2023-24 Details on Transfer Payment Programs over $5 million

The Airports Capital Assistance Program assists eligible applicants in financing safety-related capital projects to ensure the continued safety of the Canadian travelling public.

The Program does not have repayable contributions.

• Not-for-profit organizations and charities
• Government

The Outaouais Road Development Agreement (ORA) makes contributions to the Government of Quebec for highway efficiency and safety improvements in the Outaouais region, while encouraging regional and industrial development and tourism in the National Capital Region.

The Program does not have repayable contributions.

March 31, 2026

The objectives of this program are to provide targeted support related to Canada's network of airports to prevent reduced connectivity, diminished competition, cancelled or deferred infrastructure projects, mitigate price increases for air travelers and to ensure that Canada's air transportation system remains financially viable, operational, safe, and secure.

The program does not have repayable contributions.

• Non-profit organizations

The Ferry Services Contribution Program provides financial assistance to maintain three inter-provincial ferry services in Atlantic Canada and Eastern Quebec. More specifically, the contributions are for the following services:

• Between Wood Islands, Prince Edward Island and Caribou, Nova Scotia operated by Northumberland Ferries Ltd.;
• Between Cap-aux-Meules, Îles de la Madeleine, Quebec and Souris, Prince Edward Island operated by CTMA Traversier Ltée; and
• Between Saint John, New Brunswick and Digby, Nova Scotia operated by Bay Ferries Ltd.

The Program does not have repayable contributions.

The program is expected to have the following results:

• Safe, efficient and reliable ferry services between Cap-aux-Meules, Îles de la Madeleine and Souris, Prince Edward Island; Wood Islands, Prince Edward Island and Caribou, Nova Scotia; and Saint John, New Brunswick and Digby, Nova Scotia.
• Certain remote communities will have access to regional transportation options.

• For-profit organizations

• Discuss and provide recipients with clear template-based contribution agreements, leases and charter party agreements;
• Annually review and negotiate the performance objectives and budget required to deliver the ferry services as per the terms of the agreements;
• Inform recipients of service standards and reporting requirements based on each recipient's risk profile;
• Maintain an ongoing dialogue with recipients to assess change and progress via monthly conference calls;
• Follow-up with recipients as required on project activities, funding requirements and reporting requirements; and
• Notify recipients of the requirement to conduct audits and inform us of the audit findings.

The Gateways and Border Crossings Fund (GBCF) is a merit-based program that funds transportation infrastructure and other related initiatives to:

• Develop and exploit Canada's strategic gateways, trade corridors and border crossings; and
• Better integrate the national transportation system.

The Program does not have repayable contributions.

The Gateways and Border Crossings Fund is expected to achieve the following:

• Reduce the end-to-end transit time of containerized freight arriving from ports in Asia; and
• Reduce the end-to-end transit time of a select grouping of commodities, such as grains, departing from Canada to Asia.

Not-for-profit organizations and charities

For-profit organizations

Government

International (non-government)

Other

Transport Canada provides an annual grant to the Province of British Columbia to support coastal ferry services. The program fulfills the federal government's legal obligations as set out in the agreement between the Government of Canada and the Province of British Columbia signed in 1977 whereby the Province would assume the sole responsibility for coastal ferry services in return for an on-going indexed grant from Canada.

The Program does not have repayable contributions.

• Government

The Incentives for Zero-Emission Vehicles Program (iZEV) is a key road transportation contributor towards achieving the overall objectives of Canada's Climate Plan. The Program aims to:

• Make it more affordable for Canadians and Canadian businesses/organizations to adopt this clean technology;

• Reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions from transportation;
• Increase the adoption of light-, medium- and heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs); and
• Help with meeting the Government of Canada's light-duty vehicle ZEV sales targets.

The iZEV Program currently consists of two components as follows:

• Light-duty zero-emission vehicles (grants): Canadians and Canadian businesses and organizations can receive point-of-sale incentives of up to $5,000 per eligible new light-duty ZEV purchased or leased^{Footnote 1} (currently available until March 31, 2025, or until available funding is exhausted); and
• Medium- and Heavy-duty vehicles (grants): Canadian businesses and organizations can receive point-of-sale incentives of up to $200,000^{Footnote 2} per eligible new medium- and/or heavy-duty ZEV purchased or leased (currently available until March 31, 2026, or until available funding is exhausted).

The Program does not have repayable contributions.

The Program is expected to increase the affordability and availability of ZEVs across Canada, which will provide long-term environmental benefits to Canadians. Specifically, we expect that the Program will:

• Incentivize Canadians and Canadian businesses and organizations to increase their purchases/leases of ZEVs;
• Lead to a reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from road transportation;
• Ensure that ZEVs are a viable and affordable vehicle option for Canadians and Canadian businesses and organizations; and
• Increase ZEV uptake for new vehicles, including towards achieving a mandatory 100% sales/lease target by 2035 for light-duty vehicles.

