Almost all goods moved within B.C. depend on trucks. Over 20,000 trucking companies are registered in B.C. Manufacturers, retailers, farmers, exporters and importers of all manner of products depend on trucking — more than any other freight transportation mode — to get their goods to market or their business inputs into production safely, efficiently, reliably and on time.
Trucks move the essential ingredients of modern living 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year along the arteries that link British Columbia communities. Trucks haul 90 percent of all consumer products and foodstuffs consumed every day. The trucking industry is the preferred choice for most shippers because no other mode can match its flexible, reliable, time-sensitive, door-to-door service.
“Trucking affects everyone. The clothes we wear, the food we eat, in fact, most of the things we use in our daily lives are brought to us by truck, at least part of the way. Trucking is a major segment of the...economy...and it is also critical for the competitiveness of Canadian business...Because it is more flexible than other modes...constrained only by the extent of the road network, trucking can provide the quality of service required to satisfy today's increasingly demanding shippers.” ( Statistics Canada, 1995)
Trucks on our roads and highways are an indicator of a strong, job-creating economy. If you see a truck, it's serving local industries and providing superior service.
The productivity and efficiency of the trucking industry has a direct impact on the cost of transportation services, which, in turn, directly impacts the final cost of goods produced and consumed. By doing an outstanding job of meeting ever-increasing service demands, and by improving its productivity, the trucking industry has contributed to the competitiveness of its customers, and that means jobs for British Columbia.
- For every spent by the trucking industry, $.70 is spent elsewhere in the economy
- For every dollar that is spent on trucking services, an additional 70 cents is spent elsewhere in the economy as a result