R AND PARKING v - torontopearson · 7.3.1 Roadway Access The Airport has excellent connec- ... the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) transportation network. This chapter describes the existing

7 Roads, T

ransit an

d Parking

7C H A P T E R

ROA D S, TR A N S I TA N D PA R K I NG

v

7.3.1 Roadway Access

The Airport has excellent connec-

tivity with the provincial highway

system serving southern Ontario

(see Figure 7-1) including direct

access from Hwys 409 and 427.

On the east side, secondary access

to the main passenger terminal

area is provided from Airport

Road and Silver Dart Drive, while

on the west side, Convair Drive,

Britannia Road and Courtneypark

Drive provide access to the Infield

cargo area.

In conjunction with the opening

of the first phase of Terminal 1 in

2004, several internal roadway

modifications and improvements

were made. For instance, the por-

tion of Hwy 409 between Hwy

427 and Airport Road was pur-

chased by the GTAA and recon-

structed into a core/collector

system. This improvement pro-

vides a separation between the

Chapter 7 > ROA D S, TR A N S I T A N D PA R K I NG

7.1

R O A D S , T R A N S I T A N D P A R K I N G

Chapter 7

7 . 1 I N T R O D U C T I O N

The Toronto Pearson International

Airport ground transportation sys-

tem provides a link between the

passenger terminal facilities and

the Greater Toronto Area (GTA)

transportation network.

This chapter describes the existing

groundside facilities and current

groundside system users. Existing

and future demands are described

along with proposed infrastructure

improvements and initiatives

intended to address the long-term

groundside demands.

7 . 2 G R O U N D S I D EP L A N N I N G O B J E C T I V E S

In order to meet the future ground-

side demands for the Airport, the

GTAA will focus on the following

planning objectives:

• Remain committed to sustain -

able environmental solutions to

transportation; as such, the

GTAA views improving transit

access as an important element to

the future of the Airport.

• Ensure that integration between

the Airport’s groundside system

and the GTA road and transit

networks is addressed as a pri-

mary consideration. As the GTA

population grows and traffic con-

gestion increases associated with

this population growth, integra-

tion with transit and trans porta -

tion demand management

initiatives will become increas-

ingly important to improve

access to the Airport and make

use of the Airport as an inter-

modal facility.

• Given the extensive inventory of

the Airport’s groundside facilities,

ensure maximization of each

facility. New facilities will be

planned and scheduled to meet

future demand only as required.

• Continue to be an active partici-

pant in GTA road network plan-

ning and continue to foster

good working relationships with

provin cial, regional and munici-

pal authorities to ensure efficient

planning for all stakeholders.

7 . 3 E X I S T I N G G R O U N D S I D EI N F R A S T R U C T U R E A N DS E R V I C E S

Since taking responsibility for the

management and operation of the

Airport in 1996, the GTAA has

made several major improve-

ments to the groundside sys-

tem. This section describes

the various elements of the

groundside system.


7.2

traffic destined to the Airport and

regional traffic (see Figure 7-2).

7.3.2 Parking Facilities

Public Parking

A number of parking locations are

available to meet the public

demand (see Figure 7-3). Parking

garages are provided at Terminals 1

and 3. The Terminal 1 Parking

Garage is an eight-level structure

containing approximately 9,000

public parking spaces. The

Terminal 3 Parking Garage is a

five-level structure containing

approximately 4,200 public park-

ing spaces. Valet parking is

currently available at the

Terminal 1 departures curb.

A reduced rate remote parking

facility is also available across

Airport Road in Area 6A. This is a

surface lot with approximately

2,400 spaces. The Airport

Automated People Mover or

LINK Train provides passenger


7.3

F I G U R E 7 - 2 Airport Hwy Access


7.4

transfer from the Reduced Rate

Parking Lot to Terminals 1 and 3.

A 50-space cellphone lot is located

in Area 6B and is accessed from

Network Road. This is a vehicle

staging area provided for drivers to

park and wait until their party is

available for pick up at the arrivals

curbs. Drivers staging in this area

are required to remain in their

vehicles.

In addition, several private park-

ing facilities are available for pub-

lic parking within close proximity

to the Airport. Those private fa -

cilities provide passenger transfer

to the Airport’s passenger terminals

by bus.

