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Airport Road is an 81 km (50 mile) major north–south urban and rural thoroughfare in Ontario, Canada, running through the Regional Municipality of Peel and Dufferin County.[1] In combination with its continuation, Simcoe County Road 42, and in turn a portion of Highway 26 north of Stayner, it is a popular non-highway route (as an alternative to Highway 10 and former Highway 24) from the Greater Toronto Area to the Georgian Triangle, in particular the tourist towns of Wasaga Beach, Collingwood, and The Blue Mountains. It is named for Toronto Pearson International Airport, which it passes at its southern terminus.
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| Peel Regional Road 7 Dufferin County Road 18 | |||||||
 Airport Road at Bresler Drive in Mississauga | |||||||
 Route of Airport Road in Peel Region and Dufferin County (blue line) | |||||||
| Namesake | Toronto Pearson International Airport | ||||||
| Maintained by | Region of Peel Dufferin County | ||||||
| Length | 81.0[1] km (50.3 mi) | ||||||
| Location | City of Mississauga City of Brampton Town of Caledon Town of Mono Mulmur Township | ||||||
| South end |  Highway 427 at the Mississauga/Toronto boundary. (Continues east as Dixon Road) | ||||||
| Major junctions |
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| North end | Mulmur-Nottawasaga Townline (Continues as Simcoe County Road 42) | ||||||
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It is designated Peel Regional Road 7 in Peel and Dufferin County Road 18 in Dufferin. In Peel, it follows the sixth Concession road east of Hurontario Street, and was numbered Sixth Line East. Despite Airport Road transitioning into Simcoe Road 42 and not reaching Stayner, the latter is commonly referred to as part of Airport Road and signage in Stayner indicates Airport Road reaching the intersection where Highway 26 makes a turn.[2]
Route description
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Airport Road begins at Highway 427 in Mississauga, initially tracing a broad curve as a continuation of Toronto's east–west Dixon Road near the main street entrance of Pearson Airport to the west. Shortly after, it passes both over and under Highway 409 and its complicated ramps that serve as the airport's freeway access. Just to the north it passes under the elevated tracks of the Union Pearson Express, an airport rail link running to Downtown Toronto, and the guideway of the Terminal Link, the airport's automated people mover. It then straightens to join the main road grid and runs northwest, passing the operations centre for Air Canada, the airport's cargo facilities, and the east end of Runway 36R, a popular location for planespotting.[3] At Derry Road, the street enters the Malton neighbourhood, dipping under the tracks hosting GO Transit's Kitchener Line commuter trains just north of the intersection. It enters Brampton, south of Steeles Avenue and then interchanges with Highway 407 (Exit 53). Airport Road continues through more industrial areas, passing under the rail spur serving the Brampton Assembly (Stellantis Canada) auto plant. At Bovaird Drive, it forms the boundaries of two residential districts; Springdale and Castlemore, and at Mayfield Road enters the largely rural Town of Caledon, although a suburban warehouse district is under development for a short distance north of Mayfield.[4]
From there, the road finally leaves urbanized areas and becomes rural, narrowing down to two lanes, soon after passing through the adjacent communities of Mono Road and Caledon East, through which the Trans-Canada Trail passes. North of Caledon East it enters the Oak Ridges Moraine and the first of the trademark hills that define much of rural Airport Road. At Highway 9, it runs through the rural community of Mono Mills as it leaves Peel Region and enters Dufferin County, where the hills become steeper as it traverses the Niagara Escarpment.[5] Airport Road is notorious for having a high collision rate in this area, and signs advise motorists of that fact.[6]
Airport Road ends at the boundary of Simcoe County where it transitions into Simcoe Road 42, which continues it into the community of Stayner (through which it is named King Street) where Highway 26 continues it in turn after turning into it from the east, forming the continuous route into the aforementioned tourist towns in the Georgian Triangle.[7]
History
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Airport Road was originally named the Mono Mills Plank Road, as it was a main historic plank road to Mono Township.[8] Originally the road's southern terminus was at what is today Eglinton Avenue, with the present realignment to tie into Dixon Road being constructed during the late 1950's and early 1960's coinciding the expansion of Pearson Airport,[9] with a short stub remaining south of Highway 401 until the mid-1980's, when it was removed due to the development of the Airport Corporate Centre.[10][11]
In Peel County (now Peel Region), Airport Road served as the north-south dividing line between the original five townships within the county; with Caledon, Chingacousy, and Toronto (not to be confused with the City of Toronto), to the west, and Albion and Toronto Gore to the east. Airport Road ceased being said divide after the county was restructured into the present regional municipality with the five townships incorporated into the three present lower-tier municipalities (Mississauga, Brampton, and Caledon) that each span its width in 1974.[12]
Public transit
editAirport Road is served by five bus routes in Mississauga and Brampton: three by Brampton Transit, two by MiWay, and one by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC). MiWay's Route 7 Airport (originating at the City Centre Transit Terminal) provides local service along the street from Pearson Airport to Westwood Square Mall. Brampton Transit's 30 Airport Road runs local from Westwood Square Mall north to Mayfield Road in Brampton, and an express route, 115 Airport Express, serves the road from the airport north to Derry Road en route to the Bramalea Terminal. Brampton Transit also operates a bus rapid transit route; 505 Züm Bovaird, along Airport Road from Viscount people mover station at the airport north to Bovaird Drive before turning west to Trinity Common. The TTC's 52 Lawrence West bus has two branches that run west from Lawrence subway station in Toronto via the airport to either McNaughton Avenue or Westwood Square Mall, with the longer "B" branch duplicating the service of the Miway 7 Airport bus along Airport Road. A separate TTC fare is charged (for cash payments)[13] west of the airport if continuing to or from Toronto.
