Not much it seems, except for excessive taxes and fees.
The World Economic Forum’s Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report reports that in 2013, Canada ranked first out of 140 countries for its air transport infrastructure, but 136th for its ticket taxes and airport charges. On the one hand great airports and air travel infrastructure, on the other high fees making them far less competitive.
Canadians aren’t stupid, eh? Most Canadians live close to the USA border, so they cross to nearby cities (eg. Seattle, Grand Forks, Buffalo) to get cheaper flights in the USA. It’s estimated 5,000,000 trips were lost last year because of more favorable air fees in the USA, a major blow to Canadian jobs and the like.
Air Canada was planning on expanding its operations in Toronto, perhaps making Toronto a major international hub. But the province of Ontario is proposing a nearly 7 cents a liter tax (just under 30 cents per gallon) on aviation fuel, putting a stop to these plans. Many of Canada’s provinces have no aviation fuel tax.
More on this story by the Financial Post at this link.
