With the electrification of cities, large and small, came the electric streetcar. In Montreal the horse car was withdrawn from service in 1894 and replaced with the electric streetcar, operated by the Montreal Street Railway Company from that date until 1911. Many of the streetcars were manufactured by Canadian Car and Foundry of Montreal and the Ottawa Car Company. In Toronto, the horse car gave way to the electric streetcar in 1892, with that service being offered by the Toronto Railway Company from 1891–1921.

The bicycle made its appearance at this time. The "boneshaker", with pedals connected directly to the front wheel, appeared in the Maritimes in 1866 followed by the penny-farthing bicycle after 1876. The machine evolved and was improved with the addition of pneumatic tires, a central crank for the pedals and a coasting back wheel with brake. The increasing popularity of bicycles led to the formation of a national bicycle club, the Canadian Wheelsman in London, Ontario in 1879. In 1899, five important Canadian bicycle manufacturers, Gendron, Goold, Massey-Harris, H.A. Lozier, and Welland Vale, combined to form what would become the very well known Canadian Cycle and Motor Company (CCM), with 1700 employees and an annual production of 40,000 bicycles.

In 1891, the newly formed Canadian Pacific Steamship Lines began offering trans-Pacific steamship service from Vancouver with three large steel-hulled ships, the "Empress", liners, India, China and Japan. A fleet of smaller "Princess" steam ships was used for coastal service and the Great Lakes. Of note is the fact that Canadian Pacific, with its combination of steam ships and steam locomotives, built a transportation empire that spanned more than half the globe. Few other companies anywhere in the world at that time could boast of such an accomplishment.