Billy Bishop Airport Tunnel: Walking, the Ferry and Where Cars Can Stop

How do you get to Billy Bishop Airport: the tunnel or the ferry?

Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (YTZ) is on an island in Lake Ontario, separated from the downtown waterfront by the Western Gap, a channel the airport describes as 121 metres wide. Two fixed links cross it, and they work very differently. The tunnel is a walking route with moving walkways. The ferry is a short boat ride that also carries vehicles.

For a passenger with one carry-on and a morning flight, the tunnel is the obvious answer. For a family with strollers and four suitcases, or a traveller in a wheelchair, the answer is less obvious, and that is where most of the confusion starts. This guide covers both routes, the kerb rules on the mainland, and what to tell a driver so nobody circles the block.

If you are comparing airports for a Toronto trip rather than choosing a route to this one, our Toronto Billy Bishop airport transfers page covers the service side, and the Toronto Pearson arrivals guide covers the larger airport.

What the pedestrian tunnel is actually like

The tunnel is 853 feet long, which is about 260 metres, and it runs under the Western Channel. The airport lists four moving walkways inside it. At the mainland end, six elevators take you from the pavilion down to tunnel level. At the island end you have a choice of two elevators, an escalator, or a 153-step staircase.

Three practical consequences follow from that.

• It is step-free. With six elevators on the mainland side and two at the island end, wheelchair users and parents with strollers can use it.
• Luggage is fine. Moving walkways and elevators mean that a wheeled suitcase is an easy carry.
• It is quick. The airport quotes less than six minutes from the kerb to check-in. As our own planning allowance, allow eight to ten if you are carrying kids or waiting for an elevator at a busy hour.

The airport's own pages do not publish tunnel opening hours, so do not assume it is open at the very edges of the day. The ferry is the schedule you can plan around, and the airport lists operating hours of 5:00 AM to 11:00 PM daily.

How the ferry works, and when to prefer it

The ferry is the Marilyn Bell, and its crossing takes about 90 seconds across the Western Gap. It leaves from the foot of Bathurst Street and runs every 15 minutes, daily from 5:15 a.m. until 12:07 a.m. Pedestrians ride free. The airport lists the fare for a vehicle as $15 for a return trip.

Why take the ferry when the tunnel is free and fast? There are three honest reasons:

1. Your car needs to reach the island. The airport says vehicles can cross the Western Gap by ferry to the island terminal, and that a car on the ferry pays the ferry fee plus any parking fees.
2. You are travelling with someone who needs help. The airport's accessibility page says to contact your airline at least 48 hours before travel to arrange an escort, wheelchair, baggage help and curbside assistance, and that the ferry and the tunnel are both accessible by elevator.
3. You want the short boat ride. For some visitors, the 90 seconds across the harbour are part of the point.

Schedules are guides only and can change with weather or ferry capacity, so allow extra time on stormy days.

Where cars, taxis and rideshares can stop on the mainland

The mainland address is 2 Eireann Quay, Toronto, ON M5V 1A1. The airport's pick-up and drop-off page sets out four separate areas, and each is strict.

• Drop-off: you may stop momentarily at the kerb outside the mainland pavilion and ferry terminal. The kerb is a "No Parking" area reserved for loading and unloading, and a vehicle should not be left unattended.
• Meeting an arriving passenger: the airport provides complimentary spots inside the turning circle, with a maximum wait of five minutes. It asks drivers to pull in only after confirming the passenger is on the way. If you are early, you wait elsewhere.
• Taxis: arriving passengers are dropped at the kerb outside the mainland pavilion. Taxis pick up at the taxi corral to the right of the mainland pavilion, at the foot of Eireann Quay.
• Rideshare: pick-ups use the kerb next to Little Norway Park, in the Finger lanes, in the lane closest to the kerb. A rideshare driver without a fare may not wait on airport property.

