Another Toronto Island ferry crash puts pressure on city’s aging fleet

Fresh questions are being asked about Toronto’s aging fleet of ferries after another crash was reported while one of the boats was trying to dock downtown.

The latest problem — which the city describes as “a mechanical issue” — has forced officials to withdraw the boat from service, even as frustrations over the regularity and reliability of island access grow.

Emergency services were called to the Toronto Island Ferry Terminal around 6:15 p.m. on Thursday for reports of an issue with one of the ferries attempting to dock.

Toronto police told Global News the initial call for help suggested a ferry had crashed into the dock. The incident did not result in any injuries but Toronto was forced to yank the ferry out of service.

“We’re aware of an incident involving one of the City of Toronto’s ferries, where crews acted quickly to perform an emergency stop at the Jack Layton Ferry Terminal,” a spokesperson for the city said in a statement sent to Global News.

They said the “thorough investigation into what occurred” is set to begin “immediately,” just a few weeks after an investigation into a separate crash two years ago finally wrapped up.

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In mid-August, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada published its report on an Aug. 20, 2022, crash that injured 12 people, five of whom were treated in hospital with minor injuries.

The report found on that day that the ferry was late and approached the terminal faster than it had on previous trips. It found that one propeller was not enough to stop it crashing when it made it to land.

Through the warm summer months, when demand to travel to the island is at its highest, the city has faced repeated complaints about queues to get on ferries and a lack of service.

Unrest peaked in June with two of the city’s four ferries out for repairs from early May for well over a month. The lack of vessels pushed up waiting times and left the city struggling to keep up with demand.

Toronto’s ferry fleet carries more than 1.4 million passengers annually and is an “essential service to Toronto Island residents and visitors,” the city said on its website.

“Although well-maintained, the current ferries are between 50 to 100 years old and beyond the average industry lifespan,” it added.

Toronto is in the midst of planning to replace its diesel-powered fleet with electric vessels, but it’s not expected to be completed until 2026.

The process began in 2015 when council began allocating funding towards a new purchase. The original price tag for two new ferries in the parks, forestry and recreation budget in 2020 was $25 million.

But in 2022, council changed course, opting to replace the vessels with fully electric options rather than diesel or hybrid vessels. The price tag for that, combined with rising costs for materials, has dwarfed the original figure. A request for proposals process saw Damen Shipbuilding from the Netherlands selected to build the ferries at a cost of $92.2 million.

Even with the latest issue and ferry removed from service, the City of Toronto stressed it would continue to serve all three island destinations.

— with files from Global News’ Aaron D’Andrea and Matthew Bingley

&© 2024 The Canadian Press