Lanes/
Los Angeles, CA to Calgary, AB freight

Los Angeles, CA to Calgary, AB freight

The Los Angeles to Calgary corridor runs across the U.S.–Canada border.

Direction

U.S. – Canada cross-border

Equipment on this lane

Dry van-led, with open deck and reefer demand

Carrier availability

Vetted carriers cover this corridor

Marketplace activity

Posted by brokers on the Cargado marketplace

<div class="lane-viz"><div class="lane-viz-mapwrap"><img class="lane-viz-map" src="https://cargado-lane-maps.pages.dev/los-angeles-ca-to-calgary-ab.svg" alt="Los Angeles, CA to Calgary, AB freight route map on Cargado" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="620"></div><div class="lane-viz-panel"><div class="lane-viz-title">Transit time</div><div class="tr"><div class="trrow tot"><span>Transit</span><b>3 days</b></div><div class="trmi">1577 mi driving</div></div><a class="lane-cta" href="https://cargado.com/brokers/get-a-demo">Get a Rate <span class="arw">&#8594;</span></a><div class="lane-viz-fine">Estimated drive time by road, split at the border. Border dwell varies with documentation and crossing.</div></div></div>

This corridor connects the Los Angeles market (Los Angeles, Commerce, Torrance, Compton, Vernon, Carson) with the Calgary market (Calgary, Rocky View County, Innisfail, Blackfalds, Crossfield, Airdrie), running across the U.S.–Canada border. Over the past 12 months brokers posted this corridor to the Cargado marketplace.

What ships from Los Angeles

Freight out of the Los Angeles market leans toward automotive parts, plastics and packaging and food and beverage based on what brokers actually post there. You can read more about moving these goods on the freight types pages.

Equipment on this corridor

Dry van-led, with open deck and reefer demand. Browse equipment definitions in the glossary if a term is unfamiliar.

Customs on the U.S.–Canada leg

Entries are pre-filed electronically and cleared before arrival, and drivers need documentation in order at the booth.

Brokers post corridors like this to Cargado's marketplace, where verified carriers bid and every counterparty has been vetted before the first load moves.

The markets on this lane

Origin market

Los Angeles, CA

The Los Angeles market is built around the San Pedro Bay ports. The two ports together hold 31% of U.S. containerized waterborne trade, and the Port of Los Angeles alone handled 10.2 million TEUs in 2025. Its top imports were furniture, auto parts, plastic products, apparel and electronics. From the ports, freight moves by on-dock rail, the 20-mile Alameda Corridor and near-dock rail yards, or by truck to warehouses around the harbor and inland. Mexico freight leaves the region by highway toward the Otay Mesa border crossing at San Diego.

Industries: Imported consumer goods, auto parts and electronics, recycled paper and agricultural exports, apparel and textiles, air cargo

  • Seaport: Two adjacent container ports in San Pedro Bay. 10.2 million TEUs at the Port of Los Angeles in 2025; the two ports together hold 31% of U.S. containerized waterborne trade (operating). Source
  • On-dock rail: One near-dock rail yard and five on-dock rail yards serve the seven container terminals at the Port of Los Angeles. More than 65 miles of on-dock track (operating). Source
  • Rail expressway: Alameda Corridor, a below-grade freight line from the ports to the downtown rail yards. 20 miles, built for 150 trains a day (operating). Source
  • Class I intermodal yards: Five off-dock mainline rail yards, three operated by Union Pacific and two by BNSF; the Hobart/Commerce and East Los Angeles yards near downtown Los Angeles handle the majority of intermodal cargo. About 24 miles north of the ports (operating). Source
  • Rail yard expansion: On-dock rail yard at the Port of Long Beach growing from 82 to 171 acres for 10,000-foot trains, with completion set for 2032. $1.8 billion program (under construction). Source
  • Foreign-trade zone: Foreign-Trade Zone 202 magnet site in Carson. 353.6 acres, 2.11 acres activated (operating). Source
  • Airport: Los Angeles International Airport air cargo (operating). Source

Distribution: Warehouses and cross-docks around the harbor, in Carson's foreign-trade zone and in Vernon, an industrial city of 5.2 square miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles.

Destination market

Calgary, AB

Calgary is an inland freight hub for Western Canada, with two Class I railroads, a 24-hour cargo airport and a large distribution-center cluster in Balzac and Conrich just outside the city. Industries present in the region include energy and oilfield equipment, food and beverage processing, and fabricated metal and machinery. The CN logistics park includes a container intermodal terminal and a rail-to-truck transload operation. The QEII highway is part of the CANAMEX corridor linking Alberta to the U.S. and Mexico, and the Coutts crossing leads into Montana.

Industries: Energy and oilfield equipment, food and beverage processing, fabricated metal and machinery, retail and e-commerce distribution, rail transload

  • Intermodal terminal: CN rail-served logistics park in Conrich, Rocky View County, with an intermodal terminal for containerized goods and a rail-to-truck transload operation. 680-acre park with space for more than 2.5M sq ft of warehouse and distribution facilities (opened January 2013). Source
  • Rail ramp: CPKC Calgary intermodal ramp. Listed as Calgary, AB in CPKC's ramp-to-ramp intermodal schedule (operating). Source
  • Airport cargo: YYC Calgary International Airport cargo and the YYC Global Logistics Park. 24 hours a day, no curfew; park of 330+ acres (operating). Source
  • Industrial park: High Plains Industrial Park in Balzac, with retail, grocery and foodservice distribution centers. 1,500-acre park (operating). Source
  • Distribution cluster: Distribution centers, fulfillment centers and third-party logistics operations in Rocky View County. More than 25 new distribution centers and over 9 million sq ft of warehousing added since 2021 (operating). Source
  • Planned inland port: Prairie Economic Gateway, a rail-served industrial development area in the Calgary region. 1,287 acres in the southern portion; conceptual scheme approved July 2025 (planned). Source

Distribution: Retail, grocery and foodservice distribution centers, e-commerce fulfillment centers and rail-to-truck transload, concentrated in Balzac, Conrich and the airport corridor.

Market profiles describe industries and facility types from public government, industry, port, railroad and industrial-park sources. They name no shippers, manufacturers, retailers or logistics companies.

Common questions about this lane

How do I find carriers for Los Angeles to Calgary?

On Cargado, brokers post the corridor and vetted carriers bid on it. Every carrier is verified before it can bid, which replaces cold-calling unknown carriers.

What equipment is available on the Los Angeles to Calgary corridor?

Postings here lean dry van-led, with open deck and reefer demand. If you need a type you do not see, post the load anyway. Carriers with matching equipment get notified automatically.

Do carriers on this corridor handle customs paperwork?

Carriers handle the transport side and customs brokers clear the freight. Have your customs broker's entry filed before the truck reaches the border, and look for carriers with the right border credentials.

Moving freight on this lane?

Post it to 2,350+ vetted Mexico and Canada carriers, or check market rates built from real carrier bids before you quote.

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