ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

Skip to main content

Some of Canada's airports are increasing fees to passengers, here's why

Share

Airports that lost millions of dollars during the pandemic are now trying to recoup some of the losses as travel picks up again.

To do this, many are increasing the "user-pay" system that generates revenue from passengers, fuel and aircraft fees.

After the decline in traffic during the pandemic, some airports are now increasing fees they charge passengers.

"They have to get it from somewhere," Barry Prentice, professor of supply chain management at the University of Manitoba, told CTV's Your Morning on Friday. "So certainly, the only place they can get it from is passengers. They can obviously charge the airlines too, but that'll just work its way into airfare. So one way or another, we're going to pay more."

Fees for "airport improvements" and "passenger facility fees" are ways airports can fund upgrades, maintenance and employee salaries.

"Some of these fees are actually going to pay debt, but they're also there to pay for airport rent because the airports actually have to pay a fair amount of rent to the federal government every year," Prentice said.

Canada's largest airport, , increased improvement fees charged to departing passengers on Jan. 1, from $30 to $35.

Travellers connecting through Pearson saw an increase from $6 to $7. The airport also increased aeronautical fees, which cover de-icing, by 4 per cent.

is increasing its fees on April 1, when anyone flying out of the airport can expect a passenger facility fee of $30, up from $20.

Fort McMurray International Airport, in Alberta, is reviewing its airport improvement fee, which is , according to an analysis by WestJet.

"There's no other way for the airport to get money," Prentice said. "So they have to do that if they're going to continue to function. Obviously, it's because of this unusual circumstance of a pandemic."

Pearson is managed by the which reported a $734 million loss in 2020 and 2021. Its debt rose $800 million to $7.2 billion.

The , raised its debt by more than $500 million to $1.8 billion.

Montreal Airport Authority's.

"We've got no other choice, either you're going to fly out to your local airport, or you're going to drive a long way to get to the next one," Prentice said. "They are the same fees, so there's not much Canadians can do, but just pay it out."

CTVNews.ca ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

The province's public security minister said he was "shocked" Thursday amid reports that a body believed to be that of a 14-year-old boy was found this week near a Hells Angels hideout near Quebec City.

Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.

An Ontario man says it is 'unfair' to pay a $1,500 insurance surcharge because his four-year-old SUV is at a higher risk of being stolen.

The Montreal couple from Mexico and their three children facing deportation have received a temporary residence permit.

Local Spotlight

They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.

David Krumholtz, known for roles like Bernard the Elf in The Santa Clause and physicist Isidor Rabi in Oppenheimer, has spent the latter part of his summer filming horror flick Altar in Winnipeg. He says Winnipeg is the most movie-savvy town he's ever been in.

Edmontonians can count themselves lucky to ever see one tiger salamander, let alone the thousands one local woman says recently descended on her childhood home.

Stay Connected