Air Canada – you’re not quite getting it
It’s time to reconsider your policy, just like Jet Blue as reported by BikePortland.
The corporation is just too big to apply common sense, to properly communicate within, and is indifferent to what travellers really think. It’s not the issue that bicycles are green transport and as such, should be encouraged and welcomed. Air Canada is missing the key point here. They have a policy, appropriate for conventional bicycles that requires the passenger to pay a $50 fee to cover the cost of handling that unwieldly bicycle. When it comes to bikes which fold up smaller than a snowboard, that do not require any special handling, the fee should simply not apply. Indeed, it often does not.
I have traveled on Air Canada with my Strida folding bike many times. Customarily I pay no fee, drop my Strida’s carry bag on the belt and pick it off the carousel on the other end, much like I do for many other items. Occasionally, when I have been told there is a charge for bicycles, I have had a discussion with the ticket agent in which I compare the Strida folding bike to many other items Air Canada accepts from me and thousands of others every day without a fee. Each time so far, I have not had to pay the fee.
A few weeks ago Yvonne Bambrick, Executive Director of the Toronto Cyclist’s Union, took a Strida folding bike to San Francisco on Air Canada. There was no fee requested on the flight down, but the $50 fee was insisted upon on the return flight.
Read some of the details of Toronto writer Lloyd Alter’s experience with, and impression of Air Canada’s policy in this Financial Post article. Lloyd Alter has stitched together a summary of the saga.
Interestingly while typing this post, I received two email messages from Air Canada offering me 15,000 bonus miles as part of a current marketing campaign to keep us all flying with them.
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I just took a trip to barbados and considered taking my strida but my travel companion only had a full sized bicycle and opted to not pay the 50 to bring it. It would be nice if airlines let bikes on for free to help offset the huge amounts of carbon used for fueling their planes
Gotta love this post!
Advise air carrier when purchasing ticket that you have a mobility issues and have a mobility device (Strida) and need it noted on the booking for checked baggae.
I would pack some clothing with the folding bike and and say it is clothes and bike parts. Would be interesting to see how they react.