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Pearson Airport Calls On Feds To Fix These Things To Ease Up The 'Extreme Wait Times'

"While we may be open, we are far from recovered."

Sunju1004 | Dreamstime

If you have gone in or out of Pearson Airport lately, you might have noticed some long lines throughout the airport — and now they're calling on the feds to address certain travel requirements to tackle these delays.

In a news release posted on Wednesday, May 4, the Toronto airport said they are "acutely aware of the extreme wait times" that fliers face when they travel with them.

"Wait times for departing passengers at security screening points are being negatively impacted by staffing challenges at [the Canadian Airport Transport Security Authority]," GTAA officials said.

Earlier this week, CATSA put out a statement addressing the longer wait times and that the delays are partly due to "recruitment challenges" and a spike in demand for air travel following the COVID-19 pandemic.

"To prevent severe passenger congestion, airport and airline staff are forced to hold passengers on planes and deliberately meter the flow of arriving travellers into customs halls for processing by [Canada Border Services Agency], a process that we know and appreciate is incredibly frustrating for passengers," the airport said.

A spokesperson for Pearson Airport previously told Narcity that when processing times are longer at customs halls there can also be "a buildup of luggage in the baggage hall."

What the airport wants help with

Per the release, there are three government checkpoints at Pearson Airport that travellers have to go through. There's pre-board security screening with CATSA, preclearance on departure for travellers heading down to the States, and customs clearance for international fliers coming into the country with the CBSA and extra health checks with the Public Health Agency of Canada.

The GTAA is now "urgently" calling on the feds to address the following things to help them out:

  • Streamline or scrap the inbound public health requirements at airports across Canada, "and in doing so help alleviate bottlenecks for international arriving passengers"
  • Cut random testing upon arrival at airports and look at other options like community wastewater testing
  • "Invest in necessary government agency staffing and technology to achieve globally competitive service standards"
  • Work with the U.S. government so that staffing and capacity at preclearance spots go back to what they were like before the pandemic
"While we may be open, we are far from recovered," GTAA officials wrote, and added that they need immediate help from the Canadian government to recover and provide Pearson passengers "the world-class travel experience they deserve and expect."
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