Rumours of vaccine requirements coming to an end welcomed by Regina airport

Rumours of the ArriveCAN app and vaccine requirements potentially coming to an end for those trying enter or re-enter Canada is good news for Regina Airport Authority CEO James Bogusz.

Earlier this week, The Associated Press reported the removal of those requirements could happen as early as the end of September.

“This has been much anticipated,” Bogusz said Wednesday. “There’s been a massive effort by so many to convince the government that it’s time to drop all these restrictions.”

Bogusz spoke to the Greg Morgan Morning Show from a conference in the United States. He said that in talking to people in the U.S., it’s clear people in the industry want the app and restrictions at the border gone.

“What a different experience going through Chicago to Minneapolis,” Bogusz said. “I’m going to be honest, I’d say (there’s) less than five per cent mask usage. They really have moved on down here.

“The conference attendees — there’s about 800 of us — the excitement is palpable. People are ready to get going and there’s a lot of Americans down here who really don’t like that ArriveCAN (app) and they made it clear at the conference.”

The current COVID-19 measures put in place by the federal government are set to expire Sept. 30. Bogusz wonders if that could include all measures or just the vaccine requirement.

There are some whispers that masks could remain mandatory for those travelling on trains and planes.

“It’ll be very interesting to me if they’ll drop everything else, but we’ll have to see,” Bogusz said. “It’s certainly not the (same) experience in the U.S. It’s almost like nothing’s around. It’s very different here.”

As for if travel will improve, Bogusz mentioned passenger numbers at the airport have rebounded to close to pre-pandemic levels.

With travel rebounding, Bogusz hinted the airport is working with Sunwing Airlines to announce a schedule and get some trips to warmer climates.