Transport minister acknowledges 'unacceptable' summer travel issues, says plan is to strengthen passenger bill of rights

Canada's transport minister says the federal government and the country's aviation sector are working on strengthening the passenger bill of rights following a summer plagued by delayed and cancelled flights. While answering reporters' questions during a news conference at the Ottawa International Airport on Monday, Omar Alghabra acknowledged the "unacceptable" issues air travellers faced this year, from delayed and cancelled flights to lost luggage. The comments came after the minister convened a summit last week with the air travel industry to discuss outstanding issues facing the sector ahead of the holidays. Speaking on Monday, Alghabra said topics discussed included how to modernize the security screening process, ways that airports could generate additional revenue to ensure greater financial flexibility and lessons learned to reform the passenger bill of rights, including standards for the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority and other government agencies. "Those are the type of things we're looking at because it's really important that we keep in mind the focus of the passenger experience. That's ultimately what we're all trying to do," Alghabra said. The federal government has pointed to a surge in demand for air travel — as much as 280 per cent between February and June, Alghabra has said — and labour shortages for contributing to the issues seen at Canada's major airports, as well as others around the world. The wait time, as of Monday, to review air travel complaints made to the Canadian Transportation Agency can be more than 18 months. <br/>