Land border crossings into the United States down by hundreds of thousands, data shows

Trucks enter into the United States from Ontario, Canada across the Ambassador Bridge, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya) (Paul Sancya/AP)

U.S. customs data shows that the number of travellers crossing into the country from Canada by land is down sharply from last year.

Last month, 3,183,009 people arrived at ports of entry along the Canada-U.S. land border, down more than 900,000 from 4,093,973 in March of 2024, the data shows.

Passenger-vehicle and pedestrian crossings were down roughly 26 per cent, while the number of trucks crossing the border crept up six per cent compared to March 2024.

This year’s March total was the lowest recorded since 2022, a time when travel restrictions linked to the COVID-19 pandemic were still in effect.

The drop in travellers comes amid a tense moment for the relationship between Canada and the United States.

Earlier this year, U.S. President Donald Trump launched a trade war against Canada that has since expanded globally, laying sweeping tariffs across the Canadian economy and announcing his desire to make Canada the 51st U.S. state, repeatedly referring to then-prime minister Justin Trudeau as the country’s "governor."

Fears have also risen in recent months amid an American immigration crackdown that has seen travellers to the United States, including at least one Canadian, detained for days or longer by U.S. officials.

Canada’s U.S. travel advisory, last updated April 4, warns that travellers should “expect scrutiny at ports of entry, including of electronic devices."

“Comply and be forthcoming in all interactions with border authorities,” it reads. “If you are denied entry, you could be detained while awaiting deportation.”

Canada has responded to Trump’s trade war with counter-tariffs of its own, and as import levies and feelings of animosity alike have grown between the two countries, Canadians have increasingly turned their spending to domestic businesses, including for travel.

Statistics Canada data shows that return trips from the United States by car fell in March by more than 30 per cent, compared to 2024, and one U.S. industry monitor revealed last month that Canada-U.S. airline bookings for this year’s spring and summer travel season are down more than 70 per cent from the same time last year.

The owner of one American tour company described the drop in Canadian business as “catastrophic.”

Land crossings have dropped at the United States’ southern border as well, down roughly five per cent in March compared to the year before.

With files from The Canadian Press