TORONTO — There were fewer trucks on Canadian roads in 2013 than 2012 by 5.7 percent, according to analysis of registration data from IHS Automotive, formerly known as Polk.

Canadian commercial vehicle registration was down to 78,701 units from 83,487 units in 2012. Almost all provinces saw a decrease in trucks from the record level of new registrations recoded during 2012, with the exception of PEI and BC, which had more trucks.

PEI had 14.6 percent more trucks than in 2012 and BC reported a growth of 5.4 percent.

Despite the drop in registration from 2012, 2013 was one of the four best annual volumes for new registrations of commercial vehicles. The commercial vehicle fleet in Canada is predominantly Class 8 vehicles.

With the exception of Class 5 vehicles, which were down 0.2 percent, all other classes dropped by double digits. The most significant drop was in Class 6 vehicles, which sunk by 24 percent.

Who’s buying the most trucks?

Historically, Ontario was the province purchasing most trucks from ’85 until 2005. In 2006, Alberta bought more trucks than Ontario and all other provinces and has since remained in the lead as the top purchaser of trucks. In 2013, Alberta accounted for 36.1 percent of total Canadian new registrations, up from 24.6 percent in 2012.

Ontario on the other hand, fell from 24.1 percent in 2012 to 22.5 percent in 2013.

The total number of commercial vehicles registered to operate in Canada is 906,000 units for classes 5 to 8.

Read the full report here.