“i think it’s a good idea, but it’s not a perfect idea,” he said.
like vinh, veillette said he has some concerns, notably related to travellers from places with high covid-19 case numbers, as well as those who have been vaccinated for long enough that their immunity may have begun to decline.
“i guess (the government is) biting the bullet and they’re just going to see what happens,” he said. “i think this is a situation where medicine is sort of a little bit influenced by the economy. and it shouldn’t be, but i mean, there’s a reality also. people need tourists; people need people to visit.”
on monday, aéroports de montréal spokesperson anne-sophie hamel said the reopening of the border to international travellers is giving the airport hope for the future after such a long period of restrictions.
hamel said pierre elliott trudeau international airport welcomed just 25 per cent of its passenger traffic in july when compared with the same period in 2019. she expects that number to sit somewhere around 36 per cent for august and about 40 per cent for september (keeping in mind that september is generally less busy than august).
“the past few months have been extremely difficult for aéroports de montréal,” hamel said. “over the next few weeks, we will assess the impact of this new measure.”