Pearson Airport Is Predicting 45K Fliers Each Day This Summer & Here's What To Expect
Pearson shared some tips on how to prepare for longer wait times.
Passengers waiting inside Pearson Airport in 2017.
Anyone with travel plans this summer may want to prepare themselves for some delays if they're going in or out of Toronto Pearson Airport.
"We have been raising alarm bells with all levels of government for some time as we feel urgent changes need to be made to accommodate the bounce back in travel we've already been seeing," Rachel Bertone, a spokesperson for the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, told Narcity via email.
Pearson travellers are currently facing longer processing times because of the number of people flying through the airport, and due to the ongoing health checks. The Canadian Air Transport Security Authority also noted that the long wait times experienced at airports throughout the country are due to the increased demand for travel and some "recruitment challenges."
The delays could worsen in the summer as Pearson is expecting thousands more travellers to come through the airport each and every day.
"While we are still far below pre-pandemic passenger numbers, we are seeing approximately 30,000 passengers per day and expect that to increase to 45,000 by the summer," Bertone said.
Here are some tips on how to manage longer wait times at Pearson
"We suggest two hours for domestic flights and three hours for international," Bertone said.
Prior to this, Pearson was asking travellers flying across Canada to arrive an hour and a half before their take off.
Bertone also gave some advice on how to make going through the security line a lot smoother.
"Have your boarding pass ready, [and] be prepared to remove any laptops, cell phones, or other devices," Bertone said.
You might also want to ditch wearing any clothes that have "metal parts", and make sure that all of the liquids and gels you're carrying on with you aren't bigger than 100 millilitres (with the exception of hand sanitizer, which can be up to 355 millilitres.)
International travellers coming into Canada have to fill out their ArriveCAN submission online, and according to Bertone, fliers can also use the Advanced CBSA Declaration feature to fill out their customs and immigration declaration beforehand too.
"This can be done up to 72 hours in advance of flying to save you time when you arrive at the airport," Bertone said.
This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.