Premier Doug Ford wants to take over Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport and a string of the Toronto Islands and open the door to big jets over our waterfront. But this is a federal decision, and the Government of Canada has an important role to play.

We celebrated a victory over the planned expansion of the Billy Bishop Airport, but we may have celebrated too soon. 

The expansion is still on the table. The federal Minister of Transportation Steven MacKinnon stated that the expansion will not go ahead “at this time.” The provincial Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria has said that the expansion will go ahead, but he can’t proceed without federal approval as airports fall under federal control. 

What’s even more concerning is that the Toronto Star’s revelation that the expansion proposal was set in motion when Prime Minister Carney and Premier Ford shook hands on a deal where “Carney would back the airport expansion if Ford endorsed the federal government’s proposed Alto high-speed rail line between Toronto and Quebec City.” (Toronto Star “A handshake only got Doug Ford so far with Mark Carney on Billy Bishop expansion,” July 29.)

We need to keep the pressure up. The federal government has an important role to play. If the reported agreement between Prime Minister Carney and Premier Ford included support for expanding Billy Bishop Airport, it helped create the conditions for Bill 110, which gives the province the power to seize the Toronto Islands and Little Norway Park and removes the City from its role in managing the airport.

What comes next:
1.    Prime Minister Carney should clearly state that the expansion for jets will not happen and that Premier Ford should repeal Bill 110. If the expansion is not going ahead, Bill 110 would still give the provincial government the power to sell, develop, or transfer parts of the Islands without local oversight. Our islands should not become the next real estate scandal.
2.    The federal government should abandon its plans to privatize our air and seaports. The Billy Bishop expansion originated with JP Morgan after it purchased the airport terminal in 2015. When that investment underperformed, the bank lobbied governments to support expansion. Our transportation infrastructure should serve the public—not private shareholders, particularly foreign corporations. At a time when Canada's sovereignty is under pressure, we should not be handing strategic assets to American companies.

We've won a partial victory, but there is still work ahead.
Thank you to everyone who helped to get this far—but we need to keep the pressure up. When we stand together, we can make our governments work for us.

Fast Facts:

Cost to Taxpayers

• Expansion is far too expensive for taxpayers in a cost-of-living crisis. The Toronto Port Authority estimates the cost of the Billy Bishop Airport expansion to be $5 billion. That's $900 for each Ontario household.
• Pearson Airport is already investing $3 billion to accommodate an additional 23 million passengers. Since the two airports compete for the same passengers, the expansion of Billy Bishop is a waste of our money.

Health & Safety

• It is not safe to have high volumes of jet traffic next to high-rise buildings. Billy Bishop already operates with exemptions from nearly every air-navigation rule. Moving from modest turboprops to large jets raises the risk  and even a minor accident on our crowded waterfront would be devastating.
• Large jets are dangerous to residents' health. They shed ultrafine particles linked by the Toronto Port Authority to a greater risk of lung cancer for nearby residents, including the elementary school across from Little Norway Park, just 200 metres from the runway, affecting children's developing lungs. Other noxious pollutants include sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, which have no safe exposure threshold.
• A significant increase in noise will also affect children's learning, and residents mental health and cardiovascular health.
• The expansion is projected to cause a 450% increase in downtown traffic more idling, pollution, congestion, and collisions in one of the most congested cores in North America.
  The expansion will also dramatically alter the natural beauty and enjoyment of the waterfront and the Toronto islands, impeding our access to nature and the use of our waterfront for recreation.

Environment

• Allowing jets to fly from the island would require extending the runway by 900 metres, plus a new terminal and other infrastructure with harmful impacts on air and water quality, bird migration, and the delicate marine ecosystem of the inner harbour, which supports hundreds of species of plants, fish, and wildlife.
• More flights mean more emissions over a dense waterfront, and a higher risk of biohazard spills like fuel and de-icing fluid. This is the same government that tried to sell off the Greenbelt and scrapped Ontario's climate targets.
• The bottom line: Toronto does not need to pave over its waterfront to meet our region's air-travel needs. Add your voice to the federal consultation, and sign our petition to stop this takeover.

Housing

• $2 billion taxpayer dollars have been invested in the east waterfront to accommodate over 20,000 new homes. The number of homes may be cut in half to allow jets to fly overhead. Fewer homes mean higher prices across the city.

Traffic

• Toronto was named the worst city in North America for traffic in 2023. The Toronto Port Authority estimates the expansion would increase traffic by at least 450% to accommodate an additional 8 million passengers per year.

Municipal Democracy

• Premier Ford is seizing control of the Toronto Islands, Billy Bishop Airport, and Little Norway Park from the City of Toronto for the airport expansion. Mayor Olivia Chow, Deputy Mayor Ausma Malik, and Toronto City Council have passed several resolutions condemning this anti-democratic legislation.

At a time when Ontarians are struggling to make ends meet, the government should be focused on real priorities: strengthening healthcare, fixing schools, building affordable housing, and tackling the cost-of-living crisis head-on. 

Need a template?

The federal government has an important role to play and your voice can stop this expansion. Not sure what to say? Copy the text below (and add your own first line), then send it to your local federal MP and to Prime Minister Carney.

Prime Minister Carney: [email protected]  

Find your federal MP here: www.ourcommons.ca/members/en  

I'm a resident of Toronto Centre, and I oppose any expansion of Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport.

Flying larger jets from the island would require a 900-metre runway extension and a new terminal, with real harm to air and water quality, bird migration, and marine life on our central waterfront. It would put jet traffic beside high-rise towers and roughly 200 metres from an elementary school, and is projected to sharply increase downtown traffic and pollution.

It's also a waste of money: independent assessments put expansion in the billion-dollar range and find island operations cost far more than Pearson which the UP Express already connects to Union Station in 25 minutes. Pearson's expansion is already approved and funded.

Toronto does not need to pave over its waterfront to meet our region's air-travel needs. Please do not allow this expansion to proceed.