Transportation infrastructure

The opportunity

Canada’s push to develop major projects and build new transportation infrastructure is creating significant opportunities for private investment. Seeking to attract $500 billion in private capital over five years, the federal government has identified the following transportation assets as a priority area for growth: roads, ports, airports, and rail. A range of new funding initiatives and policy reforms are designed to support investors as they evaluate opportunities across the country's transportation sector.

Market entry and investment strategies

Major Projects Office referrals. The Major Projects Office (MPO) is mandated to streamline regulatory approvals for projects deemed to be in the national interest. The following five major transportation projects have been proposed and referred to the MPO for consideration, and to expedite regulatory review.

• Arctic Economic and Security Corridor, an approximately 400-kilometre all-season road through Slave Geological Province to the Nunavut border, connecting to Grays Bay Road
• Grays Bay Road and Port, a roughly 230-kilometre all-season road from the Nunavut border to a deepwater port and airfield at Grays Bay on the Arctic Ocean
• Mackenzie Valley Highway, an 800-kilometre all-season gravel highway providing year-round connectivity to three currently isolated communities, and facilitating greater access to two others by shortening the construction period for winter roads
• Roberts Bank Terminal 2, a container terminal that would increase the Port of Vancouver’s container capacity by nearly 50%
• Contrecœur Terminal Expansion, a three-berth container terminal expansion at the Port of Montréal, developed in partnership with the Government of Québec, the Montréal Port Authority, Indigenous partners, and the private sector; construction began in April 2026

Transformative strategies. Several “transformative strategies” have also been referred to the MPO, including the Port of Vancouver Gateway Strategy, Alto High-Speed Rail and the Port of Churchill Plus initiatives. The MPO will help coordinate the regulatory and consultation steps needed to advance these initiatives.

Strategic Trade Corridors. On September 21, 2026, the federal government introduced Bill C- 39, Building Canada Strong Act. Transportation is one of the Bill’s pillars, and under the proposed legislation, Canada will formally designate Strategic Trade Corridors, remove bottlenecks, and establish a transportation project office to coordinate federal permitting and advance priority transportation projects within one year. The legislative changes will also modernize port governance, advance new trade digitalization strategies, reduce administrative burdens, and create clearer, more predictable rules that attract private investment.

Federal Economic Zones. Canada is also considering legislative reforms to create Federal Economic Zones. These zones would remove the need for separate project reviews, reduce investor risk, and simplify permitting. Canada is proposing to grant Cabinet the authority to decide that “certain development within specific zones are pre-approved, subject to conditions for the projects themselves,” with the zones and permitted activity types clearly defined.

Investors and sector participants should consider these projects, proposed reforms, and related actions, and understand how they could affect future project development, financing, and regulatory approaches.

Financing and investor support

Budget 2025 and 2026 Spring Economic Update. These reports offer tens of billions of dollars in support through strategic investments in trade and transportation infrastructure, including the new $5 billion Trade Diversification Corridors Fund, for which project proposals were submitted earlier this year, with funding decisions scheduled from September 2026 to April 2027; and the $1 billion Arctic Infrastructure Fund, which made its first investment in August 2026 to modernize Inuvik Airport.

Alignment with trade and defence objectives. The federal government may also provide broader funding programs for projects of national importance. As outlined in the Defence Industrial Strategy, Canada is providing $82 billion in new defence spending, which includes investments in dual-use infrastructure such as airports, roads, and ports.

Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB). CIB has allocated $15 billion to its Trade and Transportation sector to finance ports, rail networks, airports, highways, and logistics facilities that help Canadian goods reach global markets, with just over $3.5 billion invested to date across 25 partnerships. The scope of trade-enabling infrastructure was recently widened to support agriculture and the broader food supply chain, with attention also given to trade-exposed sectors affected by shifting export markets¹.

Canada Strong Fund and strategic investment funds. In April 2026, Canada announced the Canada Strong Fund, its first national sovereign wealth fund with an initial federal contribution of $25 billion. The Fund will invest alongside the private sector in projects and companies, driving Canada’s economic transformation, including transportation and infrastructure. Other funds include the Strong Transit Fund, under the Canada Public Transit Fund, which provides $25 billion over 10 years for public transit and active transportation infrastructure².

Private investment in Canadian airports. At the Canada Investment Summit in Toronto on September 15, 2026, Prime Minister Carney announced that Canada will seek ‌private ⁠investment through long-term concessions to operate the country’s four largest airports: Toronto Pearson International Airport, Montréal Trudeau International Airport, Calgary International Airport, and Vancouver International Airport. The federal government will retain ownership of the underlying airport land and assets. The announcement builds on earlier federal efforts to reform Canada’s airport system, explore alternative ownership models, and attract private capital. While the federal government plans to consult stakeholders in the coming weeks before finalizing Canada’s plan, signals suggest the process may advance more swiftly than other federal infrastructure initiatives. Investors should monitor developments closely, engage early in any consultation opportunities, and assess how they may participate in the resulting transaction process.

