Canada drops vaccine mandate for truckers crossing border

According to Reuters, the decision was reversed after pressure from the Canadian Conservatives and Canada's trucking lobby on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The trucking lobby predicted that 10 percent of the work force would be cut, leading to large disruptions to trade, increases in already-record-high inflation rates, and driver shortages.

"The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) said that unvaccinated, or partially vaccinated Canadian truck drivers arriving at the U.S.-Canada border will remain exempt from pre-arrival, arrival and post-arrival testing and quarantine requirements.

"However, truckers from the United States will still need to be vaccinated or they will be turned back at the border from Jan. 15, a CBSA spokesperson said," wrote Reuters.

A source told Reuters that the decision was made to ensure supply chains were not weakened and remained smooth.

The policy would have been the first to have an impact on truckers crossing the border, as the job was deemed essential through much of the pandemic.

More than two-thirds ($650 billion) in goods traded between the US and Canada annually is transported by truck.