City to look at relief vessels to provide more service to islands

City staff will look at acquiring "relief vessels" to provide additional service to Toronto Islands while Torontowaits for electric ferries it has ordered, council decided on Thursday.

At its meeting, council approved a motion 21 to 1, moved by Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow, that directs the general manager of parks, forestry and recreation to explore the possibility of leasing or otherwise retaining relief ferries to ease the long lines for service that have developed at the docks.

Council also approved the purchase of two new electricferries to serve Toronto Islands at a price tag of $92 million. The boats will replace aging ferries which currently serve the island park's 1.4 million annual visitors. The electric ferries, however, are not expected to be delivered until late 2026 and early 2027.

Chow told council is "finally, finally" putting the order in for new ferries to the Toronto Islands.

"My motion basically is to say: 'Hey, why don't we see if we could lease, rent something in between now and the end of 2026 to get people over to the island,'" Chow said.

"Let's explore it and probably we'll have to invest in it. But I won't regret providing this kind of support, transportation, we can call it that, to get people over the island, instead of having them wait for an hour-plus in the hot sun with screaming kids. It's very difficult," Chow added

"In the meantime, I urge our parks staff to find ways to bring more food trucks, some entertainment maybe clowns, whatever it might be, buskers to entertain some of those folks that are unfortunately lining up to get over to the island."

Existing ferries up to 114 years old

When asked about the size of the relief ferries that she had in mind, Chow said she didn't know and would leave that decision up to the engineers.

Damen Shipyards Galati will build the electric ferries in Romania following council's approval of the tender award.

Toronto's ferry fleet consists of four vessels and one historic ship with a total capacity of 2,400 passengers. The existing ferries are between 61 and 114 years old and are beyond the average industry lifespan. The new vessels are to be delivered in late 2026 and early 2027.

The two new vessels are expected to increase the city's ferry capacity by over 400 passengers per trip for the passenger and vehicle vessel and nearly 1,000 passengers per trip for the passenger vessel, a city staff report to council says.

"Delivery of the new vessels will also enhance the passenger experience with contemporary ferry designs and amenities, reduce anticipated repair costs of the current fleet, and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions as the ferry fleet transitions from diesel to electric."

The city began preparations to buy replacement boats in 2015, and city council has changed the specifications of vessel design a number of times, leading to cost escalations.

Initially, the city was going to purchase diesel ferries, but it opted for a more expensive, environmentally-friendly purchase of electric ferries to save $815,600 in operational savings and $642,800 in fuel savings annually.