Vancouver, October 18-21, 2009

Representatives of the Ontario-Quebec Continental Gateway and Trade Corridor attended the 2009 conference of the Transportation Association of Canada, which was held in Vancouver, British Columbia, from October 18 to 21. They took this opportunity to inform participants about the Continental Gateway initiative in a thematic session entitled "Urban Freight Movement and Trade Gateways: Changing the Paradigm" that was held on Tuesday, October 20.

Trois-Rivières, June 17-19, 2009

The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative is a binational coalition of mayors and other local officials who work actively with federal, state, and provincial governments to advance the protection and restoration of the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River. The theme of this year’s meeting was « St. Lawrence River and Great Lakes, Shore line cities - What’s in it for us? ». The annual conference allowed the ministère des Transports du Québec representatives to present the Continental Gateway initiative in the context of marine transportation and intermodality.

Québec city, June 2-4, 2009

A member of North America’s SuperCorridor Coalition (NASCO) since December 2007, the Government of Quebec was proud to host the 5th NASCO conference, held in Québec City from June 2 to 4, 2009. NASCO is dedicated to increasing economic development while supporting efforts to improve intermodal transportation infrastructure, technology and security innovations and environmental initiatives. NASCO members include local and regional municipalities, American and Mexican states, Canadian provinces and private sector representatives located along the corridor whose networks have connections throughout Canada, the United States and Mexico. The coalition aims to foster dialogue among the public and private sectors on the major challenges at hand, particularly with regard to transportation and trade development.

This conference, with the theme “Moving North America Forward”, gave an opportunity to many transportation experts from the three countries to discuss current challenges regarding transportation, the economy and sustainable development. It also featured a structured business matching program that provided opportunities to network with more than 430 specialists and international decision-makers in the areas of transportation, logistics and economic development.

A Continental Gateway booth was featured at the Conference to promote the Ontario-Quebec Continental Gateway and Trade Corridor. Moreover, the ministère des Transports du Québec promoted the Continental Gateway as well in its Quebec’s Gateways and Trade Corridors booth.

May, 2009

Ontario recently joined Quebec as a member of North America’s SuperCorridor Coalition (NASCO), a tri-national trade and transportation coalition working to make international and domestic trade more efficient and secure. This membership provides a new opportunity for Ontario and Quebec to work together, to learn from other jurisdictions, enhance the efficiency of the corridor, and promote the benefits of the Continental Gateway beyond our borders.

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Windsor, May 6, 2009

On May 6, 2009, Canada’s Minister of Transport John Baird was the keynote speaker at HUB ’09 International Multimodal conference in Windsor, Ontario. In his address, the Minister spoke of the importance of the Windsor-Detroit Trade Corridor to the economies of both Canada and the United States and how the new Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC) is essential to 21st century trade needs.

“The Windsor-Detroit crossing is an integral part of the Ontario-Quebec Continental Gateway and Trade Corridor,” said Baird and "vital to securing ongoing commerce and jobs for the entire corridor that stretches from Atlantic Canada, Quebec and Ontario down to the American economic heartland."

The Minister also took the opportunity in his speech to announce the completion of the Windsor Secure Rail Corridor.

Ottawa, April 30, 2009

The Private and Public Sector Advisory Committees met for a second time in Ottawa on April 30, 2009. Committee Members discussed Continental Gateway Strategy development, the first phase of which includes the vision and strategic objectives. They were also informed by Michael Kergin, former Canadian Ambassador to the United States, about the state of relations between Canada and the United States under President Obama’s Administration. Committee members also received a status update on the Asia-Pacific and Atlantic Gateway Strategies.

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Ontario, April, 2009

The Ontario Ministry of Transportation announced in April 2009 a pilot program to allow a limited number of commercial operators to pull two full-sized trailers on designated Ontario highways. Known as Long Combination Vehicles (LCVs), these vehicles transport light, bulky goods more safely, more economically, with less greenhouse gas emissions for a certain volume of goods. LCVs have been on the road in western Canada, Quebec, and more than 20 American states for decades. The pilot program will include restrictions on where and when the vehicles can travel, and what they can carry. The pilot program harmonizes Ontario and Quebec’s regulations for LCVs. Ontario’s safety rules will exceed those in most other jurisdictions. The program is the result of consultation with public safety and municipal stakeholders, as well as representatives from the trucking and manufacturing industries.

Vaudreuil-Dorion, April 17, 2009

This symposium was aimed at informing decision makers and stakeholders about economic, land use and sustainable development issues and challenges inherent in creating a logistics hub in the metropolitan area of Montréal. Representatives from the Continental Gateway Initiative were present to report on the development of the strategy, the first phase of which is scheduled for release in fall 2009, and to promote the Ontario-Quebec Trade Corridor presenting a session on building "A Logistics Hub in the Montréal Region".

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Montréal, April 6-8, 2009

The 44th annual congress of the Association québécoise du transport et des routes (AQTR) was held in Montréal from April 6 to 8, 2009. The theme was “A World in Effervescence”. Representatives of the ministère des Transports du Québec attended to report on the development of the Continental Gateway strategy to be released in fall 2009 and to promote the Continental Gateway initiative. Also, representatives of the Continental Gateway were on hand at the exhibition hall to provide information and answer questions.

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Toronto, February 22-25, 2009

The annual OGRA/ROMA conference provided delegates from rural and urban municipalities in Ontario the opportunity to meet and discuss with members of Ontario’s Cabinet a wide range of issues, including infrastructure funding, highway maintenance and road safety. This year’s theme was What’s Coming Down the Road. MTO staff were present to discuss the Continental Gateway Strategy development with delegates.