The United States Transportation Security Administration announced that as of August 10, 2006, Canadian truck drivers entering the United States with hazardous materials loads will be required to possess a FAST card. This requirement is restricted to quantities requiring a hazmat placard, and includes explosives.
The announcement was welcomed by the Canadian Trucking Alliance, which first proposed the FAST card for Canadian drivers hauling hazmat into or out of the United States more than three years ago.
However, the alliance's chief executive officer, David Bradley, said, “While we are pleased that the USTSA has finally adopted the solution CTA promoted over the past several years, it is difficult to understand why this announcement came less than three weeks from a legislated deadline, when the process to obtain a FAST card typically takes six to eight weeks.”