The modern marketplace for the freight industry
Most brokers start a Canada lane on a load board. Here is how the freight actually moves, what the border asks of a carrier before the truck ever loads, and what changes when every carrier in the network has been vetted.
- Northbound and southbound are different jobs: PARS one way, PAPS the other, so quote and post them as separate lanes.
- Winter is an equipment spec. Heated and protect-from-freezing service is a requirement, not a comment.
- On Cargado, post the lane once and matched, vetted carriers with FAST and PIP on record bid on it.
- Carriers join at no cost.
What carriers and brokers have done on Cargado
Two published customer stories, in their own numbers.
This broker grew Mexico revenue 1,400% in just 4 months.
This carrier grew from 1 to 6 trucks using only Cargado.
What the border asks of a load before it moves
A U.S.–Canada load is two shipments in the eyes of the paperwork, and customs release with CBSA or CBP has to be arranged before the truck arrives. The process is named differently depending on which way you are going.
Northbound into Canada runs on PARS, the Pre-Arrival Review System. The customs broker files the entry against a PARS barcode the carrier supplies, CBSA (the Canada Border Services Agency) reviews it ahead of arrival, and the truck gets released at the primary booth if everything cleared. Southbound into the United States runs on PAPS, the Pre-Arrival Processing System, filed with U.S. Customs and Border Protection the same way. Both directions also require an electronic manifest transmitted by the carrier before arrival: ACI going north, ACE going south.
CUSMA, the Canada United States Mexico Agreement in force since 2020, governs whether the goods qualify for preferential duty treatment. It shapes what documentation rides with the load, and a certification of origin error turns a two-hour customs clearance into a two-day hold.
FAST, short for Free and Secure Trade, is the trusted-trader lane. A carrier enrolled in FAST, running FAST-carded drivers for an approved importer, can use a dedicated lane at designated ports. On a busy morning, that is the difference between a same-day delivery and a missed appointment.
Northbound and southbound are two different jobs
Brokers who run Canada consistently learn to quote the directions separately.
Northbound freight out of the U.S. Midwest and Northeast is usually the easier side to cover, because a large share of the carrier base is domiciled in Ontario and Quebec and wants a load headed home. Southbound is where capacity gets tight, since those same carriers need a paying load back out and will hold for the lane that repositions them correctly.
A rate that works northbound rarely works southbound. Treating a Canada lane as one round-trip number is one of the more expensive habits on this freight.
The corridors that carry the freight
Coverage follows a short list of corridors.
Toronto to Chicago is the highest-volume manufacturing and consumer-goods corridor in the network.
Montreal into the Northeast runs into New York and Vermont, feeding Boston, New Jersey, and the Northeast distribution centers. Quebec-based carriers dominate this corridor, and a lot of the day-to-day dispatch conversation happens in French.
Winnipeg to Chicago is a reefer corridor first, carrying protein and processed food south.
Brampton to Calgary is a domestic Canadian run, and it belongs on this list anyway. It is how a cross-border carrier repositions west, and brokers who can offer it alongside a border lane get better answers on both.
Vancouver drayage and the British Columbia to Washington corridor carry import distribution off the port plus produce moving south into Washington and California.
Winter is an equipment spec, not a comment
From November through March, a meaningful share of freight that moves dry van in July needs a temperature-controlled trailer running heat instead of cold.
Protect-from-freezing service on paint, adhesives, beverages, pharmaceuticals, and canned goods is a hard requirement, and postings that bury it in the comments field get the wrong trucks. A carrier that arrives with an unheated van at minus 25 has cost the customer the load. Open deck adds a winter securement standard of its own, and prairie lanes add long combination vehicles including Super-B trains where provincial permits allow them.
Postings that carry the requirement up front get bids from carriers already equipped for the season.
What a vetted network means at the border
Cargado is the modern marketplace for Mexico and Canada freight, and it is not an open board. We vet every carrier before it can bid and meet with every broker, 3PL, and forwarder before onboarding. The network connects hundreds of brokers on one side and 2,350+ vetted carriers on the other.
For border freight, vetting covers what a domestic carrier profile leaves out:
- FAST enrollment, PIP (Partners in Protection, the CBSA supply chain security program), and CTPAT (Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism, the U.S. program) tracked on the carrier record
- Insurance verified, including whether coverage extends into Canada
- Bonded carriers with customs experience identified, so the CBSA and CBP steps are handled by drivers who have done them before
- The border markets each carrier actually runs, because a carrier who is strong in Ontario is not automatically the right answer in Manitoba
For brokers: post the lane once
Post the lane once, with the direction and the equipment attached. It reaches carriers already certified for that border and already running that corridor, so bids come back from carriers you can tender to rather than names you still have to go qualify.
Broker subscriptions are value based and include unlimited users, which means the rep who sold the load, the coordinator working with the customs broker, and night dispatch all work in the same record.
Toronto to Chicago in Cargado Market Rates: the rate range, its confidence score and 12 weeks of historyView full size
For carriers: consistent border freight at no cost
Carriers use Cargado at no cost. If you hold FAST, PIP, or CTPAT and run the border regularly, that status works in your favor here, because it is exactly what brokers are searching on. Set the lanes you run and the equipment you operate, and the freight that fits comes to you in both directions instead of only on the leg that repositions you.
Every company is vetted, which keeps the freight on the board real and the brokers on the other side accountable.
Add Mexico and Canada coverage
Brokers see live lane rates and vetted carriers on their own lanes in a demo. Carrier access is at no cost.
Common questions
What is the difference between PARS and PAPS?
Direction. PARS, the Pre-Arrival Review System, is used for freight moving northbound into Canada and is reviewed by CBSA before the truck arrives. PAPS, the Pre-Arrival Processing System, is the equivalent for freight moving southbound into the United States and is filed with U.S. Customs and Border Protection. In both cases the customs broker files the entry against a barcode the carrier supplies, and the carrier separately transmits an electronic manifest, ACI northbound and ACE southbound.
Do I need a FAST-approved carrier for every cross-border load?
No. FAST is a trusted-trader program that gives enrolled carriers with carded drivers access to a dedicated lane, and it requires the importer and the exporter to be approved as well. Plenty of border freight moves fine without it. It earns its keep on time-sensitive lanes and when border waits run long, which is why it is worth being able to see which carriers hold it before you tender.
Why is southbound capacity harder to find than northbound?
A large share of the cross-border carrier base is domiciled in Ontario and Quebec. Northbound freight repositions those carriers toward home, so it competes well. Southbound asks them to leave, so they hold for lanes that set up their next move. Quoting the two directions as one round-trip number tends to underprice the harder leg.
Does the marketplace cover freight that stays inside Canada?
Yes. Intra-Canada lanes such as Toronto to Calgary, Montreal to Halifax, and Vancouver to Edmonton run alongside cross-border freight, on a carrier base that includes heated and protect-from-freezing equipment, open deck, heavy haul, and long combination vehicles including Super-B trains where they are permitted.
What does "vetted" actually mean here?
Every carrier is reviewed before being granted access, and the review covers operating authority, verified insurance including Canada coverage, border program status such as FAST, PIP, and CTPAT, and the lanes and equipment the carrier genuinely runs. We meet with every broker before onboarding them. Your own onboarding still gates the tender.
How do carriers get access, and what does it cost?
Carriers request access directly and are verified before they can bid. There is no cost to carriers for marketplace access. Brokers, 3PLs, and forwarders pay a value-based subscription that includes unlimited users.