Porter’s plan for jets at Toronto island airport officially grounded
Posted December 9, 2015 7:29 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Porter Airlines’ plan to bring jets to Toronto’s island airport has officially been grounded.
PortsToronto, which owns and operates Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, said Tuesday it would not complete city council’s requested studies.
CEO Geoffrey Wilson said the decision was made after the federal Liberals confirmed they would not open the tripartite agreement. As it stands, the agreement does not allow commercial jets at Billy Bishop.
No public funds were ever used in the studies, Wilson said, and PortsToronto will be continuing its technical work.
The decision was praised by local councillors, who said the busy airport does not fit in with the existing neighbourhood or proposed changes to the waterfront.
“The Island Airport is already the ninth-largest airport in Canada with nearly two million annual passengers,” councillors Mike Layton, Joe Cressy, Pam McConnell and Paula Fletcher said in a statement.
The councillors said the airport was too close to the existing Toronto Islands Park and contributed to congestion on nearby Bathurst Street.
“To be clear, the proposal to expand the Island Airport has been a dangerous one since the start. Island Airport expansion would have set back our ongoing work to revitalize Toronto’s waterfront and resulted in significant environmental, health, and economic harms,” they added.
