Everyone is complaining about the ArriveCAN app and calling for it to be killed
Though Transport Canada and Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra vowed earlier this monthto fix the ongoing issues at Toronto's Pearson airport (and others), the mayhem persists, with hours-long lineups, flight delays and cancellations, missed connections, lost luggage and more now the norm for the hub.
It's now known worldwide — to the embarassment of most Canadians — that flying into or out of Pearson is the absolute worst, in part due to a huge spike in demand for travel paired with insufficient staffing of security, customs and airline personnel.
Pandemic-era requirements like COVID testing and the use of the ArriveCAN app are also creating backlogs, and while many have long been calling for an end to these measures, recent horror stories and glitches with the app have made those calls stronger.
The latest bug had the app directing people to quarantine unnecessarily, causing an influx of complaints on socials, though the snag is certainly not the only problem people have with the app, which many find hard to use.
These are the emails I was receiving daily. I ignored them and enjoyed my vacation because I knew it was BS. I'm sure there are many tourists that didn't know better, and ArriveCan has ruined their vacation plans. Welcome to Canada, have a miserable time. pic.twitter.com/DEHbMTsSM8
— Dan Wrightman (@dwrightman) July 26, 2022
There is also the fact that some — seniors in particular — may not have a smartphone or are not tech savvy enough to complete the requirement on their own, in which case border personnel have to step in to assist, slowing things down even more.
Some passeners are also choosing to stand their ground and forgo the app completely, causing even more lineups and delays.
Minister @jyduclos this clip rec’d over a million views on Twitter alone. I’ve asked your office the validity of requiring an invasive PCR test per 14(1) Quarantine Act.
— Rowan 🇳🇱 (@canmericanized) July 26, 2022
You never answered. Is this the “open & transparent communication w/Canadians” @karinagould advocates for? pic.twitter.com/Qciz0Z23FD
Health experts and the union representing border services agents are among those who consider the app superfluous at this point, and even the authority than runs Pearson itself has asked the federal government to "streamline or eliminate [such] inbound legacy public health requirements."
"We're so short-staffed and spending so much time dealing with this app that we really don’t have time to do our actual jobs anymore," the president of the Customs and Immigration Union told the Canadian Press this week.
Why the fuck is #arrivecan calling my wife 2check on her quarantine status without positive test on arrival. This is fucking bullshit, bad enough we had 2 fill out app to accelerate arrival procedure (even though we still had to go through kiosk). This is a complete fucking joke
— Ricardo 📰=🗑️ (@rickydee82) July 26, 2022
But still, Ottawa has said the app will remain until at least the end of September, and likely longer, meaning the internet will surely continue to be rife with complaints calling it glitchy, dehumanizing, undemocratic and unlawful, and worse.
Though ArriveCAN has been in existence for more than a 1.5 years, the topic continues to trend on social media.
This ‘app’ should be destroyed and buried forever. It’s ALWAYS been a catastrophic, disastrous nightmarish mess that benefited NOBODY.
— Joni (Unacceptable Fringe) Wagner (@JoniWagner) July 26, 2022
Between the protests, though, there are also those who say they have encountered zero issues with the app, think it necessary to public health, and argue that it actually speeds up entry into the country.
"For those who think the ArriveCan app is hard, how the hell do you manage to complete and file your income taxes? That level of complexity must absolutely blow your mind," one person said on Twitter today.
"Also, I used ArriveCan in January — so simple."
