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Passengers frustrated by travel restrictions also see test costs as barrier to flying
October 6th 2021
Passengers are increasingly frustrated by a plethora of COVID-19 travel restrictions imposed by governments on travellers and also regard the cost of testing as a barrier to travel, a new survey has found. Read More » The International Air Transport Association (IATA)-commissioned survey of 4,700 respondents in 11 markets was conducted in September and released at the association’s annual meeting in Boston. It found the number of people supporting the opening of most national borders had risen 12 percentage points since June, to 67%. Backing for removing quarantine restrictions for vaccinated travellers testing negative to COVID-19 also increased with 84% of respondents ruling out air travel if there was quarantine at their destination. Confusion was rife among respondents about the differing rules of flying with seven out of 10 people who had travelled since June 2020 saying it was difficult to understand what rules applied to each trip. Some 73% also found the paperwork challenging. While 85% were willing to be tested, three-quarters of those surveyed said the cost of tests was a significant barrier to travel with 80% of respondents believing governments should pay for testing. IATA director-general, Willie Walsh, said there was a message in the survey for governments. “People are willing to be tested to travel,’’ he said. “But they don’t like the cost or the inconvenience. Both can be addressed by governments. The reliability of rapid antigen tests is recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO). Broader acceptance of antigen testing by governments would reduce inconvenience and cost—costs that the WHO’s International Health Regulations stipulate should be borne by governments.”