Employee Parking

Approximately 7,000 parking

spaces are available for employees

throughout the Airport. Terminal

employee parking is provided in

Area 6B at Viscount Road (approx i -

mately 4,000 spaces). Terminal 1

employees are temporarily parking

in the old Terminal 2 Parking

Garage until 2009 when a new

parking structure will be available

in Area 6B adjacent to the Viscount

Road LINK Train Station.

On the west side of the Airport, a

total of 750 spaces are provided off

Britannia Road for employees of

the Infield cargo facilities. An

addi tional 450 spaces are also pro-

vided at the Cargo 1/2 facilities.

On the south and west sides of the

Airport, a number of smaller park-

ing lots provide parking for GTAA

staff along Convair Drive and

Britannia Road.

7.3.3 Rental Car Facilities

Parking garages at Terminals 1 and

3 accommodate a rental car ready-

return area on the ground level.

Each of the five rental car compa-

nies use their own off-site facilities

for washing and refuelling.

7.3.4 Commercial VehicleHolding Area (CVHA)

A consolidated commercial vehicle

holding area (CVHA) provides a

staging area for taxis, limousines,

pre-arranged vehicles and charter

busses. This area also serves as

a dispatch centre for taxis and

limousines using an Automated

Vehicle Identification (AVI) sys-

tem. The CVHA is located adja-

cent to Terminal 3 along Airport

Road and has direct roadway con-

nections to Terminals 1 and 3 (see

Figure 7-3). It is also easily accessi-

ble from all access roadways into

the Airport.

Hwy 401

Terminal 1 Parking Garage


7.5

7.3.5 LINK Train

The LINK Train is an automated

people mover (APM) system that

opened in July 2006 (see Figure

7-4). It connects Terminal 1,

Terminal 3 and the Reduced Rate

Parking Lot facilities. The cable-

pulled trains travel the 1.4 km

distance between all three stations

in approximately 3.5 minutes.

7.3.6 Public Transit

A number of transit services are

available to airport users. GO

Transit, Mississauga Transit and

the Toronto Transit Commission

(TTC) all provide regular

scheduled bus transit services

to the Airport.

GO Transit provides service

to Terminal 1 on an east-west


7.6

bus service route taking passengers

between central stops in Bramalea,

Brampton and North Toronto,

including the Yorkdale and York

Mills subway stations.

Mississauga Transit operates a

service to the terminals from the

Square One Shopping Centre and

Westwood Mall (in Malton) with

stops along the way. In addition,

Mississauga Transit serves the

Infield area on the west side of

the Airport.

The Toronto Transit Commission

(TTC) operates several services

to the Airport including the

192 Airport Rocket with service

from the Kipling subway station

and the 58A route with service

from the Lawrence West subway

station.

7.3.7 Other GroundTransportation Services

The Airport is served by many

out-of-town bus, van and shuttle

operators who typically provide

pre-arranged transportation

services to passengers that need

to travel further distances across

Ontario and between Toronto

and Detroit.

Pacific Western Airport Express

provides scheduled service to

down town Toronto. This service

includes stops at the downtown

bus terminal as well as several

major downtown hotels.

7 . 4 E X I S T I N G T R A F F I CD E M A N D A N D U S E RP R O F I L E S

7.4.1 Roadways

On a typical day, approximately

65,000 inbound vehicle trips are

made on the Airport’s groundside

roadway network. The majority of

these trips (82 per cent) are made

to the main terminal area while

the rest are to the various cargo

and airport support facilities.


F I G U R E 7 - 4 LINK Train

Figure 7-6 shows the typical distri-

bution of total traffic accessing the

Airport throughout the day.

The majority of trips to the main

terminal area are from Hwys 409

and 427 (68 per cent) while


7.7

Jetliner Road and Silver Dart

Drive account for the remainder

(32 per cent).

Table 7-1 shows the breakdown of

different modes of transportation

used to access the Airport by

passengers. The primary mode of

ground transportation is private

vehicles, followed by taxis and

limousines, rental cars, courtesy

vehicles, out-of-town busses, and

municipal transit.


