Canadian Transportation Agency
Office des transports du Canada | |
Headquarters in the Jules Léger Building in Terrasses de la Chaudière | |
Agency overview | |
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Formed | 1904[1] |
Preceding | |
Jurisdiction | Government of Canada |
Headquarters | Gatineau, Quebec, Canada |
Agency executive |
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Website | www |
The Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA;
It is responsible for:
- Dispute resolution: to resolve complaints about transportation services, fares, rates, and charges;
- Accessibility: to ensure that the national transportation system is accessible, particularly to persons with disabilities; and
- Economic regulation: to provide approvals and licences and to make decisions on matters involving federally regulated air, rail, and marine transportation.
The agency is divided into five branches: Chair's Office; Corporate Management Branch; Legal and Alternative Dispute Resolution Services Branch; Dispute Resolution Branch; Industry Regulation and Determinations Branch.
The agency is headed by five full-time members, including the
History
The history of the Canadian Transportation Agency originates in February 1904 with the establishment of the
The Board of Railway Commissioners was replaced by the Board of Transportation Commissioners through the Transport Act in 1938; this new agency held authority over
In 1967, National Transportation Act became law and established the Canadian Transport Commission (CTC)—absorbing most of the members and staff from the previous Board of Transport Commissioners, the Air Transport Board, and the Canadian Maritime Commission—with Jack Pickersgill as president. The CTC was given mandate over all modes of transportation in Canada, "with the object of co-ordinating and harmonizing the operations of all carriers engaged in transport by railways, water, aircraft, extra-provincial motor vehicle transport and commodity pipelines."[1]
In 1988, the new National Transportation Act overhauled the CTC and replaced it with the National Transportation Agency. On May 29, 1996, the Canada Transportation Act,[4] also known as Bill C-14 (formerly C-101), received royal assent and established the Canadian Transportation Agency, which began operations on July 2.[1]
Consumer responsibilities were expanded in 2000, when the post of Air Travel Complaints Commissioner was created under its stewardship. The first Air Travel Complaints Commissioner was Bruce Hood, a former veteran National Hockey League referee.
In 2020, the agency received 8000 complaints between March and September over airline policies to issue travel vouchers rather than refunds for passengers cancelling their flight bookings during the COVID-19 pandemic.[5] The CTA posted on their website that airlines could issue travel vouchers instead of refunds, which caused Air Passenger Rights, an advocacy association, to file a lawsuit for CTA to remove this statement.[6]
Legislation
Canada Transportation Act | ||
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Bill title Bill C-14 (formerly C-101) | | |
Third reading | March 25, 1996 | |
Status: Amended |
The Canada Transportation Act[4] is the Agency's enabling statute to implement the federal government's transportation policy.[7]
The Agency also shares responsibility for administering other Acts and their related regulations, including:[7]
- Accessible Canada Act, 2019
- Canada Marine Act
- Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012
- Civil Air Navigation Services Commercialization Act
- Coasting Trade Act
- Energy Supplies Emergency Act
- Pilotage Act
- Railway Relocation and Crossing Act
- Railway Safety Act
- Shipping Conferences Exemption Act, 1987
Certificate of Fitness
The CTA is responsible for the issuance of a Certificate of Fitness for each federal railway.[8] A board is required to evaluate details like insurance coverage, without which the railway cannot maintain its Certificate of Fitness.
References
- ^ a b c d e "At the Heart of Transportation: A Moving History". 12 June 2017.
- ^ "Transport Minister Alghabra announces appointment of the Canadian Transportation Agency Chairperson". May 7, 2021.
- ^ "Phone, email and mailing address | Canadian Transportation Agency". otc-cta.gc.ca. 3 June 2013. Archived from the original on May 24, 2018. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
- ^ a b Canada Transportation Act
- ^ Canadian Press (September 1, 2020). "Few people are flying during COVID-19 but that hasn't stopped complaints about airlines from soaring". CBC. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
- ^ Ghobrial, Adrian; Teneriello, Tina. "The fight to get refunds from Canadian airlines during the coronavirus pandemic". CityNews. Retrieved 2020-12-20.
- ^ a b Toolkit, Web Experience (2019-09-09). "List of Acts and Regulations". otc-cta.gc.ca. Retrieved 2021-09-08.
- ^ "Rail certificates of fitness (licences)". otc-cta.gc.ca. 25 May 2017. Retrieved May 23, 2018.