Estimated reading time 3 minutes, 44 seconds.
On June 29, Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra announced close to $105 million for three new projects with Nav Canada under the National Trade Corridors Fund to help improve supply chain efficiency for Canadian airlines across the country.
The National Trade Corridors Fund is a merit-based program designed to help infrastructure owners and users invest in the critical transportation assets that support economic activity in Canada. Between 2017 and 2028, a total of $4.6 billion has been announced under this program.
During a press announcement, Alghabra said the government is committed to working with stakeholders on strategic infrastructure projects to address transportation bottlenecks, vulnerabilities, and congestion along Canada’s trade corridors — issues that were brought on by the global pandemic.
As such, Canada is contributing up to $31.2 million to improve the technology and infrastructure at four major airports — Montréal-Trudeau International Airport, Toronto Pearson International Airport, Calgary International Airport, and Vancouver International Airport — to respond to increased air traffic demand. The project will reduce flying time, decrease aircraft fuel consumption, increase the movement of cargo, and provide more efficiencies to meet the growing demand at these airports. Nav Canada will contribute $45.8 million to the project, which represents a total investment of $77 million.
Moreover, the government will contribute up to $39.2 million to provide new technology to improve the reliability, safety, and performance of Canada’s air transportation system, especially in the event of extreme weather and in remote communities. Nav Canada will contribute $59.7 million toward the project, for a total investment of $98.9 million.
Lastly, Canada will contribute up to $34.5 million to implement technology to improve air traffic management. The proposed project would also allow for the implementation of drone traffic management services to monitor and control drone operations in Canada’s airspace. Nav Canada will contribute $50.7 million toward the project, for a total investment of $85.2 million.
“An efficient and reliable transportation network is key to Canada’s economic growth,” said Alghabra. “Our government, through the National Trade Corridors Fund, is making investments that will support the flow of goods across Canada’s supply chains now and into the future. These three Nav Canada projects will improve the efficiency and flow of air cargo in Canada by reducing bottlenecks at the major hubs which cause delays across the entire aviation network. A more efficient movement of goods is beneficial to Canada’s economy and to Canadians from coast-to-coast-to-coast.”
Budget 2022, which was tabled in April, proposes $450 million over five years to support supply chain projects through the National Trade Corridors Fund.
