Ped/Bike/Transit Bridge or Tunnel to Toronto Island?

[Palma]

I agree it shouldn't be zero cost. We need to fund it somehow. Either charge the $5 to get on the island or nickel and dime people for services on the island (bathrooms, fire pits, a chair on the beach, etc).

I think the difference is not WASP or not...it's do you have a back yard or not. If you have a back yard (or your parents do) it makes total sense to have your family BBQ at home. But when your entire family (and friends) live in apartments and condos a park is the only place left for a large gathering (and connecting with nature if you also do not have a car). The Island is a huge area that is very accessible by those in apartments and condos...and we should make it more accessible. We are becoming more urban and need these spaces to connect with family & friends.

And we need to create the ability to spread them throughout the island. That's why I think there should be a trolley service to allow for every one of these huge groups to find a great place for a BBQ or whatever they want to do.

so if you are in a condo at college and yonge the islands are far to walk to bringing meat to barbecuq or food already cooked as you walk (and in the sun).. PLus all the things that go along with picnics. If everyone hops on TTC to get to harbour, costs add up $3.00 for adults, $2.00 for students 13 and up. The islands are not so near and accessible to everyone.

Plus I thought it was a joke when i read LRT to islands, tunnelling, buses. At least i hope so.

 

[W. K. Lis]

On second thought...

...after you.

 

[Northern Light]

Ahem.

We already have a pedestrian tunnel to the Islands, its at the foot of Bathurst and you can walk to the Island Airport.

The only issue is how to connect from the airport to the balance of the Islands.

I'm sure that can figured out w/o too much difficulty.

 

[ADRM]

Ahem.

We already have a pedestrian tunnel to the Islands, its at the foot of Bathurst and you can walk to the Island Airport.

The only issue is how to connect from the airport to the balance of the Islands.

I'm sure that can figured out w/o too much difficulty.

That was my first thought also, but I'm not actually sure that's the case, mostly because there's a whole lot of runway between where the pedestrian tunnel terminates and the start of the public part of the island. I think the only option would be to tunnel under that entire stretch, which seems entirely unfeasible.

And the problem with the eastern gap is that it's still very much part of an active industrial shipping channel, which makes a bridge or infill impractical.

Tunnelling under the eastern gap is certainly not without its practical constraints (not the least of which is the inevitable community outcry - remember that a lot of people live right where such a tunnel might emerge on the island side), either.

All in all, I'm not at all convinced any new pedestrian connection to the islands would be a substantially easier slog than Rail Deck Park, as many have suggested.

 

[MisterF]

That was my first thought also, but I'm not actually sure that's the case, mostly because there's a whole lot of runway between where the pedestrian tunnel terminates and the start of the public part of the island. I think the only option would be to tunnel under that entire stretch, which seems entirely unfeasible.

And the problem with the eastern gap is that it's still very much part of an active industrial shipping channel, which makes a bridge or infill impractical.

Tunnelling under the eastern gap is certainly not without its practical constraints (not the least of which is the inevitable community outcry - remember that a lot of people live right where such a tunnel might emerge on the island side), either.

All in all, I'm not at all convinced any new pedestrian connection to the islands would be a substantially easier slog than Rail Deck Park, as many have suggested.

Agreed about the airport. Security concerns alone make any kind of connection to the rest of the Islands unlikely.

How much shipping traffic is there in the Eastern Gap? A lift bridge doesn't seem like it would be all that complicated.

 

[ADRM]

Agreed about the airport. Security concerns alone make any kind of connection to the rest of the Islands unlikely.

How much shipping traffic is there in the Eastern Gap? A lift bridge doesn't seem like it would be all that complicated.

I actually hadn't thought of a lift bridge, but that's interesting. Redpath, in particular, is a quite frequent user of the eastern gap, and they're not the only one.

I think, though, the bigger obstacle would be where that bridge would terminate on the island, given that the area immediately surrounding that part is highly residential.

 

[W. K. Lis]

Agreed about the airport. Security concerns alone make any kind of connection to the rest of the Islands unlikely...

