Canada, the world's second-largest country in total area, is dedicated to having an efficient, high-capacity multimodal transportation spanning often vast distances between natural resource extraction sites, agricultural and urban areas. Canada's transportation system includes more than 1,400,000 kilometres (870,000 mi) of roads, 10 major international airports, 300 smaller airports, 72,093 km (44,797 mi) of functioning railway track, and more than 300 commercial ports and harbours that provide access to the Pacific, Atlantic and Arctic oceans as well as the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway. In 2005, the transportation sector made up 4.2% of Canada's GDP, compared to 3.7% for Canada's mining and oil and gas extraction industries.
The Canadian Pacific Railway, also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), was a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway was owned by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001.
Light rail transit (LRT) is a form of passenger urban rail transit characterized by a combination of tram and rapid transit features. While its rolling stock is similar to that of a traditional tram, it operates at a higher capacity and speed and often on an exclusive right-of-way. In many cities, light rail transit systems more closely resemble, and are therefore indistinguishable from, traditional underground or at-grade subways and heavy-rail metros.
The Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States.
Via Rail Canada Inc., operating as Via Rail or Via, is a Canadian Crown corporation that is mandated to operate intercity passenger rail service in Canada.
GO Transit is a regional public transit system serving the Greater Golden Horseshoe region of Ontario, Canada. With its hub at Union Station in Toronto, GO Transit's green-and-white trains and buses serve a population of more than seven million across an area over 11,000 square kilometres (4,200 sq mi) stretching from Kitchener in the west to Peterborough in the east, and from Barrie in the north to Niagara Falls in the south. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 56,036,900. GO Transit operates diesel-powered double-decker trains and coach buses, on routes that connect with all local and some long-distance inter-city transit services in its service area.
Canada has a large and well-developed railway system that primarily transports freight. There are two major publicly traded transcontinental freight railway systems, Canadian National (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC). Nationwide passenger services are provided by the federal crown corporation Via Rail, and three international services to the US by Amtrak. Three Canadian cities have commuter train services: in the Montreal area by Exo, in the Toronto area by GO Transit, and in the Vancouver area by West Coast Express. These cities and several others are also served by light rail or metro systems. Only one (Toronto) has an extensive streetcar (tram) system. Smaller railways such as Ontario Northland Railway also run passenger trains to remote rural areas. The Rocky Mountaineer and Royal Canadian Pacific provide luxury rail tours for viewing scenery in the Canadian Rockies as well as other mountainous areas of British Columbia and Alberta.
The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) is a nonprofit group of approximately 1,500 public and private sector member organizations that promotes and advocates for the interests of the public transportation industry in the United States.
Transport Canada is the department within the Government of Canada responsible for developing regulations, policies and services of road, rail, marine and air transportation in Canada. It is part of the Transportation, Infrastructure and Communities (TIC) portfolio. The current Minister of Transport is Pablo Rodriguez. Transport Canada is headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario.
The Trillium Line, also called O-Train Line 2, is a diesel light rail transit (DLRT) service in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, operated by OC Transpo. The line has been closed since May 2020 for service expansion.
Canadian Car and Foundry (CC&F), also variously known as "Canadian Car & Foundry" or more familiarly as "Can Car", was a manufacturer of buses, railway rolling stock, forestry equipment, and later aircraft for the Canadian market. CC&F history goes back to 1897, but the main company was established in 1909 from an amalgamation of several companies and later became part of Hawker Siddeley Canada through the purchase by A.V. Roe Canada in 1957. Today the remaining factories are part of Alstom after its acquisition of Bombardier Transportation completed in 2021.
Hawker Siddeley Canada was the Canadian unit of the Hawker Siddeley Group of the United Kingdom and manufactured railcars, subway cars, streetcars, aircraft engines and ships from the 1960s to 1980s.
Bombardier Transportation was a Canadian-German rolling stock and rail transport manufacturer, with headquarters in Berlin, Germany. It was one of the world's largest companies in the rail vehicle and equipment manufacturing and servicing industry. Bombardier Transportation had many regional offices, production and development facilities worldwide. It produced a wide range of products including passenger rail vehicles, locomotives, bogies, propulsion and controls. In February 2020, the company had 36,000 employees, and 63 manufacturing and engineering locations around the world. Formerly a division of Bombardier Inc., the company was acquired by French manufacturer Alstom on 29 January 2021.
The Grand River Railway was an interurban electric railway in what is now the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, in Southwestern Ontario, Canada.
Light rail is a commonly used mode of public transit in North America. The term light rail was coined in 1972 by the Urban Mass Transportation Administration to describe new streetcar transformations which were taking place in Europe and the United States. The Germans used the term Stadtbahn, which is the predecessor to North American light rail, to describe the concept, and many in UMTA wanted to adopt the direct translation, which is city rail. However, in its reports, UMTA finally adopted the term light rail instead.
Several plans have been proposed for high-speed rail in Canada, the only G7 country that does not have any high-speed rail. In the press and popular discussion, there have been two routes frequently proposed as suitable for a high-speed rail corridor: Edmonton to Calgary via Red Deer and Windsor to Quebec City via London, Kitchener-Waterloo, Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal.
The Quebec City–Windsor Corridor, also known as simply the Corridor, is a Via Rail passenger train service in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario. The Corridor service area has the heaviest passenger train frequency in Canada and contributes 67% of Via's revenue.
Crown corporations in Canada are government organizations with a mixture of commercial and public-policy objectives. They are directly and wholly owned by the Crown.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to public transport:
Urban rail transit in Canada encompasses a broad range of rail mass transit systems, including commuter rail, rapid transit, light rail, and streetcar systems.
Ottawa, Canada 