Hoverlink - Toronto to Niagara Hovercraft service starting 2023

[lead82]

This is doomed to fail. This ferry should operate from the same place as the island ferries or somewhere close to downtown. The end point should be Niagara on the lake as that is a destination. Port Weller is not and end destination for anyone so I don’t get why it makes any sense to terminate there.

 

[SashaLemon]

(Time stamped)

 

[cereal]

I emailed info@hoverlinkontario.com asking for more details about the location of the Toronto/Ontario Place terminal and this was their answer...

Our planning and operations with regards to the Ontario Place terminal, will be revealed closer to our Summer 2023 launch date.
We appreciated your interest in Hoverlink Ontario Inc's Rapid 30-minute Hovercraft Service between Niagara Region and Toronto.
We encourage you to visit and sign up to stay connected - www.hoverlinkontario.com

I suspect there will be no consultation or input from the city or the general public on this project just like the rest of the Ontario Place redevelopment plans.

 

[44 North]

The "no louder than a dishwasher" is a standout. What kind of dishwasher are we talking about here. Either way let's get this thing going. Large planar surface with populations on either side. Time to get more transportation use out of the lake.

 

[nfitz]

The "no louder than a dishwasher" is a standout.

That's a good question - my new one is very quiet, but some must be 10 to 20 dB higher. They should just print a number.

 

[robmausser]

The "no louder than a dishwasher" is a standout. What kind of dishwasher are we talking about here. Either way let's get this thing going. Large planar surface with populations on either side. Time to get more transportation use out of the lake.

I think that a water connection between these two areas is a no brainer, I am just having trouble with the hovercraft decision. No one else uses one, all the other ferries in the great lakes, like the two on lake michigan, are high speed cat boats. https://www.lake-express.com/

Why are we yet again reinventing the wheel here?

 

[crs1026]

The more I look at the map, the more I wonder where along the shoreline a hovercraft terminal could be built without some modification to the breakwalls and/or intrusion into parkland. One wonders what level of EA is necessary in light of those impacts and intrusions.

If someone is suggesting that people will drive to the hovercraft terminal and park for the day, they are making some huge assumptions about road and land availability and parking costs.

The most sensible option would be to position the terminal close to the public transit network.... but with the Ontario Line well to the north, it will be a longish walk from Exhibition station to the terminal. Even the Waterfront LRT jogs north around the CNE grounds.

The foot of Spadina might be the most convenient in terms of transport links.

- Paul

 

[DSC]

I think that a water connection between these two areas is a no brainer, I am just having trouble with the hovercraft decision. No one else uses one, all the other ferries in the great lakes, like the two on lake michigan, are high speed cat boats. https://www.lake-express.com/

Why are we yet again reinventing the wheel here?

Though you may be right, the biggest problem, BY FAR, is how passengers get to and from the two termini. The whole project will fail if they do not get THAT right; the exact kind of boat is WAY down the list of problems.

 

[robmausser]

Though you may be right, the biggest problem, BY FAR, is how passengers get to and from the two termini. The whole project will fail if they do not get THAT right; the exact kind of boat is WAY down the list of problems.

Absolutely. But the kind of boat has an impact on the port location too.

I highly doubt they would let a hovercraft into the Toronto Harbour. But a regular cat ferry? Easily.

 

[lenaitch]

I think that a water connection between these two areas is a no brainer, I am just having trouble with the hovercraft decision. No one else uses one, all the other ferries in the great lakes, like the two on lake michigan, are high speed cat boats. https://www.lake-express.com/

Why are we yet again reinventing the wheel here?

Bear in mind that the "we" in this case is private investors. No public money is involved that I am aware of. Private money will try to do what private money wants to do.

Public access aside, the amount of space required for the ramp, terminal, maintenance facility, etc. for a 180 pax sized ship would be significant.

 

[cereal]

There was a second public consultation meeting for the Ontario Place redevelopment on Oct 27. Here is the virtual public engagement room: https://engageontarioplace.ca/virtual/

There was zero reference to Hovercraft Ontario Inc during the presentation, and zero references to the Hovercraft project on any of the presentation materials and slides. Very bizarre.

Wouldn't Hovercraft Ontario require a significant piece of the Ontario Place redevelopment? somewhere to build a terminal, parking, a landing pad facility, etc... Seems very odd that something this sizable is left completely out of the redevelopment plans being presented to the public during the engagement process.

Makes me wonder if Hovercraft Ontario Inc even has permissions for a Ontario Place terminal like they announced.

 

[Gino29]

There was a second public consultation meeting for the Ontario Place redevelopment on Oct 27. Here is the virtual public engagement room: https://engageontarioplace.ca/virtual/

There was zero reference to Hovercraft Ontario Inc during the presentation, and zero references to the Hovercraft project on any of the presentation materials and slides. Very bizarre.

Wouldn't Hovercraft Ontario require a significant piece of the Ontario Place redevelopment? somewhere to build a terminal, parking, a landing pad facility, etc... Seems very odd that something this sizable is left completely out of the redevelopment plans being presented to the public during the engagement process.

Makes me wonder if Hovercraft Ontario Inc even has permissions for an Ontario Place terminal like they announced.

most likely a plan not based in any sense of reality. a guy with a dream.

 

[KevinT]

most likely a plan not based in any sense of reality. a guy with a dream.

Moose Rail, got it.

 

[DSC]

Chris Glover MPP (Fort York) is announcing a meeting:

Register Now <https://mcusercontent.com/40bacb5f6a93b8e4455805173/images/edd48366-0bc3-6019-b71f-a895ea258353.png> New Proposed Hovercraft Transit ServiceHoverlink Ontario Inc. will be launching a new hovercraft transit service across Lake Ontario between Toronto (Ontario Place) and St. Catharines (Port Weller). This new service is expected to launch in summer 2023.Join MPP Chris Glover's virtual town hall on Tuesday, November 22 at 6:30 pm to discuss the proposed service. Community members interested in learning more about this rapid transit service are invited to join this discussion with Hoverlink Ontario CEO Chris Morgan, and CFL hall-of-famer and Hoverlink Board Member Michael Pinball ClemonFor more information about Hoverlink, check out their FAQ page: https://hoverlinkontario.com/faq/

 

[44 North]

This is clearly in the more out-there transportation ideas category, but within that I think it could have legs. I'm keen to see how far along this proposal gets.