Toronto Pearson ranked 2nd-last in ‘mega’ North American airport satisfaction

Canada’s busiest airport has picked up a title that it won’t be bragging about anytime soon.

According to a new survey by J.D. Power, Toronto Pearson International Airport has been ranked the second-worst in North America for overall traveller satisfaction in the “mega airport” category.

J.D. Power’s annual study places Toronto Pearson 20th out of 21 North American mega-airports. It scored 749 out of 1,000.

Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport ranks highest in passenger satisfaction among mega airports with a score of 800. Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport (796) ranks second, and Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas (787) ranks third.

Photo: J.D. Power.

Last behind Pearson is New Jersey’s Newark Liberty International Airport at 732.

The survey measures overall traveller satisfaction with mega, large and medium North American airports by examining the following factors (in order of importance): terminal facilities, airport arrival and departure, baggage claim, security check, check-in and baggage check and food, beverage and retail.

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J.D. Power says “mega airports” are defined as those with 33 million or more passengers per year, large airports are considered with 10 to 32.9 million passengers per year and medium airports with 4.5 to 9.9 million passengers per year.

The study is based on just over 27,000 completed surveys from U.S. or Canadian residents who travelled through at least one U.S. or Canadian airport. It covers departure and arrival experiences (including connecting airports) during the past 30 days.

Toronto Pearson said while they are disappointed with the results, the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA) has been “working non-stop with airlines, agencies and other partners to improve and streamline the passenger experience since last year’s restart.”

“Recent research conducted by Pollara shows that four times more Canadians feel more positive (39 per cent) rather than negative (10 per cent) toward Toronto Pearson,” an airport spokesperson said.

“Among passengers who have travelled through Toronto Pearson in the past year, 75 per cent reported being satisfied with their experience. Over the past 90 days, 78 per cent reported being satisfied with their experience.”

In August, Air Canada ranked last in on-time performance among the 10 largest airlines in North America. Canada’s biggest carrier landed 51 per cent of its flights on time last month, according to figures from aviation data firm Cirium.

WestJet, which placed seventh, saw 62 per cent of its trips make it to the gate on time — defined as within 15 minutes of scheduled arrival. North American airlines’ average on-time performance stood at 66 per cent, the worst by far of any of the regions tracked in the report, including Europe, Latin America and the Middle East and Africa.

With files from The Canadian Press