Decade of Decision: 1986 - 1996

Transport Canada's 50th anniversary celebrations in 1986 were the prelude to a period of intense self-scrutiny for the department that would result, 10 years later, in a dramatically different organization to take the national transportation system into the 21st century.

The cheers and kudos for EXPO 86, the immensely successful transportation and communications exposition held in Vancouver in 1986, had scarcely faded away when the passage of new legislation signalled the beginning of different directions for Transport Canada.

The National Transportation Act, 1987 and the Motor Vehicle Transport Act, which came into effect January 1, 1988, were designed to open up the transportation system to competitive market forces and reduce the burden of government regulation on industry. While these policy changes were put into effect, safety would continue to be Transport Canada's number one priority.

Under the acts, a "fair and reasonable share" of costs for facilities and services provided at public expense was to be retrieved from transportation companies, who also would be required to remove undue obstacles to transportation access for travellers with disabilities.

The legislation marked an important change for a department that, for the past 50 years, had played a rather paternalistic role - - protecting the developing transportation industry, and building, maintaining, operating, subsidizing and regulating the national transportation system.

First Changes / July 1994 / Spring 1995 / Highlights