The Quebec Region of Transport
Canada covers an area of almost 1.5 million square kilometres and extends from Ungava Bay
in the north to the St Lawrence River and the United States to the south. The eastern
boundary of the region is the Gulf of St Lawrence and the western boundary is the province
of Ontario, James Bay and Hudson Bay.
Transportation has always played an important part in the region’s
history. Early
settlers made use of the St Lawrence River’s access to the heartland in order to ship
valuable resources to Europe. This tradition continues today. The Port of
Montreal, one of
North America’s busiest ports, provides access for goods transported between Canada
and the rest of the world and has also become a point of entry to the Midwestern United
States due to an efficient railway system.
The railways also played an important part in the development of Quebec. Until
recently,
both of Canada’s national railways were headquartered in Montreal. Canadian National
is still based in Montreal. Canadian Pacific’s Eastern Canadian operations were
transferred to a subsidiary, the St. Laurent and Hudson, which is based in
Montreal. Since
the passage of
Canada’s
National Transportation Act, much of Quebec’s rail network has been
transferred to short line operators. These railways operate in limited geographical
regions and specialize in providing customized service to their clients. The two national
carriers now focus on long distance transportation.
