By Canadian Press

Federal government unlocks $740 million in airport relief

May 11, 2021 | 2:04 AM

OTTAWA — The federal government is launching a basket of programs to bolster airports with hundreds of millions of dollars in funding first announced back in November.

A government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the announcement is not yet public, says Ottawa has laid out the criteria for airports to access $740 million in capital investments over the next six years.

Nearly $500 million of that windfall is bound for large airports to put toward critical infrastructure such as runway repairs and transit stations.

Most of the rest is en route to smaller airports, whose definition has been loosened temporarily to allow eight more sites to apply, from Prince George, B.C., to Gander, Nfld.

The government previously announced $435 million roughly evenly split between airport rent relief and support for regional air transportation.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 11, 2021.

The Canadian Press