The major routes serving the street are:
Mississauga (MiWay and Toronto Transit Commission):
| Route | Direction and Termini | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
7
|
Airport[14] | NB | To Westwood Square Mall (via Renforth station and Pearson Airport Terminal 1) |
SB | To Mississauga City Centre Transit Terminal (via Pearson Airport Terminal 1 and Renforth station) |
One TTC route, 52 Lawrence West, has two branches which continue west along Airport Road from Toronto.
| Route | Direction and Termini | Note
| |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
52B
|
Lawrence West[15] | NB | To Westwood Square Mall | Via Pearson Airport Terminals 1 and 3 |
SB | To Lawrence subway station (via Pearson Airport Terminals 1 and 3) |
Extra cash fare required if continuing to/from Toronto |
52D
|
To McNaughton Avenue / Victory Crescent | ||||||
Brampton (Brampton Transit):
| Route | Direction and Termini | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
30
|
Airport Road[16] | NB | To Mayfield Road (or AMB Distribution Centre limited service only) |
SB | To Westwood Square Mall |
115
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Airport Express[16] | NB | To Bramalea Terminal (via Derry and Bramalea Roads) | SB | To Pearson Airport Terminal 1 |
505A
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Züm Bovaird | NB | To Trinity Common Terminal (via Bovaird Drive) | SB | To Pearson Airport Viscount Station |
References
edit- ^ a b "Airport Rd. route and length". Google Maps.
- ^ "Directional signage in Stayner pointing to Airport Road". Retrieved July 29, 2024.
- ^ "South end of Airport Rd in the vicinity of Pearson Airport". Google Maps.
- ^ "Airport Rd. in the vicinity of Mayfield Rd". Google Maps.
- ^ "Hilly stretch of Airport Rd. in Dufferin County". Google Maps.
- ^ "Photo of sign warning of high collision rate". Retrieved July 31, 2024.
- ^ "Highway 26 (King St.) in Stayner, looking south to the straight continuation of Simcoe Rd. 42". Google Maps.
- ^ Archives, Region of Peel (June 30, 2016). "From mud to pavement: the early history of Peel roadways as told by our records".
- ^ "1960 aerial photo of new Airport Rd. diversion, with the original 6th Line road resuming south of the construction to expand Pearson Airport". City of Toronto Archives (via Eloquent Systems Inc.). Retrieved August 8, 2024.
- ^ "1981 aerial photo of the remaining stub of 6th Line (bottom of photo, right-of-centre)". City of Toronto Archives (via Eloquent Systems Inc.). Retrieved August 8, 2024.
- ^ "1987 aerial photo of the development of the Airport Corporate Centre with the now-closed stub of 6th Line (near top of photo, left-of-centre)". City of Toronto Archives (via Eloquent Systems Inc.). Retrieved August 8, 2024.
- ^ Archives, Region of Peel (June 30, 2016). "The History of Peel Region, Ontario, Canada".
- ^ "Ontario's One Fare Program: Frequently Asked Questions". Toronto Transit Commission. Retrieved February 27, 2024.
- ^ "7 Airport" (PDF). MiWay Route Maps. City of Mississauga. October 28, 2019. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ "52 Lawrence West". Toronto Transit Commission. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ a b "Schedules and Maps: Routes Operating". City of Brampton. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
