GETTING THERE 40 percent of travellers walk, bike or take transit to YTZ

Posted on 05/26/2016 | About Downtown Toronto, Ontario

The new pedestrian tunnel that connects Toronto’s mainland to Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport is having a positive impact on traffic flow in and around the airport.

An updated research study conducted by Dillion Consulting on behalf of PortsToronto also found that on average, 40 percent of travellers observed this past October walked, biked or took transit from the airport. That represented a significant number of the 2.5 million passengers (approximately 500,000 of which are connecting passengers) the airport now serves annually, further reducing congestion on surrounding roadways. Prior to the tunnel opening in July 2015, passengers arrived at and departed from the airport by ferry in large groups every 15 minutes, causing surges in traffic demand at the mainland terminal and along Eireann Quay, the entrance road to the airport. Now, with more than 90 percent of passengers choosing to take the convenient, six-minute walk through the tunnel, the study confirmed a notable ease in traffic and passenger flow. Compared to findings from the last study completed in April 2015, just prior to the pedestrian tunnel’s opening, the fall study indicated as much as a 75 percent drop in vehicles queued northbound along Eireann Quay leaving the airport.

Vehicle queues decreased from an average of 15-18 cars observed during afternoon peak hours, to no more than five vehicles. The study also noted a more even distribution of shuttle ridership, virtually eliminating overcrowded or empty departing shuttle-runs, and more frequent and gradual turnover of taxis, meaning increased availability of taxis for passengers arriving to Toronto. The study also indicated that, on average, 10-16 percent of all traffic in the surrounding area can be attributed to Billy Bishop Airport. Specifically:

• on Lake Shore Blvd. only 2-4 percent of traffic can be attributed to the airport • on Bathurst Street north of Queen’s Quay 50-60 percent of the traffic is airport related • in the area to the west, including Stadium Road, 5-8 percent of traffic can be attributed to the airport

• on other routes such as Dan Leckie Way and Queen’s Quay to the east, where airport traffic comprises approximately 15-35 percent of total traffic. 
 Over the past four years, in an effort to continually reduce vehicle traffic associated with the airport, PortsToronto has redesigned the airport’s taxi and parking areas, and added bike racks on both the island and mainland side of the airport’s property. In April 2016, Billy Bishop Airport also introduced an enhanced shuttle service with new buses better at navigating the new turning circle. Buses now park directly in front of the airport’s mainland pavilion to encourage passengers to take the shuttle rather than other forms of vehicle transportation. The new buses are also equipped with free WiFi and will have GPS tracking, enabling passengers to confirm when a shuttle bus will arrive and track its progress en route.

The study conducted by Dillon Consulting was undertaken during airport peak hours and focused on conditions related to traffic volumes, modal splits and taxi occupancy levels for travel to and from the airport. The data gathered will continue to provide background information to measure future conditions related to traffic volumes.