From The Bulletin, February 12, 2011:

http://www.thebulletin.ca/cbulletin/content.jsp?sid=13441700001077298275651509443&ctid=1000136&cnid=1002722

Harper's Island airport tunnel boondoggle may fly

by Brian Iler

On Feb. 10, a letter from Transport Canada addressed to CommunityAIR  (CAIR) and other waterfront stakeholders advised:

“I am writing to inform you that the Government of Canada has initiated a process to amend the current Toronto Port Authority Regulations to expressly allow for the construction of a pedestrian tunnel from mainland Toronto to the [Island] airport.

“The Toronto Port Authority Regulations were enacted in May 2005 and prohibit the Toronto Port Authority (TPA) from using, or authorizing or permitting another person to use the port to build a bridge or similar fixed link between the mainland of the City of Toronto and the Toronto Island.”

This initiative confirms what CommunityAIR has maintained ever since the TPA’s tunnel was first proposed: that it is prohibited by the Regulation under the Canada Marine Act that stopped the bridge in 2005.

Instead of recognizing that this proposed tunnel is a complete waste of scarce public resources, the Harper government now is moving to legalize something that was clearly illegal.

The tunnel is a huge example of the “gravy train” – or perhaps more appropriately here, the “gravy plane” – where some (now) $48 million or more in public assets are proposed to be applied for the benefit of a private business. This, when the City of Toronto is desperately seeking money to avoid cuts in service.

The tunnel was originally proposed for federal government infrastructure funding, but the Harper government then realized it was a serious waste of public funds, and refused funding.

The TPA has always maintained that the prohibition of a bridge or similar fixed link did not prohibit its tunnel fantasy: Typical is this, from its FAQ for the tunnel environmental assessment:

Question: Is this proposed pedestrian tunnel in violation of the Canada Marine Act prohibiting a “bridge or similar fixed link” to the island airport? Will the tunnel be used for automobiles?

Answer: The project would comply with law, including the Canada Marine Act and Toronto Port Authority Regulation SOR/2005-120, which was made under the Canada Marine Act. This regulation prohibits a bridge or similar fixed link. The proposed project is not a bridge or similar fixed link, including because it would involve tunnel access through the existing bedrock for pedestrians (no automobiles).

A flimsy answer, now confirmed as such. As one of CAIR’s bloggers said last year: We should donate a dictionary to the TPA. What is a "fixed" link?

Fixed – secured, placed, immobile

How can a tunnel not be secured, placed, immobile? So how can it not be a "fixed" link?

The TPA said it is a "tunnel" so it is not a "fixed" link—a new definition of the word "fixed."