An efficient and reliable transportation system is essential to making life more affordable for Canadians and combat the rising cost of living. The Government of Canada is committed to ensuring our supply chains grow the economy and create good jobs for middle-class Canadians, while ensuring they are resilient and adaptive to the impacts of climate change.
Today, the Minister of Transport, the Honourable Omar Alghabra, announced an investment of up to $600,000, under the National Trade Corridors Fund, for the Nanaimo Port Authority to study:
- the expansion of container handling capacity;
- the development of land near the port to support economic growth, job creation, and trade;
- and the assessment of potential improvements to the transportation of cargo by sea over short distances between Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland.
For example, the study will determine the possibility of expanding the Vancouver Island's Duke Point Terminal, to help alleviate bottlenecks at Vancouver's deep-sea terminals. It will also explore the feasibility of improving the terminal's infrastructure, providing better connectivity to transfer cargo from barges to rail cars on the mainland. The Pacific region could see increased import/export capacity of goods from the forestry and agriculture sectors, as well as seafood and other food sectors.
The Government of Canada continues to make investments to strengthen our supply chain, promote economic growth, and increase the opportunities for our businesses to expand into global markets. This represents a long-term commitment to work with stakeholders on strategic infrastructure projects to address transportation bottlenecks, vulnerabilities, and congestion along Canada's trade corridors.
