November 21, 2019 | Category: News Releases

Calgary, November 20, 2019 — The Honourable Ric McIver, Minister of Transportation, Government of Alberta opened WESTAC's Fall Member Forum in Calgary last week with a reminder that Canada’s western provinces cumulatively exported in excess of $211 billion (merchandise value), the equivalent of 36.2% of Canada’s total exports.

“It’s pretty clear that trade is a critical aspect to all four western provinces, and this underlines the need for infrastructure and good policy that enables the movement of goods and services. As such we have no shortage of work ahead,” he said.

“We need to meet the challenges of moving goods together through a western trade corridor that needs to be put in place. I believe we need to advocate for investment in western corridors to elevate Canadian competitiveness in global commerce and to improve supply chain efficiency, and of course reliability and credibility in the Canadian transportation system.”

Shippers, railways, ports and terminals, governments and labour leaders gathered to discuss challenges and opportunities amidst indicators of a forthcoming economic downturn.

“WESTAC has been the council for senior-level discussions on issues that affect the western transportation network for 46 years and we are proud to play such an important role for our members and the transportation industry at large through our semi-annual member forums,” said Oksana Exell, President and CEO of WESTAC.

The discussion followed the presentations of two world-renowned speakers in global economics and geopolitics respectively: David Rosenberg (Gluskin Sheff + Associates) and Dr. George Friedman (Geopolitical Futures) on November 14, 2019 at the Westin Calgary Airport hotel.

Members may access the speakers’ presentations through their member login on WESTAC’s website. A full report of the 2019 Fall Member Forum will be available in December.

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About WESTAC:

The Western Transportation Advisory Council (WESTAC) is a council of organizations in the transportation sector represented by senior decision-makers. WESTAC’s members span all aspects of freight transportation in Canada. They include carriers and logistics providers, ports and terminals, shippers, labour unions, and the three levels of government. Members represent a significant share of the western Canadian economy. We focus on critical issues that affect Western Canada’s freight transportation network to ensure that it is safe, efficient, reliable and competitive.