Needless to say, it’s better for everyone to move more people more efficiently—not only does it reduce the number of cars on the road, it’s also better for the planet. In 2023, the transportation sector accounted for almost one-quarter of Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions.
Though a majority of trips (of all purposes, including vacations) taken by Canadians within Canada were by car, others involved a bus or train, which are widely considered two of the best modes of transportation for the environment.
Let’s compare detailed 2023 and 2024 National Travel Survey data, which also estimate the amount and proportion of visits by mode of transportation.
Number and share of bus or train visits increase the most in Quebec
Visits by bus or train in Ontario increased by 406,000 to over 5.5 million in 2024, accounting for 4.6% of all visits in this province. This share was little changed from 2023.
Neighbouring Quebec saw the fastest increase among the provinces in both the number and share of visits by bus or train. More than 1.6 million visits made up 2.6% of all visits in this province in 2024, up from 1.8% in 2023.
British Columbia saw the highest numerical increase in visits by bus or train out west, going from 486,000 in 2023 to 586,000 in 2024. This type of visits’ share of overall visits notched up from 1.3% to 1.6% over the same period. Conversely, bus or train visits decreased in Alberta from 242,000 to 192,000, and the share of these visits notched down from 0.7% to 0.5%.
There were relatively fewer visits by bus or train in the other provinces, especially in Atlantic Canada, where the rail network is smaller and bus routes are less frequent. The one outlier was Nova Scotia, where the 83,000 visits by bus or train in 2024 were more than double the number from one year earlier (36,000).
World Tourism Day
September 27 is United Nations World Tourism Day, celebrated every year since 1980 to highlight tourism’s social, cultural, political and economic impact internationally. The theme for 2025 is sustainable tourism.
To learn more about tourism in Canada, visit the Travel and tourism statistics portal.
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