7.8

Vehicle trips made outside of the

main terminal area (cargo and air-

port support facilities) are also

predominately private vehicles

(72 per cent). Single unit trucks

account for about 27 per cent of

that traffic while multiple-unit

truck traffic accounts for 1 per

cent. The overall vehicular mode

split for airport employees is pre-

dominantly private vehicles (94%)

but with a significantly higher

public transit component (6%) in

comparison to passenger traffic.

The number of air passengers per

vehicle varies between modes. On

average, private vehicles carry 1.5

air passengers. This factor is 1.4

for taxis and limousines and 1.7

for rental cars.

The origin and destination of

vehicular trips to and from the

Airport is widely dispersed around

southern Ontario. The majority of

passenger trips are to and from the

Greater Toronto Area (82 per

cent), 17 per cent are to and from

Ontario but outside of the GTA,

and 1 per cent to and from the

United States. Of the trips that are

based in the GTA, more than half

(56 per cent) are from the City of

Toronto, 15 per cent from the

City of Mississauga, 4 per cent

from each of the City of Brampton

and the Town of Markham, and

3 per cent from each of the Town

of Oakville and the City of

Vaughan with the remaining

15 per cent from other GTA com-

munities. The average trip length

to the Airport is 24 km.

The geographical distribution of

trips to and from the cargo facilities

is more concentrated. Approx i -

mately 61 per cent of trips origi-

nate or terminate less than

5 kilo metres away and 86 per cent

of all trips are less than 10 km.

About 5 per cent of all trips

involving the cargo facilities are

destined to and from the United

States with the balance (9 per cent)

destined to or from Ontario

communities.

7.4.2 Parking

The terminal parking garages

accommodate both short-term

and long-term parking needs.

Overall, as shown in Table 7-2,

about 54 per cent of parkers are at

the Airport to meet or send off air

passengers. About 40 per cent of

parkers are arriving or departing

air passengers and 6 per cent are

using the parking garage for other

reasons such as for personal

business at the Airport.

The capacity of a parking facility

is highly dependent on the dura-

tion or the length of time parkers

occupy a space in a facility.

Depend ing on the parking pur-

pose, parking duration varies

significantly. On the whole,

V E H I C U L A R M O D E S P L I T ( PA S S E N G E R S )

Mode Mode Split, Per CentPrivate vehicles 58Taxis and Limousines 24Rental cars 9Courtesy vehicles 6Out-of-town busses 2In-town busses (transit) 1

TA B L E 7 - 1

Source: 2005 Ground Transportation Survey

Passenger Terminal Access Roads

PA R K I N G P U R P O S E

Parking Per centAir Passenger 40Meet Air Passengers 32Send Off Air Passengers 22Other – Business at Airport 6

TA B L E 7 - 2

Source: 2005 Ground Transportation Survey

Total Traffic Accessing the Airport

F I G U R E 7- 6

Vehi

cles

per

Hou

r

Time of Day

0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

0:00

1:00

2:00

3:00

4:00

5:00

6:00

7:00

8:00

9:00

10:0

011

:00

12:0

013

:00

14:0

015

:00

16:0

017

:00

18:0

019

:00

20:0

021

:00

22:0

023

:00

Source: 2006 Traffic Data Collection Program


7.9

the majority of garage users are

short-term parkers.

Existing parking demand also

varies significantly by day of the

week and by season. For planning

purposes, the annual 95th per-

centile utilization is normally used

to forecast future demand. For

2006, at Terminal 1, the annual

95th percentile utilization was in

the order of 6,700 spaces and

approximately 3,300 spaces at

Terminal 3. The Reduced Rate

Parking Lot utilization was in the

order of 725 spaces.


7.10

7 . 5 F U T U R E T R A F F I CD E M A N D

7.5.1 Roadway Access –Terminal Area

The traffic growth that will be

generated on the groundside sys-

tem is forecast to be proportional

to the growth in passenger traffic.

Significant improvements have

been made to the groundside sys-

tems as a result of the develop-

ment of Terminal 1. Those

improvements are expected to be

adequate to accommodate the

forecast demand in the short to

medium term.

Three main roadway improve-

ments to the groundside system

have been identified to accommo-

date forecasted long-term demand

(see Figure 7-7). Those improve-

ments will be implemented only

when warranted by demand.

• Realignment of Hwy 427 and

Silver Dart Drive access to the

Airport: This would be required

for the construction of Pier H

and the associated apron areas.

