Ottawa - November 19, 2004 - The Canadian Transportation Agency has released its 2003 Annual Report describing its activities, including the numerous rulings made that year. The report, tabled in Parliament by Transport Minister Jean-C. Lapierre, is available on the Agency's Web site at www.cta.gc.ca. In 2003, the Agency issued a total of 3,164 rulings, made up of 726 decisions, 641 orders, 1,461 permits/licences, 56 final letter decisions and 280 interim decisions. Of the rulings, 2,629 related to air transportation, 335 related to rail, 106 related to marine and 94 related to accessible transportation. The Agency was unable to deal with complaints or investigations regarding Air Canada once it was placed under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act on April 1, 2003, and all proceedings against the carrier and its subsidiaries were suspended. The Air Travel Complaints Program has received approximately 7,000 complaints since July 2000. In 2003, some 70 per cent of complaints resolved produced more favourable results for the complainant. Beginning in 2003, mediation was offered as the first choice for dispute resolution in the rail, marine and accessible transportation areas. Mediation dealt with a wider range of disability issues and commercial disputes between carriers and shippers, another indication of the program's success. "I'm very pleased with the acceptance of our mediation program by the transportation industry and others. I'm happy to report that 16 mediations were completed successfully in 2003, producing party-drafted collaborative outcomes while avoiding for both parties the costs and time requirements of the formal adjudication process," said Marian L. Robson, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Agency, in her message in the Annual Report. Responding to a complaint by the Council of Canadians with Disabilities regarding the lack of accessibility aboard VIA Rail's "Renaissance" passenger cars, the Agency determined that there were 25 different obstacles to the mobility of persons with disabilities. Among the design features, 14 of those were found to be undue and must be removed. VIA has sought leave to appeal that decision to the Federal court of Appeal. Following extensive consultations with interested parties across the country, the Agency issued new guidelines for Coasting Trade Licence Applications. Proposed amendments to the Railway Interswitching Regulations in Part l of the Canada Gazette, were published in November 2003. These draft regulations include a reduction in Interswitching rates, reflecting cost efficiencies accomplished by both Class l Canadian railways in recent years. As well, the Agency made progress in implementing modern comptrollership practices in 2003, involving a management excellence action plan to allocate resources for optimal use, a performance measurement framework and a strategy for better reporting within the Agency and to Parliament and the Canadian public. The Canadian Transportation Agency is a quasi-judicial tribunal which administers the Government of Canada's legislation and policies for maintaining an economic, efficient and accessible system of transportation within Canada. -30- For further information, please contact: Craig M. Lee Director, Communications (819) 953-7666 This annual report is available in multiple formats on request. The Canadian Transportation Agency is online at www.cta.gc.ca To keep up-to-date with our latest news releases and other information, use our subscription service available on our home page under "Subscription".
