Long Metro Vancouver waits for passports prompts B.C. woman to travel to Edmonton

A B.C. woman decided to board a flight to Edmonton to get a hold of her lost passport because she was worried long lines and delays in Metro Vancouver would impact her upcoming vacation.

After Whitney was told offices in Metro Vancouver were prioritizing travellers leaving within 24 hours, Whitney flew to the neighbouring province last Friday ahead of her vacation to the U.S. next week. She spent less than three hours at the office.

She says it would have been too stressful to wait until the 24-hour mark.

“I couldn’t do that. I would want my passport at least a week ahead of time. My girlfriend whom I’m going on this trip with, the hotel is under my name. So I’m sure if I didn’t get my passport within the 12 to 24-hour time span, they would have killed me,” she joked.

@twofoodpiggies Going to Edmonton was much more worth it than camping out in YVR #canadapassport #passport #edmonton #vancouverpassport #flairairlines #passporthack Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) [2018 Remaster] – Kate Bush

Whitney is not the only one who’s been impacted. After months of delays trying to get her son’s passport, Debbie Walasek booked an earlier flight they won’t be taking, just to show Service Canada they were travelling soon so their documents would be fast-tracked.

Their trip is not until June 27 but she says she couldn’t get an appointment at the Victoria office until five days before travel.

“It’s sad because you see how many people are sitting there in the passport office in tears and crying, it feels like you’re kind of putting your needs ahead of everyone else’s. And that’s not usually us. But we just felt so stressed that this is my parents. Maybe last trip in or with him because you never know. Once you get to be about 80, like how many years do you have left to travel? We just didn’t know. We wanted to make sure we could get this,” Walasek told CityNews.

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Once they got a passport, she cancelled the early flight and took a travel credit.

Earlier this month, the federal minister responsible for Service Canada, Karina Gould, said more staff are being hired.

“What we’re seeing right now is kind of a two-year backlog,” Gould said.

A recently launched online service showing wait times lists a five and a half-hour wait at a Vancouver office.

If you’re planning to visit a passport office, check the estimated walk-in wait times first so you know what to expect.

We update the estimated wait times at 9:30 a.m., 12:00 p.m., and 2:00 p.m. (local time) https://t.co/KM1hUKtmHC pic.twitter.com/BpEPdQka2T

— Passport Canada (@PassportCan) June 21, 2022

Both women say Service Canada staff were extremely friendly and helpful given the pressure they’re under but they blame Ottawa for not doing enough to help workers.

“They are working their butts off really. And they’ve taken the brunt of the fact that the communication is terrible because they get spit at and they get yelled at. And they don’t deserve that because it’s really the Canadian government that’s putting them in this position,” Walasek added.

“I do understand there’s a staff shortage and everything, but like a lot of people waiting, you know, they have kids, they’re pregnant, they’re seniors. There’s people with disabilities,” Whitney said.

Whitney says she’s heard of folks camping as early as 6 p.m. some nights to get an appointment at Richmond and Vancouver offices.

Service Canada saw a 350 per cent increase in passports processed over the last year.