As part of this work, Jetliner

Road would be removed and its

intersection with Airport Road

would be relocated farther east

adjacent to the Hwy 427 south-

bound on-ramp.

• Directional ramp from Hwy

427 northbound to Hwy 409

westbound: This will be required

only when the current access

from Hwy 427 northbound

reaches capacity. At that point,

all highway access to the Airport

would be via Hwy 409.

• Terminal 3 outbound basket

weave: It is expected that the

outbound roadway from

Terminal 3 will require a basket

weave to separate the movements

from the terminal frontage roads

and Hwys 409 and 427.

The catchment area of airport

users extends well beyond the


7.11

GTA. As such, the quality of air-

port access is highly dependent on

roadway infrastructure under the

control of various provincial,

regional, and municipal authori-

ties. As ground access to the

Airport is only part of the overall

GTA transportation system, inte-

gration with that greater trans-

portation network is important.

Increasing congestion due to con-

tinuing growth in regional popula-

tion and economic activity is

reducing accessibility to the

Airport during peak periods. The

GTA is expected to grow by nearly

2.8 million people and over

1.4 mil lion jobs between 2001

and 2031 (Source: Places to

Grow). This rate of growth will

place a tremendous strain on the

transportation infrastructure.

Persons travelling to and from the

Airport currently experience con-

siderable congestion during peak

travel periods. On average, trips to

or from the Airport tend to involve

longer distances and hence longer

travel times than other trips within

the GTA. Thus, trips destined for

the Airport will be disproportion-

ately impacted by the effects of

increased congestion. Afternoon

peak-period congestion is generally

worse and more widespread than

morning peak-period congestion.

Road-based accessibility to the

Airport is projected to degrade sig-

nificantly between the date of this

document and 2031. Figure 7-8

shows the projected difference in

travel time contours for afternoon

peak period access to the Airport

between 2001 and 2031.

Figure 7-9 shows the projected

change in congestion indices for

morning peak period travel to the

Airport between 2001 and 2031.

The congestion index is defined as

the ratio of congested travel time to

free-flow travel time. For example,

a congestion index of 2.0 would


7.12

indicate that the travel time during

the peak period would be twice as

much as during free-flow period.

As another measure of the impact

on accessibility to the Airport,

Figure 7-10 shows that during the

morning peak period in 2001,

about 51 per cent of the GTA

population is within a 30-minute

trip to the Airport. In 2031, only

29 per cent of the GTA popula-

tion is expected to be within the

same 30-minute trip time.

Given the forecast level of conges-

tion in the GTA, a greater empha-

sis in improving the transit mode

share to the Airport is required.

Some other potential initiatives to

address the issue of peak period

congestion are also discussed later

in this chapter.

7.5.2 Roadway Access –West Side

Traffic to and from the west side

of the Airport is somewhat less

than originally anticipated. This

may be due, in part, to lower

occupancy rates of the Infield area.

The current peak hour traffic is

approximately 500-550 vehicles

per hour (vph) in each direction

and is expected to grow as shown

in Table 7-3.

Under this level of projected ac -

tivity, the current roadway access

to the Infield area is expected to

be sufficient and will not require

any significant improvements.

Two potential long-term improve-

ments have been identified to be

implemented only when war-

ranted by demand:

• Courtneypark Drive may be

widened and extended from the

Airside Service Road over Spring

Creek and under Runway 15R-

33L and Taxiway Foxtrot, con -

nect ing into the extension of

Britannia Road at the north end

of the Infield.

• The widening of Britannia Road

to four lanes from under Taxiway

Mike to Convair Drive.

• A direct off-ramp may be pro -

vided from westbound Hwy 401

connecting to Britannia Road.

Although this option is identi-

fied, it is important to note that

the City of Mississauga has

expressed a desire to extend

Creekbank Road over Hwy 401

and across the west end of the

Airport. A possible off-ramp

from westbound Hwy 401 to

the extended Creekbank Road

would provide a similar level of

service to the west side of the

Airport should it be warranted

by traffic volumes.

7.5.3 Parking Facilities

The growth in airport public park -

ing demand is expected to be pro-

portional to the growth in airport

passenger demand. At that rate,

Terminals 1 and 3 parking facilities

are expected to reach capacity in

the short term. The demand for

terminal employee parking is

expected to grow at an annual rate

of 2 per cent. Table 7-4 summarizes

the forecast public and terminal

employee parking demand.

