Despite numerous calls to end random testing of arriving passengers at Canadian airports and to ease crowded conditions at airports across the country, the Canadian government today said it’s extending current border measures until at least June 30. In a statement on Twitter (you think they’d put out something more official), the Public Health Agency of Canada today said it will continue the current rules for another month. That would appear to mean random tests for arriving passengers at Canadian airports will continue. PHAC said on Twitter that all travellers, regardless of vaccination status, must continue to submit their information in Read more
airport testing
Slowdowns at Canadian airports are “unacceptable” and are harming the country’s economy, Mississauga civic and business leaders said today. Speaking at a press conference at Toronto Pearson Airport, officials said the Trudeau government needs to take urgent action to address delays at Pearson and other airports. The speakers said Ottawa needs to dump random COVID-19 testing at Canadian airports, and also needs to eliminate lengthy conversations between Canadian Borders Services Agency (customs workers) and arriving passengers. Doug Allingham, Chair of the Board of the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, said chats with custom officers have traditionally taken about 30 seconds per Read more
Published reports say the Justin Trudeau government in Ottawa is “expected to announce as soon as tomorrow that travellers entering Canada will no longer have to take a pre-arrival COVID-19 test.” The CBC today said sources with knowledge of the situation said Canada will remove testing requirements at airports and also at land border crossings. CTV News says the the federal government will be lifting the pre-arrival COVID-19 testing requirement at the border for fully vaccinated travellers as of April 1. “Passengers may still be subjected to random PCR testing at the airport, and travellers will still have to use Read more
Canada’s busiest airport is getting a bit lift from Trudeau government. The ruling Liberals today announced $142 million in funding to help Toronto Pearson International Airport recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and to support continued air services and important transportation infrastructure projects at the airport. “As Canada works towards recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, investments in our airport infrastructure continue to be crucial to maintain safety, security, and connectivity for travellers, workers and communities,” the government said in a press release. Investments such as this “also help ensure Canada’s aviation industry is well-positioned to recover from the Read more
The government of Canada announced new COVID-19 testing rules for most Canadian airports on Tuesday of last week. Six days later, we still don’t know what’s really happening. The Trudeau government announced at the time that all passengers flying into Canada from destinations other than the United States would have to be tested upon arrival. Officials who said they were worried about the Omicron variant, said travellers will have to isolate while they wait for their results, and that those results might take three days. Those tests are in addition to the requirement that anyone flying to Canada show a Read more
