More Canadians travelling light could result in passengers checking carry-on bags
Posted December 28, 2022 7:31 pm.
Last Updated December 29, 2022 7:32 am.
As travellers pack their bags more frequently, it’s no surprise that many are doing their best to travel lighter, as news of delayed or lost luggage has made headlines in recent weeks.
Images of the baggage backlog at Toronto Pearson’s International Airport, showing hundreds of bags that have yet to be claimed alongside a sea of passengers waiting for hours at luggage convoy belts, have gone viral as airlines and airports continue to deal with a mixture of weather, staffing and technical issues.
“We’ve seen some real progress and getting a lot of these bags into the system,” Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA) spokesperson Tori Gass recently confirmed to CityNews.
“We’re starting to get to the airlines so we can get this luggage out to those who have been without it for several days.”
Such as Yvette Fulton, who flew to Jamaica as a family of six on Christmas day only to be greeted with no bags and a huge line to make a claim.
“We sat in the plane for almost two hours waiting for baggage to be loaded. They told us that there was an issue with the conveyor belt and that they were loading baggage from the day before,” writes the Air Transat passenger.
“They also said some of us might not get our baggage. That out of 200 pieces, only 30 were loaded, but they were working on a solution.”
RELATED: Passengers report multi-day wait for bags at Toronto Pearson airport as items pile up
The logical fix to avoiding lost and delayed luggage is to travel with a carry-on and personal item, commonly included in purchasing a ticket with most large Canadian airline carriers.
But with a spike in air travellers resorting to taking their items with them onboard during the holiday season, it is more likely you’ll be asked to check in your carry-on due to limited space.
We’ve seen it before. A request to voluntarily check-in your bag at the gate free of charge as the bags begin to take up space in the overhead bins past the passengers that have already boarded.
But more tweets have been popping up of late, with many expressing frustration who had either voluntarily or forcibly checked in their carry-on bag. In some cases resulting in their bag not meeting them at their destination upon arrival.
Never volunteering as tribute again to check my carry-on bag when airlines ask ???? @WestJet lost that bag and I’m feeling like a schmuck
— Jenn Rokaya (@JennRokaya) December 24, 2022
https://twitter.com/alannadschwartz/status/1605263583839129600?s=20&t=dY04FYavNxMD1r1Oy4IkAA
Come on @TorontoPearson, over an hour and still no bags? Got bumped to AC 1521 Rouge @AirCanada and no space for carry on. This is why I don’t check a bag. So much inconvenience with this industry #hastobeabetterway
— Wes (@bluejayshalifax) December 19, 2022
Wow @AirCanada and @TorontoPearson You forcefully took my carry on because apparently no room and here I am in from of the carousel waiting for 25 minutes and no bags !!!!!#badcustomerservice #udontcare #premiumprices
— Lee (@leezalidis) December 10, 2022
WestJet’s social media team responded to one Twitter user’s inquiry about allowing free checked-in carry-on sized luggage at the gate.
“At times, there are too many carry-on bags due to extra medical devices or infant/children equipment making the overhead bins full. Our agents will ask for volunteers to have to carry on checked bags,” WestJet tweeted.
RELATED: Efforts ramping up at Toronto Pearson International Airport to clear baggage backlog
CityNews reached out to WestJet to confirm the information in the tweet.
“We do our best to accommodate our guests’ carry-on allowance in the cabin; however, the acceptance of carry-on baggage is subject to space availability,” writes Denise Kenny, Strategist, Media & Public Relations for WestJet.
“In the event space is unavailable on board for a guest’s carry-on items, they will be placed in checked baggage. In this instance, we encourage all guests to ensure that important articles such as medications and travel documentation are packed in their personal items.”
While travelling light might be the smarter way as airlines and airports do their best to mitigate baggage delays, travelling even lighter by packing some extra essentials inside your personal item might be wiser, as you could be asked to check-in your carry-on if you’re the last to board on an already crowded flight.
