On 30JUN, the Government of Canada announced a $30 million investment in the construction of a U.S. customs preclearance facility at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport.
The facility will serve United States-bound travellers and is expected to provide pax with added convenience and reduce congestion at the island airport in downtown Toronto.
There are 15 such U.S. customs preclearance facilities around the world, several of which are in Canada. The facilities allow travellers to clear U.S. customs at their departure gateway — in this case Toronto — and arrive as domestic fliers at their U.S. destination.
"The investment in the new United States preclearance facility for the Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport will provide travellers in the Greater Toronto area more options when flying to the United States and will support the reduction of airport congestion. Investing in this facility is great news for the airport and for Canadians," said Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra.
Preclearance will also “provide access to more U.S. markets which will boost connectivity and bilateral trade and tourism between Toronto and the eastern U.S.,” said RJ Steenstra, the CEO of PortsToronto which operates YTZ.
The facility has been cleared to receive funding and will be operational in 2025.
Porter, which is based at Billy Bishop, will be the biggest beneficiary of the new facility, reports Airline Weekly. The airline carries all of Billy Bishop’s U.S.-bound pax on its flights to Boston, Chicago Midway, Newark, and Washington Dulles.
At the moment, Porter is the only airline serving Billy Bishop with flights to the U.S.
Air Canada flies domestic routes from Billy Bishop to Montreal and Ottawa.
