News release

Today, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) released its final annual statistical summaries for 2024 on transportation occurrences across the air, marine, pipeline, and rail sectors. Tracking occurrence statistics is critical for the TSB to identify trends and emerging safety risks within the different sectors.

In 2024, a total of 3,222 occurrences (accidents and incidents) were reported to the TSB. Of these, there were 1,303 accidents, which represents a decrease of 3% from 2023 and 14% compared to the 10-year average of 1507. Compared to the previous year, the number of accidents declined in the marine and rail sectors, while the air sector saw a slight increase.

Air transportation

In 2024, the TSB received 1,010 reports of air occurrences (accidents and incidents), a 1% decrease from 1,020 in 2023. Of these, 193 were accidents – up 7% from the 181 the previous year – resulting in 46 fatalities.

Accidents involving commercial operators rose slightly from 76 to 78, while those involving private operations also increased from 103 to 114. The remaining 817 reports were aviation incidents, down 2.6% from 839 in 2023.

Marine transportation

In 2024, the TSB received 951 reports of marine occurrences (accidents and incidents), down 7% from 1,027 in 2023. Of these, 213 were accidents that resulted in a total of 12 fatalities – a 33% drop from 18 fatalities the previous year.

As seen in past years, most fatalities (10 of the 12) were linked to commercial fishing safety, which continues to be a key safety concern on the TSB’s Watchlist. The remaining 738 reported occurrences were marine incidents, also down 7% from the 797 in 2023.

Pipeline transportation

In 2024, a total of 63 pipeline occurrences were reported to the TSB – 62 incidents and one accident – down from 68 in both 2022 and 2023 and well below the 10-year average of 94.5. Thirteen involved a product release, the lowest number ever reported, and a 24% drop from 2023. As in previous years, there were no serious injuries or fatalities arising directly from the operation of a federally regulated pipelines.

Rail transportation

In 2024, the TSB received 1,198 reports of rail occurrences, a 3% decrease from 1,241 in 2023. Of these, 896 were accidents – down from 918 the previous year and 12% below the 10-year average.

A total of 87 rail accidents involved dangerous goods, unchanged from 2023 and below the 10-year average of 115. Three resulted in a release of dangerous goods, down from seven in 2023.

There were 69 fatalities in 2024, up from 67 last year and above the 10-year average of 62. Trespassing accidents remain the leading cause, accounting for 81% of all rail-related fatalities (56), followed by crossing fatalities (12).

Uncontrolled movements of rolling stock were involved in 43 occurrences (31 accidents and 12 incidents), up from 37 in 2023. Four of these were linked to vandalism, compared to three from the previous year.

The remaining 302 reports were incidents, a 7% decrease from 323 in 2023.