Common to both components of the program:

• For-profit organizations
• Not-for-profit organizations and charities
• Government (provincial/territorial, municipal, Indigenous)

Applies exclusively to the light-duty component:

• Individual or sole proprietorships

June 22, 2017

Ongoing

The National Trade Corridors Fund (NTCF) provides funding to contribute to the competitiveness and productivity of Canada and its transportation system through investments that:

• Support the flow of goods and passengers by reducing bottlenecks and address capacity issues;
• Help the transportation system withstand the effects of climate change and to ensure it is able to support new technologies and innovation;
• Address the unique transportation needs in Canada's North to improve safety and facilitate economic and social development; and
• Build on investments made by a variety of public and private sector partners.

The Program does not have repayable contributions.

The National Trade Corridors Fund is expected to achieve the following:

• Funded projects are effectively and efficiently implemented (on time, on scope and on budget)
• Capacity of the national trade corridors have been enhanced
• Traditional and innovative investments in trade-related transportation infrastructure help sustain and support environmentally responsible economic growth and jobs for middle class Canadians

• For-profit organizations
• Not-for-profit organizations and charities
• Indigenous recipients
• Government
• Academia and public institutions
• Other (public sector organizations, Canada Port Authorities, National Airports Systems Airport Authorities)

Engagement initiatives include:

• Calls for project proposals;
• Meetings with partners and stakeholders;
• Program details are posted on TC's website and disseminated through outreach activities, such as information webinars.

April 1, 2032

Not applicable

The terms and conditions have not been reviewed since the commencement of the Program, as there is a contractual agreement between the Government of Canada and Strait Crossing Development Inc.

• Transportation corridors get products reliably to market; and
• Transport Canada manages its assets effectively

The Northumberland Strait Crossing subsidy payments are made to the bridge operator to honour a constitutional obligation to provide a transportation link between Prince Edward Island and the mainland.

The Program does not have repayable contributions.

• For-profit organizations

Canada's oceans and marine environments are protected from marine shipping impacts.

Transportation corridors enable efficient movement of products to market.

A safe transportation system.

The Program to Advance Indigenous Reconciliation's primary objective is to encourage effective Indigenous participation, knowledge sharing and collaboration regarding transportation-related policies, processes, regulations, legislation and directives. There are currently several separate initiatives under this Program, including:

• The Community Participation Funding Program (CPFP) to provide short-term grant funding for Indigenous groups and local communities to engage and share their knowledge and expertise in the development and improvement of Canada's marine and rail transportation systems;
• The Program to Enhance Rail Safety Engagement (PERSE) to provide longer-term rail safety contribution funding to Indigenous and local communities as a complement to the CPFP rail safety and security component;
• The Joint Arctic Maritime Management Capacity Building Program (JAMMCB) provides longer-term grant funding to organizations to build Inuit marine management capacities in the High Arctic;
• Grants and contributions to provide funding to Indigenous groups/organizations in supporting the development of new Marine Protected Areas (MPA) and in the protection of existing MPAs;
• The Marine Safety Equipment and Training Program (MSET) provides funding for equipment and training to eligible Indigenous communities to improve vessel safety and build an understanding of safety on the water along the Trans Mountain Expansion Project (TMX) marine shipping route; and
• The Indigenous Participant Funding Program (IPFP) provides:
  • Grants for short-term consultations with Indigenous groups on policies and decisions made under the Canadian Navigable Waters Act (CNWA) and the Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act (WAHVA) that could impact Indigenous or treaty rights.
  • Contributions that seek to support ongoing (i.e., longer-term) dialogue with National Indigenous Organizations and capacity building for Indigenous groups for the implementation of the CNWA and WAHVA^{Footnote 3}.

The Program does not have repayable contributions.

In the short-term, the Program is expected to result in:

• Indigenous and local communities being engaged;
• Consultations with Indigenous communities being facilitated; and
• Policy and program dialogue with Indigenous Peoples informing the implementation of policy, legislation and program initiatives.

In the intermediate term, the Program is expected to result in:

• Indigenous Peoples being engaged and involved in the implementation of new rail and marine-related (including Oceans Protection Plan initiatives) legislation/acts, policies and program initiatives;
• Increased knowledge of the national transportation system (e.g., navigation) and its impacts among recipients;
• The collection and use of Indigenous knowledge; and
• Indigenous Peoples and other communities that have the training and equipment needed to understand and respond to marine activities in real-time.