The five-minute limit is the detail that trips people up. A relative who arrives early cannot idle in the circle for forty minutes, and a driver who is early will be moved on. For waiting, the airport points drivers to the Stolport parking site. We could not confirm current mainland parking rates from the operator's public pages, so check the booking widget before you plan to park.

Billy Bishop to Union Station and downtown: your options

The airport runs a free shuttle bus between the mainland terminal and Union Station. The shuttle trip takes about 15 minutes depending on traffic, and the buses run roughly every 15 minutes on a bump-and-go basis. In the earliest and latest hours (about 5:00 to 6:10 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. to about 12:15 a.m. on weekdays) the interval is 25 minutes. The airport stop is in front of the Main Terminal at 2 Eireann Quay. The Union Station stop is on the west side of the Fairmont Royal York Hotel at the corner of Front and York streets.

Distances here are short. The airport describes itself as about three kilometres from downtown, and road routing (OSRM) from the foot of Eireann Quay to Union Station gives about 9 km and roughly 10 minutes without traffic, so the journey time is dominated by queuing, not by driving. At the evening rush the same trip can run longer, so add a margin for any late-afternoon departure.

When the free shuttle is better: if you are travelling alone, with carry-on only, and heading to Union Station for a GO or VIA train, the shuttle is the sensible choice. See our comparison of UP Express and private car between Pearson and Union for how this changes if you land at the other airport.

Customs and the arrival process

If you are flying in from outside Canada, the Canada Border Services Agency's ArriveCAN service lets you submit an Advance Declaration up to 72 hours before your flight. Billy Bishop Toronto City (YTZ) is on the CBSA list of participating airports, which also includes Toronto Pearson Terminals 1 and 3. The agency says the declaration can make processing at a kiosk or eGate faster, with an advertised improvement of up to 50 percent.

Mind the date on that page: CBSA's published list was dated 2024, so confirm the airport is still listed before relying on it.

Once through, you reach the mainland by tunnel or ferry. Agree the meeting point with your driver in advance. On our airport pickups we track the flight, and the mainland pavilion is the practical meeting point for most passengers.

When a private car is worth it at Billy Bishop

The airport is small and the free options are good, so a private car is not the default here. It becomes the better choice in four situations:

• Late arrivals. The ferry's last crossing is at 12:07 a.m., and the shuttle thins to every 25 minutes at the end of the night. A booked car removes both waits.
• Luggage and children. Strollers, car seats and several bags are easier door-to-door than by tunnel, shuttle and hotel lobby.
• Mobility needs. The tunnel is step-free, and the airport has Curbside Assistance zones at the mainland building and the airport terminal entrances. A driver who stops on the permitted kerb can help with the last metres, and the airline-arranged assistance process can be combined with it.
• Meetings. If you land at 9 a.m. and have a 10 a.m. boardroom, a car timed to your flight removes the shuttle's wait.

For a pickup at Billy Bishop, ask the driver to meet you at the mainland pavilion, not in the turning circle. The turning circle is for five-minute stops only.

Check your fixed fare

Common mistakes at the Billy Bishop kerb

These are the errors that cost people time.

1. Telling a driver to wait at the island terminal. Unless you have arranged a ferry crossing, the mainland pavilion is the stop to give.
2. Staying past five minutes in the turning circle. The circle is for quick meets. Sit in a legal waiting spot elsewhere until the passenger confirms.
3. Choosing the wrong lane for rideshare. The pick-up is next to Little Norway Park in the Finger lanes, and drivers without a fare cannot wait on the property.
4. Assuming the ferry takes everyone. Pedestrians and vehicles use the same boat, but the vehicle fare is separate and cars need space on the crossing.
5. Ignoring weather. Schedules are guides and can slip in storms, so leave extra margin for a morning departure.

If you want a human to coordinate all of this, our Toronto downtown hotel transfers page explains how pickups are arranged for the core, and the Toronto hub lists every airport and station we cover in the city. Long-haul connections often start at the larger airport, so the Pearson to downtown Toronto and Toronto Union Station rail transfers pages cover the other direction.

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