To comply with new highway weight-restriction laws, Fairway Utilities of Ancaster, Ontario, recently invested roughly $500,000 in a Transway Systems Terra-Vex 125 hydroexcavating truck.

The company took delivery of the truck in March 2017. Built on a tandem-steering-axle Western Star chassis, the unit features a Detroit Diesel engine; a 12-cubic-yard debris tank; a 700-gallon water tank; a 3,800 cfm blower built by Robuschi USA (a brand owned by Gardner Denver); a 26-foot boom; and a hydraulically driven triplex water pump that generates pressure and flow of 3,600 psi and 10 gpm.

But the feature that really sold Fairway Utilities' management was the configuration of the truck’s axles, which promotes weight compliance. Instead of pairing the two rear axles together in a conventional design, the forward axle sits more toward the middle of the truck. As such, there’s a shorter span between that axle and the second axle from the front of the truck, explains Jason Herd, vice-president-director of business development and co-owner of the company.

“So whether you’re rolling down the road with just a load of water or with 12 yards of debris and just a little water left, you’re not going to get fined if you get called to the scales,” he says. “The weight is more evenly distributed across all four axles.”

Two other features appealed to the company. The first: a rear-mounted camera with a cab-mounted monitor. “As far as safety goes, that’s a big one, because with a truck this big and bulky, you’re effectively driving a tank. And when we back it up, many times we’re in close proximity to buildings or pedestrian crossings, so having eyes in back of our head, so to speak, is very helpful for the driver.”

In addition, the camera includes a speaker that allows the nondriving technician, who’s required to get out of the truck to help guide the driver when backing up, to talk directly to the driver. “Those are two great safety features,” Herd says.

The truck also is fully winterized, featuring heated storage cabinets for tools and no exterior hoses — they’re all contained inside heated spaces. This feature alone saves crews hours of time a week because they no longer need to flush debris out of hoses at the end of each workday during winter, he says.

Moreover, the Terra-Vex has proven to be a very dependable machine. “Breakdowns do happen — it’s a machine, after all,” Herd says. “But overall, it’s a very dependable truck. And when we do have problems, Transway, which is based right here in Hamilton, is phenomenal to deal with as far as customer support goes.”