Toronto’s Pearson airport says a staffing boost and other initiatives have ‘tangibly improved’ service, and issues that sparked chaos at Canada’s largest airport last summer have been addressed. And no longer is the Toronto hub rated last globally in on-time performance.
The Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA) says the 10,000 new employees hired since last summer have helped increase baggage system reliability, cut wait times at security and customs checkpoints, and decreased holds on board aircraft – all by more than 90% since last year.
GTAA president Deborah Flint says the new investments in staffing have elevated Pearson’s performance.
The travel surge that occurred last summer as pandemic restrictions eased led to overflowing baggage halls, stranded passengers, and tens of thousands of flight cancellations, along with many passengers being held on the tarmac waiting on board aircraft.
Flint says that in addition to hiring more staff, improved digital operations had also improved passenger experience.
Flint said Pearson is committed to further advancing technology in the airport to ease the check-in, security, and boarding process.
She also pointed out that as a testament to these improvements, Toronto Pearson was recently informed that it has secured the top position in the Airports Council International (ACI) Large Airport Category for Q2.
Performance metrics, compared to the summer of 2022, include:
• On-time performance: Toronto Pearson currently ranks 17th in the on-time performance global ranking published by Flight Aware versus last place (1st) at the height of the industry restart. At this time last summer, OTP was 35%. In recent weeks, it has touched as high as 74.5%.
• Baggage: Airlines manage baggage delivery, but Toronto Pearson has made it an ongoing focus for collaborative improvement. The average wait time for all bags arriving at the carousel from July 3 to 9 was 20, compared to 26 minutes last year. During the week of July 10 to 16, baggage service availability at Terminals 1 and 3 was 99.3% and 98.7%, respectively.
• Gate holds: For the week of July 3 to 9, there was just one flight where passengers were held on the aircraft at a Toronto Pearson gate. The aircraft was held for nine minutes. This situation represents a marked improvement over last summer when holding passengers at the gate was a regular practice due to overcrowding in the customs hall – the same week last year saw 34 flights with an average hold time of 10 minutes.
• Security wait times: As passengers have experienced, international and domestic security wait times at both Terminal 1 and Terminal 3 are significantly improved since last summer. The most recent data from the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) for the week of July 3 to 9 indicates that 91% of passengers cleared security in less than 15 minutes.
• Customs wait times: Wait times to enter Canada at Toronto Pearson’s customs halls are significantly and noticeably faster than last summer. Currently, the average wait time for passengers at customs is seven minutes.
Flint adds seen the effective rollout of the YYZ Express program and the successful collaboration with United States Customs and Border Protection and Canada Border Services Agency, facilitated by the introduction of tools like Mobile Passport Control and Advance Declaration, have expedited departure and arrival experiences.
A recent survey by Pollara found that 75% of travellers who have passed through Toronto Pearson Airport over the past year are satisfied with their experience. These positive feelings are partly driven by increased usage of new digital tools at the airport, including a live wait times dashboard, interactive digital maps, and YYZ Express.
Pearson says, “The GTAA collaborates with airline and agency partners as intermittent delays and cancellations occur due to weather, supply-chain issues, and labour shortages. While the airport does not control every facet of the passenger experience, it remains committed to working with all relevant parties to enhance air travel in Canada.”