OTTAWA — More than 400,000 Canadian trucking professionals will be saluted across the country next week during annual National Trucking Week events.

"Each year the week provides an opportunity to thank the tens of thousands of Canadians who have chosen to make a career in the trucking industry," says David Bradley, CEO of the Canadian Trucking Alliance. "The work they perform is invaluable because it is thanks to their dedication that groceries get to the supermarket, gasoline to the local gas station and the goods Canadians produce make it to markets across the border and oversees. It is the people of the trucking industry, whether they work behind the scenes or over the road, who are the backbone of the economy."

Each provincial trucking association is organizing related trucking appreciation events in various cities.

Plus, individual fleets — for hire and private — across the nation are also encouraged to do something in recognition of their drivers and employees, such as hold a company barbeque, provide small gifts or tokens of appreciation, or wash drivers’ trucks for them.

Many truckstops have traditionally poured complimentary cups of coffee or offered slices of fresh pie to truck drivers.

Trucking in Canada is a $54.7 billion industry that employs over 260,000 drivers. Trucks move 90 percent of all consumer products and foodstuffs within Canada and almost two thirds, by value, of our trade with the United States, our largest trading partner. Without trucking, the wheels of commerce would stop rolling and Canadians would be unable to enjoy a high quality of life.

For more about National Trucking Week and a list of Celebration Ideas visit the Canadian Trucking Alliance web site at www.cantruck.ca – (click on the ‘Canada Moves by Truck’ icon).