Central Canada is the most densely populated and industrialized region in the country. Its transportation network is a key enabler of international trade with the US through its connections into the American Midwest and Northeast. Using the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway System, this network is key to moving goods to and from Europe and other international markets. Key international exports included automotive products and parts, wood products, metal and minerals. In 2020, the total value of merchandise exported for all modes (excluding pipeline exports) through Ontario and Quebec totaled $317 billion, with 76% of the value destined to the US, 13% to Europe, 5% to Asia, and 1% for Mexico.
Central Canada is the busiest region in terms of surface traffic. Trucking activity plays an important, primarily moving food products, manufactured and other processed goods within the Quebec City-Windsor corridor and to the American States surrounding the Great Lakes. Ontario and Quebec have the busiest road border crossings in Canada. In the Continental corridor, 54% of total merchandise value were exported by road in the last 5 years, compared to 33% and 22% in the Western and Atlantic Corridors, which rely more on marine transportation.
On the Great Lakes, shipping essentially supports the manufacturing sector and grain exports. These are served mostly by lake or seaway size bulk carriers that remain in the Great Lakes during the winter season. The St. Lawrence Seaway portion of the network is used for shipping bulk materials, transshipments of exports and container imports. Grain from the Prairies is typically shipped from the Port of Thunder Bay and carried to different Quebec ports for international exports. In 2020, 37.7 million tonnes of product moved through the Seaway. The following products accounted for two-thirds of the traffic in 2020:
- grain (13.3 million tonnes)
- iron ore (6.1 million tonnes)
- salt (3.1 million tonnes)
- liquid petroleum (1.9 million tonnes)
The Port of Montreal is of strategic importance as it is the entrance to the Seaway, which connects the lower St. Lawrence River to the Great Lakes. The Port of Montreal serves as a major hub for container traffic, mainly serving Quebec, Ontario and the US Midwest. In 2020, 35.1 million tonnes of merchandise including 1.6 million TEUs was handled at the Port of Montreal.
In terms of air cargo transportation, Toronto (Pearson), Hamilton and Montréal (Trudeau and Mirabel) are active in cargo shipping and together accounted for 53.9% (774 thousand tonnes) of air freight traffic in Canada in 2020. This cargo travels mostly to the U.S., the United Kingdom and China.
On the air passenger side, Central Canada is home to the country’s busiest airport, Toronto Pearson International, which recorded 12.9 million passengers in 2020. Destinations included: Canada (40.5%), United States (23.3%), Europe (9.6%), Asia (5.5%) and other international destinations (21.1%). Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport, Canada’s third largest airport, served 5.1 million passengers in 2020. Destinations included: Canada (37.08%), United States (20.04%), Europe (15.37%), Asia (1.0%), and other international (26.51%).
Via Rail’s biggest market operates mostly in Central Canada, which can be separated into two specific corridors.
- Corridor East operates trains between Quebec City, Montréal, Ottawa, and Toronto. This is the busiest corridor, with 830 thousand passengers in 2020.
- Corridor Southwestern Ontario operates trains between Toronto, London, Sarnia, Windsor and Niagara. It carried 292 thousand passengers in 2020.
VIA Rail also operates regional services in the rural areas of the country, including between Montreal and Senneterre, Montreal and Jonquière, and between Sudbury and White River.