Kim Richardson Wins Lee Crittenden Award at TCA Convention

Kim Richardson, president of KRTS Transportation Specialists, Caledonia, Ontario is the 2015 recipient of the Lee J. Crittenden Memorial Award, presented by the Professional Truck Driver Institute, Inc. (PTDI). The honor was bestowed March 10, 2015 at the Gaylord Palms in Kissimmee, Florida during the annual convention of the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA), the organization that manages PTDI.

The Crittenden Award, sponsored by Cengage Learning of Clifton Park, New York, is given to a person who exemplifies the overall mission of PTDI, for which Lee Crittenden was a staunch supporter until his death in April 1998. PTDI raises the quality of truck driver training courses by establishing and promoting minimum training standards, and by certifying courses that meet those standards.

Kim grew up around the trucking industry because his father was a professional truck driver. Working from a card table in his basement, he launched a family business in 1989 that would grow into the award-winning company that it is today. Offering specialized training for the transportation and construction industries, KRTS now services more than 400 corporate clients and has helped more than 9,000 people obtain their commercial drivers’ licenses.

He first got involved with PTDI in 1996 and has remained on the Board for an impressive 19 years. He has served on PTDI’s Standards Review, Nominating, and Image committees as well as its Driver Finishing Task Force, and has served on TCA’s School Committee since 2011.

Over the years, Richardson has participated in the development, implementation, and revisions of PTDI’s standards, and he has been relentless in his promotion of quality truck driver training. At his own school, he has maintained a PTDI-certified course since 1998. In addition, he is a founding member of the Transport Training Schools Association of Ontario (TTSAO).