Transportation of Dangerous Goods (TDG) Road Course: Lessons 2026

Lesson 1: TDG law, key roles and training

Fuel, paint, batteries, cleaning chemicals and gas cylinders move on Canadian roads every day. Many of them are dangerous goods. The Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act, 1992 (the TDG Act) is a federal law whose purpose is to promote public safety when these goods are transported. The detailed rules are in the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations (SOR/2001-286). Transport Canada runs the TDG program.

Key words

• Dangerous goods: products, substances or organisms in one of the nine classes in the Schedule to the Act.
• Handling: loading, unloading, packing or unpacking dangerous goods in a means of containment, including storing them during transport.
• Means of containment: a container or packaging, or any part of a vehicle, that is or can be used to hold goods. Examples are a drum, a cylinder and a highway tank.
• Consignor: usually the shipper, or the importer.
• Carrier: the person who has, or will have, possession of the goods while they are in transport.

Nobody may import, offer for transport, handle or transport dangerous goods without following the rules on documents, containers and dangerous goods marks. Inspectors can stop and inspect vehicles.

How the Regulations are organized

Schedule 1 lists dangerous goods by UN number. Schedule 2 holds the special provisions. Schedule 3 is an alphabetical index of shipping names. The consignor classifies the product, finds it in Schedules 3 and 1, checks any special provisions, then applies the other Parts.

Training (Part 6)

Anyone who handles, offers for transport or transports dangerous goods must be adequately trained and hold a training certificate. The only other option is to work in the presence and under the direct supervision of a trained person who holds a certificate. Transport Canada says direct supervision means the trained person is physically with the worker. Watching on a camera does not count. An employer must not let an employee do this work unless one of these two conditions is met.

Adequate training means sound knowledge of the topics that apply to the worker's own duties and goods, such as documents, marks, containers, reporting, safe handling and emergency measures.

• Who issues it: the employer, when it has reasonable grounds to believe the employee is adequately trained. A self-employed person issues their own.
• What it shows: the employer's name and business address, the employee's name, the expiry date after the words "Expires on" (or "Date d'expiration"), and the aspects of the work the person is trained for. The employee and the employer sign it.
• When it expires: 36 months after issue for road, rail and marine, and 24 months for air.
• Records: the employer keeps a record of training (or statement of experience) and a copy of the certificate until two years after it expires, and gives a copy to an inspector within 15 days of a written request.
• At roadside: a driver must show the certificate or a copy to an inspector immediately on request.
• Not transferable: a worker with two employers gets a certificate from each.

Valid US training documents for road drivers issued under US rules (49 CFR) are recognized in Canada. Transport Canada says Canadian drivers do not need a hazmat endorsement on their driver's licence.

Temaquiz 1: TDG law, key roles and training

Lesson 2: Classes, UN numbers and shipping names

Before goods can be shipped, the consignor must classify them. This must be done before the carrier takes possession. Classification decides everything else: the shipping name, the marks, the documents and the containers.

The nine classes

Reading Schedule 1

• Column 1, UN number: a number that identifies the goods, for example UN1090 for acetone.
• Column 2, shipping name: the name in UPPER CASE letters that must be used, for example ACETONE.
• Column 3, class: the primary class comes first; any subsidiary class is shown in parentheses. "Forbidden" means the goods may not be transported.
• Column 4, packing group or category.
• Column 5, special provisions (found in Schedule 2).
• Column 7, ERAP index: above this quantity, an approved ERAP is needed.
• Column 9: the most that may be carried per container on a passenger-carrying road vehicle.

Some shipping names need a technical name in brackets. A technical name is a chemical name or another name used in scientific or technical texts. A brand or trade name is not a technical name.

Packing groups

A packing group shows how dangerous the goods are. It is always written as a Roman numeral: I = great danger, II = medium danger, III = minor danger.