What about the airport at Gibraltar? See link.

Gibraltar's airport runway has a dual carriageway, bicycle lanes & pedestrian footpaths crossing it, they close a barrier when a plane is due to take off or land, and after it's back open as a road.

 

[Johnny Au]

Here's the street that crosses the Gibraltar Airport runway: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winston_Churchill_Avenue

There were plans to construct a tunnel under the airport to bypass it.

 

[bobbob911]

This seems like a solution in search of a problem. There's nothing fundamentally wrong with the ferries - the issues are the cost and crowd/flow control at the ferry dock. These can be solved with more ferries, a better designed ferry dock, and a subsidized rate. Much cheaper than building out infrastructure, if the city was serious about it.

 

[MisterF]

What about the airport at Gibraltar? See link.

That's why I said unlikely, not impossible. Isn't that the only overland route into Gibraltar? Seems like a case where they'd avoid that kind of setup if they could, but land constraints prevent it. It's a necessary evil. Toronto doesn't have that problem and, let's face it, a land connection to the Islands isn't really necessary.

 

[Ashille]

A bridge too far? The case for a pedestrian, cyclist link to Toronto Island
It shouldn't be this hard to access the city’s best public space.

From link.

View attachment 82063

With the multi-million dollar tunnel already in place and fully operational, why not make better usage of that and construct cycle/pedestrian path around the Billy Bishop runway on the shore of the island that connects to Hanlan's Point? That shouldn't be too expensive to make.

This would be a long and tedious access to the islands' facilities and only the more daring ones would be willing to opt for that route. This would solve the conundrum of making the islands too easily accessible to the mass and at the same time not jeopardize the ferry services. I'm sure the mass would still opt for the ferry route. This way, the option is there: those willing to take the extra pain, cycle/walk the long route for free or take the easy ferry shortcut at a price!

 

[Admiral Beez]

Not enough people use this precious parkland.

That's part of its appeal.

The ferry ride is always fun, and the pay to play access keeps out drunks, unsavories and vagrants. Go to almost any other park downtown (for example, Allan Gardens) and you'll find public intoxication, tramps sleeping on benches, people publicly shooting up, those damn miscreants on their e-bikes, etc. Meanwhile, go to the Toronto Islands and it's families having picnics, kids playing and running about, and not a single beggar, insane mutterer, drunk or drug-addled e-bike racer. Like the pre-Chunnel English Channel that acted as a moat to protect Albion, Toronto's Inner Harbour protects the park from the worst of its citizens.

I'd rather spend the cash to flatten the remnants of Ontario Place and expand Trillium Park over the entire grounds.

 

[pman]

Folks on the Island deserve a one stop express subway. Or is it a red light district?

 

[muller877]

With the multi-million dollar tunnel already in place and fully operational, why not make better usage of that and construct cycle/pedestrian path around the Billy Bishop runway on the shore of the island that connects to Hanlan's Point? That shouldn't be too expensive to make.

This would be a long and tedious access to the islands' facilities and only the more daring ones would be willing to opt for that route. This would solve the conundrum of making the islands too easily accessible to the mass and at the same time not jeopardize the ferry services. I'm sure the mass would still opt for the ferry route. This way, the option is there: those willing to take the extra pain, cycle/walk the long route for free or take the easy ferry shortcut at a price!

The airport needs the entire length of the runways (right to the breakwall). To be in compliant with newer standards they want to increase the length further (by filling in the lake). So no room for a path at either end.

They could consider a pedestrian tunnel under the airport/runways (with moving walkways...just like the one to the airport). Would have to be bored until after the main runway but then cut&cover. It would be interesting to see the cost of this vs the cost of the new ferry terminal & opex for the ferries over the next 20 years.

 

[PinkLucy]

As for crossing the runway, do you remember the winter the ferries couldn’t run because of ice? Island residents were brought (by bus I think) to the airport to cross there, and there were many complaints of how long that took because of waiting for clearance to cross the runway. Now imagine people on bikes/foot scooting across a runway with an incoming flight.