Last week, Transport Minister John Baird announced $1.5 billion in new funding for the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) to “enhance Canadian aviation security.” The new funding will come from air travelers.
After hyping up why more security is needed and talking about all the wonderful technology air travelers can experience (like naked body scanners), the press release divulges how much more the government expects flyers to pay for these services.
Here’s what that table looks like:
Proposed ATSC Rates ($)
| Current | Initial Rate in 2002 | April 2010 and Ongoing | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic (one-way) | 4.90 | 12.00 | 7.48 |
| Domestic (round trip) | 9.80 | 24.00 | 14.96 |
| Transborder | 8.34 | 12.00 | 12.71 |
| Other international | 17.00 | 24.00 | 25.91 |
Note: The above rates include the GST or the federal portion of the HST where applicable.
Source: http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/mediaroom/releases-2010-h025e-5847.htm
So if you’re planning to take a round-trip flight within Canada, you’ll pay about $15 more. If you’re flying overseas, you’ll pay over $25 in security fees.
Compare that to the security fees in the United States (called the September 11 Security Fee) and you’ll notice it’s much more higher here in Canada. The Americans charge $2.50 per flight segment, for a maximum of $5.00 one-way, whether you’re flying within the US or overseas. So if you’re flying non-stop from Toronto or Montreal to let’s say London, Dubai or anywhere else around the world, you’ll pay $25.91 versus $2.50 if you flew out of New York or Washington. That over 900% more.
My first thought was that the Canadian government just wanted to rip off travelers. After all, why would our security cost more than the Americans? Security costs should be relative to the number of travelers.
But after poking around some documents, I realized the problem. CATSA received $618 million from the Canadian government in 2009/2010, while the US budget for the Transportation Security Administration was almost $6 billion. With the US population approximately 10 times more than Canada’s, that about right.
The problem is this: While the TSA in the US receives over $2 billion in fees and the rest (around $4 billion) in funding through the federal government, CATSA in Canada is expected to make up for most (if not all) of its funding needs through fees.
My recommendation: Seriously consider flying out from the US. Buffalo, Burlington, Detroit and Seattle are all good option.
