Canada’s Opposition MP’s are up in arms about Canadians stranded on trains, in airports and in destinations during the holiday travel season - and they’re pointing their fingers at both operators and the government.
In the weeks leading up to the holidays, as Open Jaw reported, the government held top-level travel industry meetings and a ‘summit’ with the goal of ensuring the air travel meltdowns of the high summer season would not be repeated. Unfortunately for thousands of Canadians, holiday travel was far from smooth sailing and topped headlines throughout the holidays.
One day after the Liberal Chair of the federal House transport committee announced he would convene a hearing on the failures of the holiday travel season, NDP and Conservative MP’s cried foul.
Liberal MP Peter Schiefke did not set a date for the hearing, but he did say that he would require the CEO’s of both Sunwing and VIA Rail to appear. The Opposition is demanding that not just operators, but the minister of transport also testify - and say the government itself needs to be held accountable too.
As CBC reports, the NDP transport critic denounced the inaction of the government over the travel meltdown.
"It's not enough for the Liberal minister to tweet that the situation was unacceptable," NDP transport critic Taylor Bachrach said in a media statement on Wednesday.
"He's the minister charged with overseeing Canada's transportation system and has specific powers under legislation. If anyone can do something to protect passengers, it's him. Canadians deserve to know what steps he took during the crisis and plans to take in the future to protect passengers."
The NDP’s transport critic was joined by the Conservatives’ transport critic and other Opposition members of the transport committee in penning a letter to Schiefke, demanding that any hearings also include a two-hour question-and-answer period with Transport Minister Omar Alghabra. A letter from four members of the committee triggers a requirement for the committee to meet within five days to consider the request.
The office of the minister of transport, Omar Alghabra, issued a written statement saying the government is doing everything it can.
"All options are on the table to ensure that what happened over the holidays does not happen again."
Airline Competition in the Crosshairs
That doesn’t mean the Opposition is willing to let operators off the hook. For the NDP, the travel fiasco over the holidays is proof Canada’s air industry needs more competition and oversight to ensure affordable, reliable air travel options for Canadians - including those in more remote areas.
CBC points out that the Sunwing holiday operations problems are not the only issue, citing the airline’s pullout from Saskatchewan for at least a month, as well as Air Canada’s suspension of flights “from Saskatoon and Regina to Calgary this month after it discontinued flights from Yellowknife to Edmonton last year.”
"We need to make sure people have access to being able to get around the country, and that it is affordable," Singh said.
