How many trucks are there in Canada?

There are 700,000 trucks across the nation, 420,000 of which are used to carry freight commercially. The remainder can be found in the hands of governments, utility companies and farmers and occasionally haul commercial goods such as machinery and equipment. About 500,000 are straight trucks and the remaining 200,000 are truck tractors.

How many truckers are there?

That's difficult to count. Not everyone licensed to drive a truck actually does it for a career. Nonetheless, trucking is the most common job of Canadian men. Among the 10 most common jobs reported in the 1996 Census, 222,795 men worked as truck drivers, beating out 215,345 sales representatives and 185,035 janitors. Quebec and New Brunswick skew the numbers a little, however, considering the 54,160 and 7,960 who work as truckers in those respective provinces. By province, Ontario continues to dominate Canada's trucking industry with 74,880 drivers - 73,360 of whom are men.

How many trips do trucks make?

Canada's main highway network handles 612,000 truck trips per week. Some points of Ontario's Hwy. 401 see 37,000 trucks per day.

How safe are trucks?

In terms of highway safety, there were 20 percent fewer trucks involved in accidents in 1995 than in 1989. In fact, trucking is one of the most regulated industries in Canada. While truckers have to record the hours they work and limit their hours on the road (unlike other shift workers who can get in their cars at any time), the mechanical fitness of equipment they use is also closely monitored.

How environmentally friendly is a modern truck?

The fuel efficiency of trucks has doubled in the last 20 years, with a 34,000 kg truck capable of squeezing 2.3 times as many kilometres out of a litre of fuel.

How does the trucking industry affect the overall economy?

For every 10 jobs in the trucking industry, seven are created for suppliers, service industries and road departments, with every $1 in sales translating to 0.70 for another industry.

In the last decade, the trucking industry has grown three percent per year, while the economy as a whole has averaged two percent.

What province sees the most truck-related business?

Without a doubt, Ontario is the centre of Canada's trucking universe, accounting for 28 percent of all for-hire carriers. In turn, they earn 37 percent of the nation's for-hire revenues since they tend to haul more valuable freight. The main highways in Ontario account for 46 percent of truck-kilometres travelled on main highways, while 62 percent of Canada-U.S. truck trips cross at Ontario borders.

But don't discount the Prairies. While they account for 17 percent of Canada's population, they are home to 43 percent of the trucks, primarily because of farmers one truck for every 52 people.

How important is the idea of free trade to the trucking industry?

Very. The fastest-growing source of business has been linked to cross-border trade. While cross-border freight accounted for nine percent of trucking activity in 1980. It reached 23 percent in 1995. A truck crosses the Canada-U.S. Border every three seconds, and $30 million in exports and imports cross the border every hour.

What's meant by Just-In-Time freight?

Today's trucks are more than a tool to move freight. The industry has become so efficient that manufacturing plants and other businesses can use them as warehouses on wheels. Parts and products are simply scheduled to arrive as they're needed, rather than taking up space on a warehouse floor.

How modern is the equipment used by the trucking industry?

Consider that 12,500 Canadian trucks use satellite communications, and that most heavy-truck engines are controlled by electronics and you get the picture.

-- Sources: Trucking in Canada 1998: A Profile, Statistics Canada, Truck News, Motorweek