On October 9, 2026, the Canada Border Services Agency announced that it will change opening and closing times at 13 land ports of entry in Manitoba. The new hours take effect at 2:00 a.m. Central Time on Sunday, November 1, 2026, and stay in place until 2:00 a.m. on March 14, 2027, according to the CBSA release.
The reason is the clock. Manitoba has adopted permanent year-round daylight saving time, while the United States will keep changing its clocks each fall and spring. To keep Canadian and U.S. ports open at the same time, the CBSA says it will shift its hours twice a year at these crossings.
The Canadian Trucking Alliance repeated the notice on October 16 and told carriers to review the details in advance and plan accordingly, in its bulletin on the Manitoba, Alberta and B.C. changes. Nine ports in British Columbia and four in Alberta are changing too. This post sticks to Manitoba.
What This Means for Manitoba Shippers
If you ship south from rural Manitoba, your trailer may now have a shorter window to clear the border on the day it is booked. Commercial service at all 13 ports runs Monday to Friday only, excluding holidays, and several ports close commercial traffic hours before they stop serving travellers.
That gap matters. A driver who sees a port open until 9:00 p.m. on a phone map may assume trucks can cross until then. At South Junction and Winkler, travellers are served until 9:00 p.m., but commercial traffic stops at 5:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. respectively.
For shippers, the practical result is that pickup times, loading times and appointment times need to be set backward from the commercial closing time, not forward from the dock. A load that leaves a plant at 3:30 p.m. and used to make a crossing comfortably may now arrive after the gate has shut. The freight then sits overnight, or until Monday morning if it is a Friday run.
Any logistics company moving your freight south should be able to name the commercial closing time for its crossing without looking it up.
The New Commercial Hours at a Glance
These are the commercial hours listed by the CBSA for the 13 Manitoba ports, in Central Time, Monday to Friday excluding holidays:
- 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.: Cartwright, Coulter, Lena, South Junction
- 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.: Gretna, Tolstoi, Winkler
- 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.: Crystal City, Goodlands, Lyleton, Piney, Snowflake, Windygates
Traveller hours are longer at five of these ports. Lyleton serves travellers from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m., Winkler and South Junction until 9:00 p.m., and Gretna and Tolstoi until 7:00 p.m. None of that extra time applies to a loaded truck.
Check the CBSA page before you dispatch, because the release is the authority and this summary is not. Also note that the list covers 13 smaller crossings. Emerson is not among them in the release, so confirm the hours for whichever crossing your lane actually uses.
Why Winter Clocks Create the Problem
For most of the year the border runs on a shared rhythm. In winter, the United States moves its clocks back an hour and Manitoba does not. A crossing that closes at the same wall-clock time on both sides would close an hour apart in real terms.
That mismatch creates trouble. A truck cleared on one side could reach the other side after it had already shut. By moving its own hours, the CBSA is trying to keep both sides open at the same time. The agency also points to coordination when a traveller is turned back and must return right away.
The twice-yearly pattern is what carriers should take from this. The change is not a one-off for this winter, and every logistics trucking company running Manitoba to U.S. lanes will feel it. The CBSA has said it will adjust these hours each fall and spring, so any dispatcher who builds the November schedule into a spreadsheet should build the March reversal into it too.
How to Plan Cross-Border Runs Around Earlier Closings
Good planning is mostly arithmetic done early. A logistics trucking company that crosses the border every day should already be doing this, and here is how a dispatcher can approach it.
Work back from the commercial close
Take the port’s commercial closing time, subtract the expected queue time, then subtract the drive time from the shipper’s dock. That is your latest safe departure. Leave a buffer for weather, because Manitoba highways in November do not care about your schedule.
Pick the crossing for the day, not the habit
Some drivers use the same port out of habit. With hours now varying by an hour or more between crossings, the best choice for a late-afternoon load may be a different port than usual. A longer drive to a crossing that closes at 6:00 p.m. can beat a shorter drive to one that closes at 5:00 p.m. A top trucking company will tell you which crossing it picked and why.
Get the paperwork right the first time
A shipment held at the gate for missing or incorrect documents has no slack to recover. Send commercial invoices, shipper details and any dangerous goods paperwork ahead of the truck, and confirm the receiver has what it needs. Shorter windows leave less room to fix errors on the spot.
