Porter plans

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Traffic congestion can be downright frustrating, especially for suburban commuters driving into downtown Toronto. But Niagara region officials have a solution.

The region met with Porter Airlines to talk about the idea of a commuter flight from Niagara District Airport to Toronto’s Billy Bishop Airport. It would be one of the bonuses of using Niagara’s airport as a service centre and a place to park Porter’s planes overnight.

Porter Airlines currently has service centres in Toronto and Sudbury.

The airlines confirms it met with officials from the Niagara region, but says it has no plans to open a service centre there at the moment. The Niagara District Airport is currently conducting its own online survey to see if there is a market for commuter flights to destinations like Toronto and Montreal.

Len O’connor, general manager of the Niagara District Airport, says he wouldn’t be surprised if commuter planes were flying in and out of the airport as early as next year.

The survey, which appears on the airports main site, asks nine questions, including how often commuters travel to cities like Toronto, and more importantly how much would they pay for a flight. Taking a bus or GO train from Niagara Falls to Toronto costs less than $20 one-way but would take about three hours. Helicopters, private jets and St.Catharines’ flying club currently use the tarmac at Niagara District Airport.

O’Connor says commuter jets would be a big money maker for Niagara.

“With a 75 seater coming in here, just seasonal, one a day for six months, it’s a $9 million impact.”

For now, the idea of a morning flight to and from work is still up in the air.