T E R M I N A L PA R K I N G D E M A N D

Year Public Employees2010 12,500 4,5002015 15,000 5,0002020 17,500 5,5002025 20,500 6,000

TA B L E 7 - 4

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

100%

150140130120110100908070605040302010

Accessibility to Toronto PearsonMorning Peak Period

F I G U R E 7-10Fr

actio

n of

Tota

l Pop

ulat

ion

Travel Time to Pearson (minutes)

2001 am 2031 am

51

29

Source: Airport Access Study (2005)

F O R E C A S T I N F I E L D P E A K H O U R T R A F F I C

Year Inbound Outbound2010 760 6602015 855 7502020 950 8402025 1,045 930

TA B L E 7 - 3

Commercial Vehicle Holding Area


7.13

In order to meet these demands,

the following plan has been de -

veloped (refer to Figure 7-11):


Expansion: An expansion to the

west of the existing Terminal 1

Parking Garage will provide

an additional 3,300 parking

spaces. This additional capacity

will be available when Pier G

is operational.

Terminal 3 Parking Garage:

There are no future expansion

opportunities at the Terminal 3

Parking Garage.


7.14

Area 6B Parking Garage: The

long-term parking demand will

be met by the construction of

a 7,500 space parking garage in

Area 6B. This parking structure,

to be connected to the Viscount

Road LINK Train station by a

pedestrian bridge, is scheduled to

be operational by the end of

2009. Com bined with surface

parking, the total capacity of

Area 6B will then be approxi-

mately 9,500 spaces.

The Infield area parking demand

will continue to be accommodated

by a surface parking lot for

employees and visitors.

7.5.4 Commercial VehicleHolding Area

In early 2007, all Commercial

Vehicle Holding Area (CVHA)

facilities were combined into a

consolidated facility in the oval lot

near Terminal 3. While regulatory

changes and mass transit might

change the demand for taxis and

limousines, it is expected that the

long-term demand can be accom-

modated at that location.

7.5.5 LINK Train System

The LINK Train is an automated

people mover (APM) system that

operates within the airport prop-

erty connecting the terminals with

remote parking facilities. It con-

sists of two independent tracks

each with one train operating

independently. The cable-pulled

technology used for the APM

provides a total capacity of 2,150

passengers per hour per direction

(pphpd). This capacity is expected

to accommodate the long-term

demand. Provisions have been

made in the design and construc-

tion of the APM guideway to

allow for the conversion of the

current technology to a self-

propelled technology that would

allow significantly more capacity

when warranted.

The current APM technology also

has expansion limitations. The

only possible expansion to the

system is a second station at

Terminal 1 when Pier H is in

place, for a total of four stations.

In addition, the trains may be

expanded from six cars to seven

cars to increase capacity to

2,500 pphpd. The system cannot

be extended to the east beyond

the Viscount Road Station.

7 . 6 T R A N S I T I N I T I AT I V E S

The GTAA will continue to take

a proactive role in addressing

groundside accessibility and in -

fluencing government plans to

ensure that both provincial and

municipal interests are addressed

while ensuring the integration of

improved access to the Airport.

Access Roads, Parking Facilities & LINK Train Guideway

Approaching Terminal 1 LINK Train Station


7.15

The vision is to include higher

order transit links to access

Toronto Pearson as a part of the

overall plan to enhance access in a

sustainable fashion.

There is little opportunity to

improve roadway access beyond

what is described in this docu-

ment. Therefore the GTAA recog-

nizes that greater integration with

the transit and road improvements

being proposed adjacent to

Toronto Pearson is imperative to

effectively accommodate the

future demand. It is acknowledged

that the current level of transit

service to the Airport must be

improved in comparison with

other major airports in North

America and beyond. As such, the

GTAA will continue to work

proactively with its provincial,

regional and municipal counter-

parts to make accessible transit to

the Airport a reality.

A number of transportation initia-

tives are currently being planned

in the vicinity of Toronto Pearson.

The following section describes

some of those initiatives that are

of specific interest to the GTAA.

7.6.1 Air Rail Link from theAirport to Union Station

This service, as originally proposed

by private developers, would con-

sist of a direct rail link between

Union Station and Toronto Pearson.