For Class 3 flammable liquids, the packing group depends on the initial boiling point and the flash point:

Temaquiz 2: Classes, UN numbers and shipping names

Lesson 3: Labels, placards and UN number marks

Part 4 sets the rules for dangerous goods marks, often called safety marks. Marks must be visible, legible, durable and on a contrasting background.

Labels and placards

On a small container, the shipping name goes next to the label, and the UN number goes next to the label or in a white box on the label without the letters "UN". On most small containers the UN number is at least 12 mm high.

A placard must be displayed square on point, like a diamond, and must be visible. Transport Canada says a forward-facing placard set at a 45-degree angle on a truck trailer is a non-compliance. If several goods use the same placard, show it once on each side and end.

UN numbers on large means of containment

On a large means of containment, the UN number must be shown when the goods need an ERAP, or when a liquid or gas is in direct contact with the container, such as in a tank (Class 1 is handled differently). Write it without "UN", in black digits at least 65 mm high, on an orange panel next to the placard or in a white rectangle on the placard. For a compartment tank with gasoline (UN1203) and diesel, Transport Canada says a Class 3 placard and only UN1203, the lowest flash point product, is enough.

The 500 kg exemption and the DANGER placard

A road vehicle does not need a placard for dangerous goods that have a gross mass of 500 kg or less. Gross mass is the containers plus their contents. The exemption is optional, so placards may still be shown. It does not apply to goods that need an ERAP or a subsidiary placard, or to Class 1 (with some exceptions), Class 2.3, Class 4.3, certain Class 5.2 and 6.1 goods, or Class 7 needing a Category III label.

The optional DANGER placard may replace class placards when the load has two or more dangerous goods that need different placards, packed in two or more small containers. It may not be used for goods such as Class 1, 2.3 or 4.3, for goods needing an ERAP, or for more than 1,000 kg of one class from one consignor.

Removing marks

Marks must never be misleading. When the danger is gone, the marks must be covered or removed. A tank that held a liquid or gas keeps its placards and UN number until it has been cleaned and purged, because residue is still dangerous. Before loading a large container, the marks that will be needed must already be on it.

Temaquiz 3: Labels, placards and UN number marks

Lesson 4: Shipping documents

The shipping document tells everyone, including emergency responders, what dangerous goods are on the vehicle. The consignor prepares it and gives it to the carrier before the carrier takes the goods. A carrier must not take dangerous goods without it, unless an exemption applies. It must be easy to read, in indelible print, and in English or French.

What it must show

• The name and address of the consignor's place of business in Canada.
• The date it was prepared or first given to a carrier.
• A description of each dangerous good, in this order: UN number, shipping name, primary class, subsidiary class(es) in parentheses, packing group (Roman numeral after "PG" or "Packing Group"). No other information may be mixed in.
• The quantity in SI units, such as kg or L, and the number of small containers that need labels.
• The ERAP reference number and telephone number, if an ERAP is required.
• The words "24-Hour Number" and a phone number where the consignor can be reached immediately for technical information, without the caller being cut off. CANUTEC's number may be used only with written permission from CANUTEC.
• The consignor's certification, with the name of the person who makes it. A company name alone is not enough.

Example of a correctly ordered description: UN1203, GASOLINE, 3, PG II. If a carrier drops off part of a load during the trip, the carrier must record the change in quantity or number of containers on the document or an attached page.

Where the driver keeps it

• Driver in the power unit: in a pocket on the driver's door or within the driver's reach.
• Driver away from the power unit: in the driver's door pocket, on the driver's seat, or in a place clearly visible to anyone entering through the driver's door.

A consignor may give the carrier an electronic copy if the carrier agrees, but the carrier must then produce a shipping document for the trip. Transport Canada says a carrier needs an equivalency certificate to use electronic documents instead of paper in transport.

Keeping copies

The consignor keeps a copy for two years after the document was prepared. Each carrier keeps a copy for two years after the goods are no longer in transport. Copies may be electronic, and must be given to an inspector within 15 days of a written request.

