Signs of civilization in the friendly skies

Starting last week, the Transportation Department began enforcing a rule that requires advertised prices for plane tickets to include all taxes and fees.

Instead of clicking an online offer for a $29 flight only to find that the ticket will really cost three times that, consumers will see more of a fare's cost up front.

But not all. Airlines will still be permitted to exclude charges such as baggage fees or costs for assigned seats.

For more than two decades, the government allowed airfare purveyors to list mandatory taxes and fees separate from the ticket price, for items like security and airport improvements.

Some airlines are fighting the changes in court, arguing that their commercial free speech rights have been violated.

Air travelers would fairly argue that their rights to be treated like humans have long been under assault by airlines.

Passengers are crowded like cattle into chutes; they're required to stew on the tarmac without food or water when takeoff is delayed.

Since 2010, the Transportation Department has worked to set rules that provide protection to passengers, including a limit on how long airlines can hold planes on the ground without giving passengers a chance to return to the terminal.

Other new rules include a ban on raising fares for tickets already sold, and one that allows customers 24 hours to cancel a reservation without penalty if it's at least a week before their flight.

If passengers could also count on mandates for seating suitable for people taller than garden gnomes, flying might truly be looking up.