Less than half of the 98,800 $500 airline tickets were sold in the first year of the Legault administration’s aid program to lower the cost of air travel.
• Also read: $500 tickets are a headache on the islands
From June 1, 2022 to May 31, 2023, “the equivalent of 44,302 round-trip tickets were purchased through the Air Access Program to the Regions (PAAR),” the ministry told the Louis-André Bertrand journal of transport.
“It is a bitter failure that is damaging to the regions,” declared PQ Magdalen Islands MP Joël Arseneau.
Hardly a few hundred tickets were sold for cities like Saguenay or Baie-Comeau.
By far the most popular destination was the Magdalen Islands, which sold 13,882 subsidized tickets.
Switch from boat to plane?
Result: Around 40% of visitors to the islands arrived by plane last year, compared with 20% in 2019, said the mayor of the municipality, Antonin Valiquette. As a result, the proportion of travelers arriving by ship has fallen from 80% to around 60%
Photo from LinkedIn
Antonin Valiquette, mayor of the Îles-de-la-Madeleine since March 2023.
The number of tourists visiting the islands rose from around 68,000 in 2019 to 75,000 last year, up 7,000.
From this it can be deduced that the number of visitors arriving by plane has fallen from around 14,000 to 30,000, while the number of visitors arriving by ship has fallen from around 55,000 to 45,000. Inquiry from boat to plane.
CTMA, the company that operates the ferry to the islands, did not respond to the journal on Thursday.
However, Mayor Valiquette claimed that the PAAR helped extend the tourist season on the islands by increasing the number of visitors in May, June, September and October.
Bad reliability
Although the program has made connections between major centers and regions more affordable, according to many, it has failed in terms of the reliability of air services. Several media have pointed out in recent months that regional flight cancellations and delays are the order of the day.
“What we’ve seen every day since PAAR was formed is that reliability has gone down, and that’s unfortunate,” said Mr. Arseneau indignantly.
Despite everything, the Ministry of Transport believes that “the program has made it possible to achieve its objectives”.
“However, given that the pandemic has been overcome and after only 12 months of implementation, it is premature to undertake a full assessment of the programme. As the population becomes more familiar with the program, more people will be able to use these tickets at discounted prices,” said Mr. Bertrand.
The cost of subsidies for the 44,302 tickets sold was $22.4 million, averaging $506 per ticket. As a result, Quebec spent $15.6 million less than the $38 million budgeted a year ago.
The Department of Transport spokesman also pointed out that the number of subsidized tickets allocated to airlines, some 98,800 in the first year of PAIR, “does not represent a sales target” but rather what the government deemed necessary “to meet expected demand.” cover”. .
Number of $500 round-trip tickets sold from 1um June 2022 to May 31, 2023
- Magdalen Islands: 13,881
- Sept-Iles: 6809
- Fermont: 6445
- Gaspe: 3076
- Rouyn-Noranda: 2364
- Val d’Or: 2147
- Blanc Sablon: 1614
- Schefferville: 1089
- Bonaventure: 882
- Chibougamau: 861
- Baie Comeau: 713
- Anticosti Island: 679
- Saguenay: 642
- Mont Joli: 454
- Other targets: 2645
- Total: 44,302
Source: Transports et Mobilité Durable Québec
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