Road motor vehicle registrations, 2010 (final)

A break in the series occurs with the release of the 2010 data. Prior to 2010, vehicles were assigned to vehicle type categories based solely on the information available from the provincial and territorial vehicle registration files. However, the information in these files was limited and not always consistent between jurisdictions, with the result that the vehicle type could not always be assigned accurately.

Beginning in 2010, the primary method for assigning vehicle type is to systematically decode the Vehicle Identification Number, obtaining information about the vehicle that allows the vehicle type to be assigned accurately in the vast majority of cases. In cases where the Vehicle Identification Number decoder does not provide sufficient information, the registration files are used.

At the national level, the main impact of this change in method is a net increase in the number of heavy trucks (those weighing 15 tonnes and more) and a net decrease in the number of medium trucks (those weighing from 4.5 tonnes to less than 15 tonnes). The impact varies considerably by province and territory.