OTTAWA, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) -- The number of Canadians providing app-based ride or delivery services grew in 2023, Statistics Canada said Friday.

       A total of 135,000 Canadians provided ride or taxi services through apps or platforms in 2023, an increase of 44,000, or 48.1 percent, compared with 2022, according to the national statistical agency.

       The number of Canadians who provided delivery services through an app or platform was also up from 2022 to 2023, rising by 45,000, or 19.2 percent, to reach 272,000.

       Half of those who had provided personal transport or delivery services in 2023 were living in the three largest census metropolitan areas of Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, the agency said.

       Landed immigrants accounted for nearly 57.5 percent of the people who provided either personal transport or delivery services through an app or platform in 2023. In comparison, the proportion was 53.4 percent in 2022.

       The majority, or 70.5 percent, of personal transport and delivery service workers belonged to racialized groups, with South Asian and Black Canadians accounting for the largest proportions of these workers, Statistics Canada said.