• Not-for-profit organizations and charities
• Indigenous recipients
• Government
• Other (e.g., local communities)

Given the nature of the Program, we need to communicate regularly with applicants and recipients on funding issues, including how the Program is designed and how funding is delivered. For example, we hold virtual consultations and information sessions (e.g., teleconferences and MS Teams or Zoom sessions) with applicants and recipients on the design and delivery of the Program.
Calls for proposals under this program are both set in accordance with appropriate timelines and available funding and continuous intake depending on the program.

Protecting Oceans and Waterways
Indigenous Relations and Navigation Protection

The objectives of the Program to Protect Canada's Coastlines and Waterways (PPCCW), which is known publicly as the Oceans Protection Plan (OPP), are to strengthen the safety of Canada's marine transportation system and protect Canada's coastlines and waterways. This aligns with our Department's core responsibility of providing Canada with a green and efficient marine transportation system. More specifically, the Program aims to:

• Protect Canada's coasts and waterways from hazards (e.g., by removing wrecked and abandoned boats);
• Enhance maritime situational awareness for boaters in real-time within higher-risk coastal waterways near Indigenous communities;
• Engage with Indigenous and other coastal communities to share marine-related local knowledge and best practices to aid in the development of future policies and regulations;
• Develop innovative solutions for reducing the potentially harmful effects from ballast water from ships;
• Increase the number of Canadians in the marine sector, particularly women, Northerners, Inuit and other Indigenous Peoples; and
• Support:
  • Indigenous reconciliation efforts;
  • Research into developing recyclable boats;
  • Safer marine operations, and equipment and infrastructure development in the North and, protect northern communities from marine pollution incidents; and
  • Education, awareness and outreach projects.

The PPCCW does not have repayable contributions.

This Program is expected to:

• Increase:
  • The number of marine training schools offering marine training targeted to Indigenous and other underrepresented groups;
  • The availability, accessibility and reliability of marine traffic information shared with non-federal entities (e.g., Indigenous and coastal communities, provinces/territories);
  • The number of Northern communities deploying new safety equipment and basic marine infrastructure obtained through the program;
  • The number of community harbours in the High Arctic; and
  • Awareness of vessel owner responsibilities and research supporting environmentally responsible vessel end-of-life management; and
• Strengthen the prevention and response to marine safety and pollution incidents by:
  • Engaging with Indigenous groups and other communities that participate in Canada's marine safety system;
  • Reducing the number and negative impact resulting from marine incidents, spills and ballast water discharge; and
  • Reducing the number of abandoned, hazardous and wrecked vessels present in Canadian waters.

• For-profit organizations
• Not-for-profit organizations and charities
• Government
• Academia and public institutions
• Indigenous recipients
• Individual or sole proprietorships
• Other (e.g., Canada port authorities)

Engagement initiatives include:  

• Calls for project proposals;  
• Consultations and Meetings with partners and stakeholders  
• Program details are posted on TC's website and disseminated through outreach activities, such as information webinars.

The Rail Safety Improvement Program (RSIP) provides federal funding in the form of grants or contributions to help improve rail safety, contribute to increasing safety at grade crossings and along rail lines, address climate change resilience through the rehabilitation, mitigation, and/or prevention of the impacts of climate change/extreme weather along rail lines and rail property, and increase public confidence in Canada's rail transportation system.

RSIP includes the Rail Climate Change Adaptation Program that was created to help Canada's rail sector research, develop, and implement innovative technologies, tools, and approaches to address risks due to climate change and extreme weather.

The Program does not have repayable contributions.

The Program aims to improve rail safety by: 

• Supporting vulnerable infrastructure by ensuring resilience to extreme weather events and adaptation to climate change;
• Addressing climate change resilience through the rehabilitation, mitigation, and/or prevention of the impacts of climate change/extreme weather along rail lines and rail property; 
• Closing, relocating or improving road/railway crossings; 
• Measures taken to improve safety at rail property; 
• Developing and/or using outreach or training materials that promote rail safety;
• Piloting of new technologies at grade crossings and on rail lines; and
• Tests, evaluations, studies and analysis of emerging transportation technologies, as well as research studies for rail safety improvements.

• Provinces and territories;
• Municipalities and local and regional governments;
• Road and transit authorities;
• Crown corporations;
• For-profit and not-for-profit organizations (including academia);
• Indigenous groups, communities, and organizations;
• Individuals/private landowners.

These include: 

• Calls for project proposals;
• Meetings with partners and stakeholders; and
• Program details are posted on TC's website and disseminated through outreach activities, such as webinars. 

This program provides funding to ensure that safe, reliable, viable and sustainable passenger rail services are provided to certain areas of the country where these services are the only means of surface transportation for remote communities. Funding for both operating and capital projects is provided.

The Program does not have repayable contributions.

The Program will maintain a safe, reliable, viable and sustainable passenger rail services in remote communities; and in remote communities and complete capital projects that enable the acquisition of railway assets or the construction or rehabilitation of railway assets.

• For-profit organizations
• Indigenous recipients