It would parallel the existing

Georgetown commuter rail service,

leaving the railway corridor near

Woodbine Racetrack to reach the

Airport at the Terminal 1 LINK

Train Station. As proposed, the

service would operate every

15 minutes, with a total journey

time of 22 minutes. The service is

expected to be operated by diesel

multiple unit (DMU) trains with

possible intermediate stops at

Bloor and Dundas West TTC sub-

way stations, and another stop

near the Woodbine Racetrack.

The final concept as of the date of

this document is currently going

through an Environmental Assess -

ment process. The GTAA has

however made provisions to

accommodate the air rail link at

the Terminal 1 LINK Train

Station by way of a platform-to-

platform connection.

The GTAA supports a direct link

from Union Station as it represents

one of the best opportunities to

improve access to the Airport.

7.6.2 GO Transit Inter-RegionalBus Rapid Transit: MississaugaSegment

In December 2002, GO Transit

announced a proposal to intro-

duce a 100 km Bus Rapid Transit

(BRT) spine facility extending

from the Oakville GO Station to

the Pickering GO Station. This is

illustrated in Figure 7-13.

Part of the GO Transit Inter-

Regional BRT is the Mississauga

Transitway segment, which was

approved under the Environ men -

tal Assessment Act in 1993 and

adden dum in 2005. The

Transitway is proposed as a fully

grade-separated roadway for exclu-

sive transit operations with on line

stations similar to rail transit sys-

tems. The Mississauga BRT is

illustrated in Figure 7-14.

At the end of the line, a gateway

station would be located at

Renforth Drive/Eglinton Avenue.

The ridership on the Transitway

would include riders from

Mississauga destined to the

Airport, northern Toronto,

Toronto’s Central Business District

(CBD) and the TTC Kipling sub-

way station. The Renforth Station

would be the logical transit hub

for these transfers due to its inte-

gration with the Mississauga

Transitway, the BRT Spine Line,

the Eglinton West BRT Line and

the “higher order” transit services

focused on the Airport. Since

1999, the GTAA has protected a

corridor for transit to access the

LINK Train Station


7.16

Airport from Renforth/Eglinton

within its Land Use Plan.

The Mississauga segment of the

inter-regional BRT network has

received federal and provincial

funding commitments to support

the planned implementation of the

facility between the Mississauga

City Centre and the Renforth

Gateway. In addition, the Ontario

Ministry of Transportation

(MTO) has initiated the redevelop -

ment of the Hwy 427 corridor

reflecting the need to incorporate

transit-priority improvements in

the design.


7.17

These initiatives will greatly

enhance the accessibility of the

Airport to the adjacent municipal-

ities, and linkages of the Renforth

Gateway to the Airport would

complement the planned invest-

ment in the BRT facility and the

Hwy 427 expansion. As a result,

the Renforth Drive corridor

becomes a logical location to

develop transit service enhance-

ments into the Airport.

In the short term, the GTAA will

integrate the terminal area with

the Mississauga Transitway (see

Figure 7-15). Transit signal priority

measures will be implemented

along the Renforth Drive and

Silver Dart Drive intersections.

When warranted by demand, a

separate system or a higher-quality

connection, such as a BRT, could

be implemented as a medium- to

long-term proposal.


7.18

7.6.3 The Toronto TransitCommission (TTC) Transit CityLight Rail Plan

In March 2007, the TTC

announced their Transit City

Light Rail Plan for a rapid transit

expansion in the City of Toronto.

The plan identifies six major corri-

dors where rapid transit could be

introduced. Those corridors are

shown in Figure 7-16.

Of particular interest are the

Eglinton Crosstown and the

Etobicoke-Finch West corridors.

The Eglinton Crosstown corridor

extends 31 km along Eglinton

Avenue linking the Kennedy

subway station in the east with the

Mississauga BRT in the west. The

corridor would also connect with

the existing Bloor-Danforth,

Yonge, Scarborough rapid transit

and Spadina subway systems and

with the proposed Scarborough

Malvern, Don Mills and Jane

light-rail corridors. Connection

into the Airport would be pro-

vided from the Renforth/Eglinton


7.19

station as described in sec-

tion 7.6.2.