Temaquiz 4: Shipping documents

Lesson 5: Means of containment and ERAP basics

A small means of containment holds 450 L or less, such as drums, jerricans, pails, boxes, bags and cylinders. A large means of containment holds more than 450 L, such as highway tanks, tank cars and portable tanks.

The basic rule

Dangerous goods may only be put in a means of containment that Part 5 allows for those goods. Every means of containment must be designed, constructed, filled, closed, secured and maintained so that, in normal transport and handling, there is no release that could endanger public safety.

• Securing: secure the goods inside the container, and the container on the vehicle, so it is not damaged in a way that could cause a release.
• Filling: follow the filling limit in the standard. If none is given, follow the maker's limit and make sure a liquid container cannot become liquid full at any temperature up to 55°C.
• Standardized containers carry compliance marks. They are "in standard" only if they show the required marks and still meet the standard. Marks must be visible and legible.
• UN standardized packagings are recognized internationally. Cylinders, highway tanks and rail tank cars built to Canadian standards carry the "TC" mark. Some US "DOT" containers may be accepted under certain conditions.

Emergency response assistance plans (ERAPs)

An ERAP is a plan that says what to do if certain higher-risk dangerous goods are released, or may be released, during transport. It lists trained people and equipment that can help responders.

• When: an ERAP is needed when the quantity is above the ERAP index in column 7 of Schedule 1, and in some other cases, such as any quantity of Risk Group 4 human pathogens.
• Who: usually the person in Canada who offers the goods for transport or imports them. Another person's ERAP may be used if they authorize it and it covers the same goods, mode, containers and area.
• Approval: the plan holder applies in writing to the Minister of Transport for approval.
• On the road: the ERAP reference number and telephone number go on the shipping document. Anyone may call the number; the plan holder is responsible for carrying out the plan.
• Marks: loads needing an ERAP must show UN numbers on large containers, may need subsidiary placards, cannot use the 500 kg exemption and cannot use the DANGER placard.

During a response, the ERAP works alongside the plans of carriers and local and provincial authorities, usually coordinated through the Incident Command System (ICS).

Temaquiz 5: Means of containment and ERAP basics

Lesson 6: Emergency response and reporting

A release is any discharge, emission, explosion, outgassing or other escape of dangerous goods from a means of containment. Transport Canada says any smoke or gas coming from lithium batteries is a release. An anticipated release is when goods could escape, for example when a tank is damaged in a crash, a container is exposed to fire, or goods must be moved to another container.

Your duties under the Act

The person in charge of the means of containment must report a release or anticipated release that endangers, or could endanger, public safety. They must also take all reasonable emergency measures to reduce or eliminate the danger. In practice, follow your training and your employer's emergency procedures, keep people away from the danger, and make sure responders can find the shipping document.

CANUTEC

CANUTEC, the Canadian Transport Emergency Centre, is run by Transport Canada and answers 24 hours a day. Its advisors are bilingual scientists trained in emergency response. They advise by phone on hazards, first aid, spills and evacuation distances, but do not come to the scene.

• 1-888-CAN-UTEC (1-888-226-8832)
• 613-996-6666 (collect calls accepted)
• \*666 from a cellphone in Canada

Responders also use the Emergency Response Guidebook (ERG2024), made by Canada, the United States and Mexico for firefighters, police and other emergency responders at highway and rail incidents.

The reports

Emergency report quantities include: any quantity for Class 2, for Packing Group I or II of Classes 3, 4, 5, 6.1 and 8, and for Class 6.2 Category A or B; 30 L or 30 kg for Packing Group III of those classes and for Class 9. For loss or theft, any quantity of Class 2.3 or Class 6.1 Packing Group I must be reported, while Class 3 is reported at 450 kg or more.

Reports include who is reporting, the date, time and place, the shipping name or UN number, the quantities, and the type of incident, such as a collision, rollover or fire. Transport Canada lists provincial contacts: in many provinces it is 911 or local police, and in Alberta 1-800-272-9600.

Temaquiz 6: Emergency response and reporting