The Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA) said Monday it is better prepared for the summer travel rush to ensure passengers don’t face widespread delays and cancellations in the coming months.
“This summer will be very different and better than summer of 2022,” said GTAA president and CEO Deborah Flint.
“Our focus has been to rebuild the trust, to regain the confidence of our customers, to bring reliability and predictability to air travel.”
She acknowledged the “anxiety” and “lack of control” felt by passengers last summer, calling it a unique travel season as traffic soared by 180 percent after many pandemic restrictions were eased.
The surge led to overflowing baggage halls, stranded passengers and tens of thousands of flight cancellations, along with some complaints of passengers being stuck on the tarmac for more than an hour before unloading—an issue Flint said would not be repeated this summer thanks to the easing of health processing requirements at customs.
“It was a slingshot of a recovery last year,” she said.
“Our partners are simply more ready. It’s a more normal summer than it has been.”
It has also implemented an upgraded baggage system relying on AI designed to anticipate overloading and detect potential breakdowns before they occur.
Meanwhile, Flint touted a new standard to better understand airlines’ readiness and contingency plans. She said the GTAA will gather data to hold airlines accountable on proper training and staffing availability when handling baggage, with the goal of reducing baggage recirculation, maintaining system capacity and reducing delays at check-in and departure.
Wayne Smith, a hospitality and tourism management professor at Toronto Metropolitan University, called the measures a step in the right direction.
“That probably explains about 70 percent of the problems last summer,” he said.
“The thing about airports is they’re not easy for people to work at. It’s not an easy place for people to get to, you’re often dealing with the public when they’re highly stressed. It’s a very difficult place to train for.”
Gabor Lukacs, president of the Air Passenger Rights advocacy group, said he was encouraged by the Toronto airport’s plan but cautioned that travellers should “check against delivery.”
Flint conceded that air travel won’t be perfect despite the improvements, due to “pandemic spillover effects like labour softness,” along with issues caused by weather conditions.
“It is still travel after all,” she said.
“We know irregular operations are going to happen and passengers need to have faster, better information around flight delays or potential cancellations. Airlines and agencies are sharing more with us and with passengers as well.”
Disruptions could include a potential strike by WestJet pilots as early as May 16 — the Tuesday ahead of the May long weekend, which typically kicks off the summer travel season. The union representing WestJet pilots voted overwhelmingly in favour of a strike mandate last month.
Pilots represented by the Air Line Pilots Association held an “informational picket” on Monday at airports in Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver “to show WestJet management they remain committed to negotiating a North American industry-standard contract,” the union said in a press release.