Updated September 30, 2004

Communications, transport and trade

Greeting cards sing to us. Elevators call home when they are sick. Satellites track our transport trucks as they deliver fresh produce from across the continent. A Canadian teenager plays a computer game against an opponent from the other side of the globe. A gardener orders heritage seed from a company website on the Internet. The package is delivered by courier overnight. As a country of great distances and as a trading nation, Canada depends on its communications and transportation networks. Because we are highly dependent on the movement of ideas and goods for our prosperity, we have always been adept at overcoming obstacles of geography and distance. This ability to connect Canadians spans not only the physical realm of rivers, highways, railroads and air routes, but has embraced the virtual realm of airwaves and the Internet as well.

Whether travelling the traditional Trans-Canada Highway or the modern digital domain, our communications, transportation and trade networks bring Canadian products and expertise across the country and to the world. As the physical and virtual links that keep us connected are further transformed by technology, they have the potential to reshape our businesses, our industries and our lives.

In addition to bringing Canadians together, the communications, transport and trade industries contribute significantly to Canada's economy. In 2002, these sectors employed over 3.2 million people, or nearly a quarter of Canada's labour force. The wholesale and retail trades employed most of these workers; almost 2.3 million Canadians drew their incomes from trade. Roughly 612,000 people worked in the transportation and storage industry and another 348,000 people in the communications sector.