Elon Musk tweeted that Canadian Truckers rule.
On Sunday, a convoy of truckers began their march from Vancouver to Ottawa, Canada’s capital city, in protest of the government’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for truckers, which the industry claims would result in driver shortages and increased fuel prices.
To protest the mandate, truckers under the guise of Freedom Convoy 2022 had raised C$2.7 million ($2.2 million) through a gofundme campaign by Sunday. According to the gofundme page, the monies generated would be utilised to help with the costs of petrol, food, and hotel. On January 29, the convoy is slated to arrive in Ottawa.
Because more than two-thirds of the C$650 billion ($521 billion) in commodities exchanged yearly between Canada and the United States travels by truck, the trucking industry is critical to ensuring a seamless flow of goods.
Canadian truckers rule
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 27, 2022
However, the Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) estimates that up to 32,000, or 20%, of the 160,000 Canadian and American cross-border truck drivers may be forced to retire as a result of the mandate.
The CTA, on the other hand, said in a statement on Saturday that it does not encourage any protests on public roads and that the only option for a commercial truck to cross the border is to get immunised.
From January 15, Canada enacted a vaccine mandate for the trucking industry, requiring unvaccinated Canadian drivers returning from the United States to be tested for COVID-19 and quarantined.
Driver shortages are also anticipated to exacerbate the country’s already-high inflation, which is at a three-decade high, according to industry advocacy organisations.
Since the mandate was first announced in November, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has defied industry demand to postpone it.
