The momentous impact of US and Canadian officials signing the Open Skies Agreement will eliminate at least some restrictions on air travel between the two nations.
The agreement removed the cap on the number of passengers and amount of cargo that can move across the border, which US Secretary of Transportation Mary E. Peters anticipates will allow for more flights and lower fares.
“It will benefit travelers in both countries as the agreement provides more choice in terms of destinations, flights and routes,” said Canadian Minister of Transport Lawrence Cannon Peters.
He said the total value of trade flowing across the U.S. and Canadian border has nearly tripled over the previous 16 years, growing from $9 billion a year in 1990 to more than $24 billion in 2006.
Likewise, there has been an increase of more than 2 million passengers flying between the US and Canada since 2003. The Open Skies Agreement will make it even easier for US and Canadian businesses to work together.
But the two countries have shown little interest so far in pushing beyond this deal toward actual free trade among North American airlines, according to news reports. That would allow any US airline, for example, to make regular flights between large cities such as Montreal and Toronto. It’s not a development that’s expected anytime soon.
Report by David Wilkening
