The folks at the Victoria International Airport can take a bow. They 鈥� or rather, their customers 鈥� set a record in 2013.
The total number of passengers at the airport last year hit 1,556,960, which is 1.2 per cent higher than the record set five years ago and 3.4 per cent higher than in 2012.
The figures are another sign of hope that the economy is recovering, but they are also a credit to the work of the Victoria Airport Authority. While the Greater Toronto Airports Authority is taking heat for stranding passengers during the recent icy weather, Victoria鈥檚 authority is winning praise for working hard to improve the airport鈥檚 services and facilities.
The authority鈥檚 president, Geoff Dickson, has pushed to add more direct flights and expand the facility鈥檚 capacity. It handles 120 flights a day and is the 10th busiest in sa国际传媒, based on passenger numbers.
Dickson credits the increase in passenger numbers to more American tourists and the addition of WestJet鈥檚 Encore service.
Those passengers will find more services in the building, as the airport continues to improve its amenities. Behind the hoarding on the main level, a new lounge run by Spinnakers is taking shape. In the summer, work will begin on $7.5 million worth of resurfacing for the runway.
Farther north, Nanaimo鈥檚 airport authority also had a record year, hitting 225,251 passengers.
Turning airports over to local groups was controversial when the federal government began the program in 1992, but on the Island, at least, the teams have really run with the ball.
