportation modes and to share best practices. We have also taken steps to put in place compatible and environmentally ambitious fuel efficiency standards for cars and light trucks.
On trade facilitation, our governments have launched important national transportation infrastructure initiatives that, taken together, will develop our gateways and trade corridors, better allowing us to maximize the opportunities associated with global supply chains. Mindful of the need to manage our borders in a way that supports commerce and our shared prosperity, we have also taken specific steps to improve the flow of trade across land ports of entry. For example, Canada and the United States have strengthened collaboration to enhance crossing capacity at the Windsor-Detroit Gateway, while the United States and Mexico have taken important steps toward fulfilling components of the NAFTA’s trucking provisions. Finally, anticipating requirements for long-term capacity, efficiency, and sustainability, studies such as that completed on the long-term reliability and sustainability of the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway system stand as key successes. Other studies, such as Ports of Entry United States-Mexico, Analysis of Capacities and Recommendations to increase their Efficiency, are in process and will help to identify opportunities to improve efficiency at borders.
Canada and the United States signed an Open Skies agreement in 2007. Both Canada and the United States have made significant progress in liberalizing their respective air services with Mexico through the expansion of existing air service.
To improve regulatory cooperation and information exchange, the United States has designed a system to provide early notification to Canada and Mexico of the United States Department of Transportation rulemaking in progress.
To build on these achievements, at Meech Lake we engaged in discussions to explore future enhancements to North America's transportation system and shared perspectives on the challenges of infrastructure renewal. These included discussions on strategies to optimize capacity and encourage innovative financing; address the ever-increasing volumes of freight handled by our ports; and address the integral role of ongoing border facilitation efforts to maximizing supply chain efficiencies.
NEXT STEPS
We reaffirm today the objectives set in Tucson, namely: (1) to continue to improve the safety, security, and efficiency of North American transportation systems; (2) to ensure the adoption of new technologies and procedures, and investments in infrastructure improvements; (3) to improve intermodal connections; and (4) to expand the capacity of our freight and passenger transportation systems in partnership with other stakeholders, while minimizing transportation's effect on the environment. To this end, we identify the following specific undertakings:
We have identified the harmonization of vehicle safety regulations, such as "electronic stability control," to serve as a pilot project to study the feasibility of a joint regulatory cooperation among the three countries, taking into account cost-benefit analyses, while, further to their Memorandum of Cooperation on Motor Vehicle Safety, Canada and the United States will identify additional specific areas for collaborative regulatory research geared toward improved crash avoidance and crashworthiness of light and heavy-duty vehicles and harmonized regulations at the bilateral and multilateral levels.
Working to find ways to reduce congestion at major border crossings, Canada, Mexico, and the United States will undertake pilot projects using a new framework to guide the implementation of intelligent transportation systems technology at border sites designated as priorities by each country pair.
We recognize the importance of supporting and promoting strategic infrastructure projects at borders to improve competitiveness of North America. Close coordination/cooperation is key to the successful development of these projects. Through our established bilateral transportation border working groups, we will undertake, in cooperation with our states, provinces, and border agencies, infrastructure planning initiatives to facilitate efficient and secure movement of goods and people across our borders.
In the area of regulatory cooperation, our officials will convene a trilateral multimodal regulatory cooperation meeting in the coming months to discuss the United States Department of Transportation's recent pre-notification innovations and other potential collaborative strategies. As well, our officials will meet trilaterally to review respective rail safety regulations, to develop, by the end of 2008, a plan to move forward to enhance compatibility where appropriate. The U.S. will continue a rulemaking process that proposes to allow Canadian insurance companies to issue commercial motor vehicle insurance policies covering Canadian motor carriers operating in the United States, achieving reciprocity with Canada's treatment of U.S. insurers and motor carriers.
Under the NextGen Trilateral Strategy Group (NTSG) of the North American Aviation Trilateral, we will, through our respective aviation agencies or organizations, identify the current status of continental NextGen key capabilities in order to make recommendations on harmonization, priorities, and pilot projects.
We will continue to share research, information, and lessons learned on Public Private Partnerships and other innovative infrastructure finance and development approaches so as to enable, facilitate, and encourage the use of private capital
Finally, we recognize that improving freight mobility is one of the keys to maintaining our competitive position in a globalized economy and we are developing policies, programs, and strategies to enhance the efficient movement of freight. Our officials will convene a trilateral meeting to compare our evolving national policies and priorities for improving respective freight systems with the objective of assuring that our approaches are complementary and supported through coordination, information exchange, and other appropriate actions.
CONCLUSION
We, the Ministers responsible for transportation in North America, recognize that the challenges and opportunities of trade and transportation require our sustained attention in order that we may effectively anticipate future transportation needs, and assure North America's place in global trade. Our discussions at Meech Lake build on the close collaboration begun in Tucson, and we remain convinced that continuing cooperation and coordination among Ministers will bring benefits to our countries.
We commit to continuing our work together in a spirit of cooperation and goodwill.
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