(Montreal) The provision of air transport services could be threatened in certain remote regions of Quebec due to the end of a government program which came to the aid of Quebec carriers, denounces the Parti Québécois.
In its 2023-2024 budget, presented in March, the government granted 10 million to extend the Assistance Program for the Maintenance of Essential Regional Air Services, which was first put in place to help carriers survive the drastic drop in ridership during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This program was renewed last spring, since the government recognized that “the effects of the pandemic on regional air service traffic continue” and that air carriers were faced with new challenges, such as the increase in fuel prices.
However, this program ended on September 30 and no new sums concerning its extension were announced in the economic update presented this week in Quebec.
In reaction to this news, the Quebec carrier Pascan Aviation sent a letter to its employees in which it announced that it will reduce the number of its scheduled flights from the beginning of December, in addition to eliminating certain regional connections which are not ” financially viable.
All of this will lead to “temporary or permanent layoffs” that the company would have liked to avoid, but which are “essential in the current context,” she argued.
According to the PQ MP for the Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Joël Arseneau, the Legault government’s strategy of banking on increased ridership to support regional air transport — notably by offering tickets at $500 — has not bearing fruit.
PHOTO PASCAL RATTHÉ, ARCHIVES SPECIAL COLLABORATION
Parti Québécois MP Joël Arseneau
He therefore demands that the Standing Committee on Regional Air Transport, which was set up in February at the National Assembly, meet urgently in order to find structuring solutions to help protect air links with remote regions of the Quebec.
Until then, he wants the government to reverse its decision and once again extend the Assistance Program for the Maintenance of Essential Regional Air Services, in order to prevent companies from being forced to end certain routes.