Treat Fridays as a hard stop
Because commercial service stops after Friday, a load that misses the Friday window waits until Monday. For temperature-sensitive or time-critical freight, that is a different kind of problem than a late delivery. Book Thursday pickups where you can, and ask your trucking company what its Friday cut-off is.
What to Tell Your Customers and Receivers
U.S. receivers set appointments based on when they expect a truck to cross. If your customer in North Dakota or Minnesota books a 2:00 p.m. dock slot, the driver needs to have crossed well before then, and the new hours may push the earliest realistic crossing later in the morning than before.
A top trucking company tells receivers early, so send the new schedule to your receiving partners now, while there is still time to move appointments. A short message listing the commercial closing time for the crossing you use is enough. Most receivers would rather rebook a slot in October than explain an empty dock in December.
Shippers who book several loads a week should also check whether their carriers have updated their own cut-off times. A trucking company still quoting pickup times built around last winter’s hours is a warning sign.
How Keen Plans Around Border Hours
Keen Transport & Logistics is an asset-based carrier, and as a logistics trucking company with its own fleet we see the border schedule every day. We run our own trucks and our own drivers, so we decide when a load leaves the dock and which crossing it uses. We are not passing the problem to a third party and hoping it works out. Choosing a logistics company that owns its equipment means one team answers for the schedule.
Our 24/7 dispatch desk at (204) 943-5336 tracks each load against the port’s closing time, and with C-TPAT certification and US and Canada bonded status, we are set up to move freight across the border. Our 97.8% on-time record across more than 49,450 loads comes from planning like this, done before the truck is loaded rather than after it is late. That is what separates a top trucking company from one that explains delays afterward.
If your freight is a full truckload heading south, we can build the pickup schedule around the crossing. If it needs to wait for a morning crossing, our Winnipeg warehouse and cross-docking space can hold it overnight and stage it for an early run. Shippers who want help with the wider picture can look at our supply chain services.
For a logistics company, the test is simple: can it put a truck on the road at the right time? That is the difference a shipper notices between a broker and a carrier that owns its fleet. A broker can only tell you what the schedule should be. We can put a truck on the road at the right time. For anything specific to your lane, contact our team.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do the new CBSA hours apply to every Manitoba border crossing?
No. The release covers 13 ports: Cartwright, Coulter, Crystal City, Goodlands, Gretna, Lena, Lyleton, Piney, Snowflake, South Junction, Tolstoi, Windygates and Winkler. If you use a crossing that is not on the list, check the CBSA’s border wait times and hours page for that port.
When do the new hours start and end?
They start at 2:00 a.m. Central Time on November 1, 2026, and run until 2:00 a.m. on March 14, 2027. The CBSA says it will adjust hours again each spring and fall, so expect another change next year.
Can a truck cross on weekends?
At these 13 ports, the CBSA lists commercial hours for Monday to Friday, excluding holidays. The release does not mention weekend commercial service. Traveller hours run daily, so do not read a port’s open sign as a commercial opening.
How do I find a reliable trucking company near me in Manitoba that handles cross-border freight?
Ask whether the freight carrier owns its trucks, holds C-TPAT and bonded status, and has dispatch available outside office hours. A carrier that can explain which crossing it will use and why is usually one that plans ahead.
What should I look for in a trucking company near me when border hours change?
Look for one that tells you the cut-off time for your lane before you ask. If it cannot name the crossing and the commercial closing time, that is worth noting. Ask the trucking company how it handles a load that misses the window on a Friday.
Is there a trucking company near me that can store freight overnight before a border run?
Yes, if the carrier runs its own warehouse. Keen holds freight at its Winnipeg facility and stages it for an early departure. Call dispatch at (204) 943-5336 to discuss your volumes.
Ship With a Carrier That Owns Its Fleet
Keen Transport & Logistics runs 100+ trucks and 220+ trailers out of Winnipeg, with a 97.8% on-time record across more than 49,450 loads. No broker markup, no handing your freight to a stranger — our equipment, our drivers, our dispatch.
Call 24/7 dispatch at (204) 943-5336, email info@keentransport.ca, or request a free quote and we’ll price your lane the same day.