Calgary’s reputation as a competitive distribution hub will be jeopardized without a proactive approach to improving transportation infrastructure and road congestion, industry representatives say.

Shippers, carriers, land developers, airport and civic officials gathered last week at a day-long forum sponsored by the Van Horne Institute for International Transportation and Regulatory Affairs, a University of Calgary-based institution that promotes research and education of transportation issues.

What they heard wasn’t a surprise – if Calgary wants to maintain its role as an inland transportation nexus, work needs to be done in improving connectivity both in the air and on the ground.

And the public and business community need to better understand how important transportation is to the city’s economy. According to Promoting Calgary Inc., about 1,300 firms in Calgary are involved in the transportation and warehousing sectors, generating an estimated $15 billion in revenue.

“We need to be careful we don’t take the railway and transportation sector for granted, because it makes a significant contribution to the community,” said Vince Gogan, assistant vice-president for strategy and research for Canadian Pacific Railway.

“It’s a fragile business as we try to compete on a North American scale.” Van Horne president and CEO Peter Wallis added the institute held the forum to learn from established Calgary companies what they see as significant threats to their industry.

“People need to understand we are competing as a trading nation with other trading nations to get our products to tidewater and to other foreign markets as efficiently and as cost effectively as others . . . we need to have as efficient a transportation network as possible to enable our producers to latch into that worldwide economic opportunity.”

But some who spoke at the forum observed that increased road congestion, the lack of a ring road, the high cost of serviced land and a lack of direct international air connections are all factors working against the city’s competitive advantage.

Gogan praised Alberta for its tax environment and pro-business government. “Clearly the environment here is right for investment as far as the future is concerned.”

But he noted that CP is dependent on being able to deliver product beyond its own rail infrastructure.

“And we’re finding the congestion in and around the city is becoming a bigger concern for us in terms of our reliability,” he said.

Limited access to direct flights to and from North American cities is also a potential hamstring to good business, Gogan added.

Walter Kranevic, director of international transportation for Milne & Craighead (M&C), a Calgary-based freight forwarder that is a unit of the CF Canada Group of Companies, noted the city is well situated as a consolidation and distribution point on the Prairies, with the same access to international markets as a deep-water port.

However he pointed to an overtaxed civic road system and inadequate highway as continuing irritants.

“We are a major city. We need to have a way to move around this city,” he said.