Transport Minister David Collenette has launched the “Transportation Blueprint Initiative.” This is a separate program from the Canada Transportation Act Review mentioned in this Newsletter. The purpose of this 12-month initiative is to develop a federal strategy to respond to the major challenges that will face Canada’s transportation sector over the next decade and beyond. The initiative is to involve extensive consultation with Canadians from all regions of the country who have interests in transportation.
COPA is actively involved in the process, helping Transport Canada ensure that the needs of general aviation are given equal consideration with environmental concerns, accessibility for people with disabilities, etc., and that the aviation focus does not remain exclusively on scheduled air transportation (i.e. the airlines). We want Transport Canada to consider business and private travel in the same sense as they are considering private cars when assessing the needs for road travel.
If you would like to be kept informed of this Blueprint Initiative and have input to it, Transport has a Web site for registering for updates and providing feedback. Go to: www.tc.gc.ca/en/blueprint/menu.htm and click on “Subscribe to Updates” to register. We encourage you to check off “Air” and “Sustainable Development” as the key areas of interest. “Sustainable Development” deals with issues such as maintenance of the transportation infrastructure including airports and the air navigation system, the consumption of fossil fuels, noise and other environmental concerns. Contact Kevin
Psutka.