Accessibility Takes Flight at Toronto Pearson International Airport
At Canada’s busiest airport, nearly 50 million passengers pass through its famed halls each year. Toronto Pearson International Airport (Toronto Pearson) is host to hundreds of flights per day, shuttling passengers to over 150 cities worldwide.
With this in mind, Toronto Pearson set out to make its airport as accessible as possible, allowing everyone to travel independently and easily through the space. In 2024, Toronto Pearson achieved Rick Hansen Foundation Accessibility CertificationTM Gold.
“This is one piece of a broader journey of making Toronto Pearson the most accessible airport in the world,” Kurush Minocher, Greater Toronto Airport Authority's Executive Director of Customer Experience and Airline Relations, said. “We wanted to understand from the community the best practices and the steps that we needed to take with them to make Toronto Pearson as accessible as possible. RHFAC was one way to assess and evaluate our improvement and understand where we are.”
Achieving RHFAC Gold
To achieve RHFAC Gold, a site must score 80% or higher. For Toronto Pearson, terminal 1 achieved 85% and terminal 3 achieved 83%.
“It was welcoming to see just how thorough the process was,” Kurush noted. “It was a wonderful exercise for us. It highlighted gaps that exist that we can now work through.”
According to Kurush, the team improving access across the airport has been working on improving independent travel paths through the airport, allowing those who wish to, to navigate the space easily.
Some elements that have been included in the airport to facilitate independent travel include:
Hearing loops to aid those with hearing aids and cochlear implants;
Improved accessible kiosks throughout the facilities, from the parkade through check-in and in Canada Customs, allowing for more passengers to use them; and
Partnership with Canadian Hearing Services to provide hearing loops to aid those with hearing aids and cochlear implants, and greetings in ASL and LSQ on screens throughout the terminals to welcome Deaf travellers.
Continuing the Accessibility Journey
Toronto Pearson has received both positive and constructive feedback so far on the accessibility features. According to Kurush, both types of feedback are invaluable; it is nice to see that user experience has improved, and knowing where they can still make it stronger enables Toronto Pearson to progress further.
For example, Toronto Pearson is now trialing a sensory space that would provide a calm environment following the check-in and security process, helping to mitigate the potentially overwhelming effects of bright lights, sounds from the baggage system, and extensive signage.
All their work incorporates the voices of those with lived experience to guide upgrades and improvements. An example of this is working with guide dog organizations to ensure staff and the accessibility features work for those with a service animal. The goal is that each improvement creates a more accessible experience for passengers.
“Accessibility for Toronto Pearson is creating a welcoming space where anyone can enjoy the exhilaration of travel,” Kurush noted. “Whether that’s connecting with family or heading to a beach or attending a work conference – it's about access for everyone.”
In 2023, Toronto Pearson released a three-year accessibility plan, and just weeks ago released their one-year progress update to provide visibility into the work they are doing.
“This is a journey for us and receiving the Gold rating is a testament to where we are today,” Kurush said. “But at the end of the day, it's a milestone in our journey. We want to see many more milestones as we continue. It's a long runway of activity to create an airport that is accessible and barrier free.”
