Rail blockades rippled through trucking and the wider supply chain

In February 2020, protests in solidarity with Wet'suwet'en opposition to a planned natural gas pipeline in northern B.C. shut down much of CN's rail network in Eastern Canada, and the disruption spilled over into trucking.

CN announced the shutdown of its eastern operations on Feb. 13, 2020, citing blockades, the largest of them on rail lines at Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory near Belleville, Ont. CN's then-CEO JJ Ruest said more than 400 trains had been cancelled in the previous week.

Bridges were also targeted. On Feb. 17, protesters blocked the Thousand Islands Bridge between Ontario and New York for about three hours.

Trucking's response

In a Feb. 18, 2020, statement, the Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) said many truck moves begin or end at a rail head, so a rail outage affects carriers too. CTA backed the federal government's position that the blockades had to end peacefully and quickly, and asked governments, bridge operators, police and members to share information on the location of any planned blockades so it could be passed along to carriers.

The Quebec Trucking Association said at the time that some shippers had already shifted loads from rail to truck, and that its members were available to move urgent essential goods such as pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, perishable food, chlorine and natural gas.

Other business groups warned of growing effects. Canadian Port Authorities said some ports had begun turning ships away and that a single rail car carries roughly the load of three trucks.