Key risks and how to manage them

Monitoring outstanding legislation and streamlining regulatory processes

Key legislative reforms to streamline regulatory processes for trade and transportation projects, including Federal Economic Zones, have not been finalized. Legislative measures to encourage private investment in Canada’s airports also remain outstanding. Investors should continue to monitor the progress of these reforms and related announcements.

Coordinating approvals and fast-tracking projects

The MPO’s role is to coordinate federal approvals and fast-track projects in the national interest. Given the scale of transportation projects, effective coordination and collaboration among stakeholders (e.g., federal, provincial and municipal governments, affected landowners, and Indigenous communities) is critical to ensuring that regulatory processes proceed efficiently. Provincial cooperation will be essential to ensuring that proposed Federal Economic Zones operate effectively, and that projects can be fast-tracked across jurisdictions. Investors should assess how proposed provincial legislation aimed at expediting permitting pathways in British Columbia, Ontario, and Québec will interact with federal approval processes.

Regulatory certainty and public buy-in

Canada must demonstrate that it can provide transportation infrastructure investors with regulatory certainty, accelerated permitting, and clear alignment among decision-makers. Despite federal and often provincial support for key transportation infrastructure projects, some have faced pushback from stakeholders over issues such as project routes or ownership models. Investors should favour projects that consult early and often, and provide a predictable framework for success. Projects should engage and notify stakeholders early so that they can understand and benefit from project economics and local community benefits.

Developing Arctic and dual-use transportation infrastructure in Canada’s North

Large-scale infrastructure projects in Canada’s North face unique challenges due to their remote locations, extreme climate, and logistical constraints, including short construction seasons, supply-chain issues, and labour availability. Investors must account for these risks when evaluating transportation infrastructure in Canada’s North.

Indigenous partnerships

The success of large trade and transportation projects depends on early engagement and meaningful partnerships with local Indigenous communities. Large interprovincial projects often affect several communities, each with distinct positions and local knowledge that should inform project development.

In the context of transportation specifically, three of the five projects referred to the MPO include Indigenous proponents: the Arctic Economic and Security Corridor is a partnership between the Tłı̨chǫ Government, Yellowknives Dene First Nation. and the Government of the Northwest Territories; West Kitikmeot Resources Corporation is the proponent of Grays Bay Road and Port; and the Government of the Northwest Territories is the proponent of the Mackenzie Valley Highway.

Consultation. In its policy reforms, Canada has emphasized the importance of addressing Indigenous rights and related consultation duties. The MPO includes an Indigenous Advisory Council that supports its work and helps embed Indigenous economic participation in major projects advanced in Canada.

Canada’s proposed transportation project reforms also aim to strengthen relationships between Canada Port Authorities and Indigenous communities. They would mandate the National Corridors Council to consult Indigenous groups, along with other stakeholders, to improve port collaboration across each corridor³. Further reforms seek to reduce duplication and inefficiency in consultation by creating a Crown Consultation Hub within the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada. The Hub would work with federal departments and agencies to coordinate consultation for major projects, and replace overlapping or redundant processes. For transportation projects that are not subject to an impact assessment, that are listed under the Building Canada Act or that are supported by the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency, federal consultation and coordination would be supported through a Transportation Project Office established by Transport Canada.

Local knowledge. For key transportation projects located in Canada’s North, Canada’s policy objectives are closely linked to Indigenous communities. Inuit communities are traditional stewards of the high Arctic, and can provide vital local knowledge to ensure that investments are strategically located and climate-resilient. These communities will also be key beneficiaries. For example, Grays Bay Road and Port will be delivered through the Kitikmeot Resource Corporation, a partnership between Kitikmeot Inuit Association and private investors. In June 2026, Sahtu Secretariat Incorporated, Gwich’in Tribal Council and Pehdzéh Kı̨ First Nation signed a memorandum of understanding establishing a coordinated Indigenous framework to advance Mackenzie Valley Highway.

Equity partnerships. Indigenous equity partnerships can promote investor stability and community buy-in for large-scale transportation projects. For example, Tłı̨chǫ All-Season Road is a 97-kilometre gravel road developed by the Government of the Northwest Territories in partnership with the Tłı̨chǫ Government, the governing authority for Tłı̨chǫ territorial lands. Canada supports these partnerships; in Budget 2025, it doubled the Indigenous Loan Guarantee Program to $10 billion to enable Indigenous communities to become equity owners in major projects.

Investors should assess how projects can create opportunities and generate economic benefits for Indigenous communities, and establish long-term, mutually beneficial partnerships.

All dollar amounts in this primer are C$ unless indicated otherwise.