The Etobicoke-Finch West corri-

dor extends 18 km along Finch

Avenue linking the Finch subway

station with northern Etobicoke.

Although the corridor ends at

Hwy 27, future expansion to the

south and west could provide

access to the Airport.

7.6.4 Other Provincial Initiatives

In June 2007, the Province of

Ontario announced funding for

MoveOntario 2020, a 12-year

building plan that will deliver

52 rapid transit initiatives in the

GTA and Hamilton areas. Of par-

ticular interest to the Airport are

the following initiatives, some of

which have been described in

more detail in previous sections:

• GO Bus Rapid Transit along

Hwy 403 from Oakville GO rail

station to Mississauga

• Mississauga Transitway west of

Mississauga City Centre to

Winston Churchill Boulevard

• Mississauga Transitway east of

Mississauga City Centre to

Renforth Drive

• GO Bus Rapid Transit northwest

Toronto link from Renforth

Drive to York University

• GO Bus Rapid Transit connector

on Hwy 427 from Renforth

Drive to Hwy 407


Hwy 407 from Burlington to

Hwy 401


Hwy 407 from Hwy 401 to

Hwy 427


Hwy 427 from Hwy 401 to York

University

• Toronto Pearson Air-Rail Link to

Union Station

• Eglinton Avenue Light Rail

Transit from Renforth Drive to

Kennedy Road in Scarborough

The MTO has recently opened

their first High Occupancy

Vehicle (HOV) lanes on Hwys

403 and 404 (southbound). These

facilities have been well received,

and similar priority lanes are being

considered on many 400-series

highways in the GTA. Both the

existing and future freeway-based

HOV facilities are illustrated in

Figure 7-17.

The province also recently created

the Greater Toronto Transporta -

tion Authority (GTTA). One of

the GTTA’s priorities is to develop

an integrated regional transporta-

tion plan for local transit, GO


7.20

Transit, and roads for the GTA

and Hamilton.

The GTAA is encouraged by the

creation of the GTTA and sup-

ports its mandate. The Airport

will work proactively with the

GTTA to contribute to its success.

7.6.5 Intermodal Terminal

An airport is a natural intermodal

facility. Conceptually an inter-

modal terminal would become the

focal point of the Airport’s transit

services. Such a facility could

accommodate a combination

of transit operations from local

transit to inter-city services.

The short-term strategy for inte-

grating Toronto Pearson with

other transit initiatives is to maxi-

mize the use of the Ground Level

at Terminal 1 where a number of

connections are already possible.

Platform curb space is readily

available to serve near-term

requirements including any con-

nection to the BRT network via

the internal road system which

provides efficient access to the

roadways beyond the Airport.

This location offers some addi-

tional near-term capacity based on

available curb space and the

reduction in inter-terminal and

parking shuttle busses associated

with the introduction of the

LINK Train. Longer-term capacity

could be increased with minimal

construction and reconfiguration

of the landscaped area adjacent to

the parking garage.


7.21

7 . 7 T R A N S P O RTAT I O ND E M A N D M A N A G E M E N TI N I T I AT I V E S

Transportation Demand Manage -

ment (TDM) is broadly defined

as “influencing traveller behaviour

for the purpose of reducing or

redistributing travel demand”.

The primary purpose of TDM is

to reduce the number of vehicles

using the transportation network

while providing a wide variety of

mobility options for those who

need to or wish to travel. To

improve airport access in the

future, the GTAA supports TDM

initiatives such as the HOV con-

cept of the Ministry of Transport -

a tion and the Smart Commute

program.


7.22

7 . 8 C O N C LU S I O N

Over the last decade, the ground-

side system at Toronto Pearson has

been significantly improved. The

GTAA has built the platform nec-

essary to meet the short- and long-

term demands on its groundside

facilities.

The new roadway network pro-

vides flexibility for integration

with on-site facilities as well as

with the external roadway net-

work. As road-based congestion

in the GTA increases, the need to

increase transit to the Airport is

seen as a major objective.

Increased levels of transit can

easily be accommodated within

the Airport’s current groundside

system. The GTAA is committed

to work with its partners and

stakeholders to make this happen.

Documents

R AND PARKING v - torontopearson · 7.3.1 Roadway Access The Airport has excellent connec- ... the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) transportation network. This chapter describes the existing