CTOA calls for direct small-fleet representation on the National Trade Corridors Council, public reporting and fair implementation of trucking measures
MISSISSAUGA, ON, November 9, 2026 :- The Canada Truck Operators Association (CTOA) says the perspectives of small and mid-sized trucking businesses are now before both chambers of Parliament as legislators consider Bill C-39, the Building Canada Strong Act.
The Chair of the House of Commons Legislative Committee on Bill C-39 has accepted CTOA’s written brief. The Committee confirmed that the submission will be translated, distributed to committee members and published on the Committee’s website once the translation process is complete.
CTOA also submitted its recommendations to the Special Senate Committee on the Building Canada Strong Act. The Senate Committee confirmed that the submission has been received and will be shared with committee members in both official languages for their consideration.
“A national trade-corridor strategy has to reflect more than the largest operators,” said Tejpreet (Tej) Dulat, Director of Public Affairs at CTOA. “Small and mid-sized carriers are moving freight between mills, ports, rail terminals, warehouses, manufacturers and customers every day. If those operating realities are missing from the table, government is missing a major part of how the supply chain actually works.”
Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada’s 2025 data shows that 99.5 per cent of employer establishments in truck transportation have fewer than 100 employees. Among employer establishments, 83.4 per cent have between one and four employees.
Direct representation on the National Trade Corridors Council
CTOA supports the objectives of Bill C-39 to strengthen Canadian trade corridors, improve the movement of goods, modernize transportation systems and protect workers. Its submission proposes specific amendments to sections 49.03 and 49.05 concerning the proposed National Trade Corridors Council.
CTOA is asking Parliament to ensure appointments to the Council reflect the diversity of Canada’s supply chains, including transportation mode, geography, business size and operating model. Where trucking representatives are appointed, CTOA proposes that small and mid-sized fleets and owner-operators have a direct and identifiable voice.
The association says one general trucking representative may not reflect the different operating realities of large national fleets, regional carriers, owner-operators, refrigerated and flatbed fleets, first- and last-mile operators and companies serving rural or northern communities.
CTOA is also proposing an annual public reporting requirement for the Council, including reporting on its activities, findings, consultations and recommendations, along with its engagement with small and mid-sized fleets.
First and last mile must be part of trade corridor planning
CTOA’s submission calls for trade-corridor performance measures to look beyond overall freight volumes and transit times and examine what happens throughout the complete freight journey, including the first and last mile.
Recommended indicators include border processing and inspection times, port and rail-terminal waits, detention and loading delays, safe truck parking, road access, cargo theft, empty repositioning, construction delays and the impact of disruptions on smaller fleets.
“A trade corridor is only as efficient as its handoffs,” Dulat said. “If freight moves efficiently through a port or rail terminal but the truck is left waiting, repositioning empty or absorbing costs at the other end, that cost has not disappeared, it has simply moved somewhere else in the supply chain.”
CTOA has also launched a confidential First and Last Mile Steel Freight Cost Evidence initiative to collect operating examples from carriers and owner-operators and provide governments with better evidence on trucking costs that may be hidden within broader trade-corridor statistics.
The association is also recommending safeguards for commercially sensitive transportation information, including the use of aggregated or anonymized data wherever possible and clear rules governing access, confidentiality and conflicts of interest.
Fair implementation of trucking measures
CTOA’s submission supports strong enforcement against human trafficking, coercion, recruitment-fee abuse, wage theft, immigration fraud and deliberate worker misclassification. At the same time, the association recommends clear written reasons, trucking-specific guidance, evidence checklists and reasonable corrective processes where non-deliberate compliance issues can be addressed.
The brief also addresses discussions surrounding a possible trucking trusted-employer framework. CTOA says any future framework should be administered independently by government and based on objective, verifiable compliance criteria rather than membership in, nomination by or endorsement from a private industry association.
CTOA says small and mid-sized fleets, owner-operators, immigrant drivers and independent worker-protection organizations should have an opportunity to contribute directly to the development of those criteria.
“The standard should be compliance and evidence, not fleet size or association membership,” Dulat said. “Strong worker protection and fair access for legitimate small and mid-sized carriers can exist in the same system.”
CTOA’s recommendations to Parliament
CTOA’s Bill C-39 submission calls for:
- Balanced representation of small and mid-sized fleets on the National Trade Corridors Council,
- Annual public reporting and meaningful stakeholder consultation,
- Safeguards for confidential commercial and operational information,
- Recognition of first and last mile trucking costs and bottlenecks in trade-corridor performance measures,
- Transparent and proportionate implementation of trucking labour-compliance measures,
- An objective and independently administered approach to any future trusted employer framework, and
- Monitoring of competition and market access conditions affecting small and mid-sized fleets.
CTOA has also requested an opportunity to appear before the Special Senate Committee on the Building Canada Strong Act to provide evidence directly from small and mid sized fleets, owner operators and professional drivers.
The association says it is prepared to provide Parliament and federal departments with anonymized operating examples, participate in technical discussions and contribute practical evidence from carriers operating across Canada.
Read CTOA’s full Bill C-39 submission and recommendations:
https://thectoa.ca/ctoa-bill-c39-submission/
About the Canada Truck Operators Association
The Canada Truck Operators Association (CTOA) represents trucking companies, small and mid-sized fleets, owner-operators, drivers and transportation stakeholders across Canada. CTOA advocates for safe roads, fair and evidence-based regulation, competitive supply chains and practical transportation policy informed by those operating on the ground.
Together, We Keep Canada Moving.
Media Contact
Jas Kaur
Canada Truck Operators Association
jas.kaur@thectoa.ca
416-443-0042
thectoa.ca