Transport Canada’s five supply-chain visibility projects were launched in 2017 with the objective of improving the efficiency and connectivity of the national multimodal transportation network. One of these projects is the Greater Toronto Area e-commerce supply-chain visibility project. This project aims to increase the visibility of e-commerce supply chains to identify strategic infrastructure and data needs, as well as policy questions affecting the three levels of government.
As part of this project, an e-commerce discussion forum was held in Toronto, Ontario, on June 27, 2018. Participants from all levels of government, industry and academia met to discuss the impacts of e‑commerce on Canada’s transportation network to gain a better understanding of the e‑commerce supply chain and logistics across various levels (national, regional and local). The forum was jointly organized by Transport Canada, the Region of Peel, the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario and the University of Toronto Transportation Research Institute.
The forum consisted of an opening panel discussion and four discussion sessions where the following issues were highlighted:
- The Canadian transportation sector needs to continue improving its understanding of e-commerce and must continue to prepare for the expected increased growth in e-commerce.
- A greater emphasis should be placed on understanding the possible impact e-commerce will have on data collection to avoid a data gap.
- Increased collaboration is required with key stakeholders from various modes throughout the supply chain to address infrastructure and policy challenges.
- E-commerce is bringing new delivery methods. A project was announced at the forum between the Pembina Institute, UPS and Transport Canada to look at the impact of micro hubs, supported by cargo bikes, in cities.
Transport Canada will continue to work with its partners and stakeholders to ensure that Canada’s transportation system is equipped to support the growing e-commerce sector. The next forum is expected to take place in fall 2018.
For more information, please contact Statistics Canada (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; STATCAN.infostats-infostats.STATCAN@canada.ca).