Mayor, what I was saying is that I had the opportunity to go to Newfoundland and Labrador during a tour of Canadian ports as part of the committee's work. We didn't go to Goose Bay. We went to St. John's. Despite the short duration of our stay, I discovered a beautiful place, which few Quebeckers have the opportunity to visit.
Mr. Goudie, people working in airport management appeared before the committee at our last meeting. According to them, one of the biggest problems stems from the fact that the airport has to operate on a user-pay principle, which applies to the Canadian system as a whole.
Such a system may be useful in major urban centres, but that's not the case in the regions. Given the low volume of regional flights, cost recovery is complicated, given the high fixed costs that must be allocated to each flight. This approach acts as a deterrent, because only a large volume of flights can absorb these fixed costs. As a result, airports pass those costs on to consumers.
The current system is essentially based on ridership. Small airports, with low passenger traffic, will therefore have high fares. Large airports, on the other hand, can distribute these fees among a larger number of consumers. That is less visible in ticket prices.
In your opinion, is this system functional?