A new kind of traffic problem is cropping up in the oil sands region – air traffic.
Macleans magazine reports that near collisions are becoming more common, because of all the low flying planes heading to private runways in the oil sands region.
Private airstrips aren’t regulated by Transport Canada.
As a result, the Fort McMurray Airport Authority is creating a working group of owners to start discussing safety problems.
Its own study found there are 47 private air strips in the region.
Planes in the oil sands now move about 750 thousand people per year.
That’s more than the number that come through airports in St. John’s, Victoria, Regina, or Saskatoon.
March 25, 2013
