WashingtonWire - 2000-07-31

By Barbara Cook / July 30, 2000

WashingtonWire

By Barbara Cook



DOT Calls For CRS Comments

The U.S. Department of Transportation has issued a call for supplemental comments to be filed within 60 days in its ongoing rulemaking re-examining the CRS rules. DOT said it has expanded the issues in the rulemaking to include the effect of the reduced ties between CRSs and the airlines that have controlled them, as well as whether the federal government should regulate airline distribution practices involving the Internet. The initial comment period in the rulemaking closed two years ago and the department has taken no action since then. 

New Passenger Guarantee Act Introduced

Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has introduced the Air Travelers Fair Treatment Act, which is aimed at providing airline passengers with an enforceable set of air service guarantees and greater access to lower ticket prices. The bill mirrors legislation pending in the House and is strongly supported by travel agency organizations. Reid's legislation would: allow passengers to use all or part of a ticket without penalty (thus permitting back-to-back ticketing); allow passengers to exit an aircraft if the plane has remained at the gate for more than an hour; require airlines to provide travelers with timely explanations for flight delays or diversions; require airlines to provide inflight medical care and ensure that consumers have access to state consumer protection laws; and establish an independent commission to study airline pricing practices and their effects on consumer choice, the number of routes available, the quality of service provided by airlines and the effect on the marketplace of new ticket distribution outlets, such as Internet providers. Reid described air travel as becoming "unpleasant and stressful" due to airports that are too crowded, flights that often are canceled or delayed without an adequate explanation to passengers and ticket prices that are volatile.