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Most Canadians would now rather road trip at home than go to the U.S.

Travel to the U.S. from Canada is declining, as many Canadians are treating the U.S.-Canada border as a "Do Not Enter" sign amidst the ongoing tariff war.

A new survey from the Tire and Rubber Association of Canada (TRAC) shows a huge drop in planned vehicle travel to the U.S.

With summer road trip season just around the corner, 88 per cent of Canadians said they would rather travel within the country than visit the U.S.

Only eight per cent of drivers said that they still planned to cross the border at the time of the survey.

The TRAC survey results align with recent data from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). In March, 900,000 fewer visitors crossed the border by car from Canada to the U.S. than in the same month last year.

The online national survey of 1,000 drivers also revealed that 51 per cent of respondents have already cancelled road trips to the U.S. planned for this year.

Air and water travel has also been affected by the waning Canadian demand to visit the United States. In the last two months, WestJet axed flights on U.S. routes from several major cities, including Vancouver, Kelowna, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, and St. John's.

"The downward shift in transborder travel demand has caused WestJet to further update its schedule to include nine temporary route suspensions to U.S. destinations for various portions of the summer, a spokesperson told us.

A cross-border ferry that has served B.C. and Washington for over 65 years has been forced to cancel several upcoming sailings due to lower-than-expected demand.

"A lot of our neighbours to the south still don’t get it," said one person. "We're hurt and we’re angry. We feel for the U.S. businesses affected by this, and we hope you vote more wisely next time."

A recent report highlighting the top 10 most popular destinations for Canadians included zero U.S. cities on the list, with many choosing to explore domestic and international getaways.

Lead photo by

James Kirkikis/Shutterstock.com


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