Air Canada is becoming the first Canadian airline to extend its network with buses replacing short-haul flights to two cities in the Toronto region, following a system used by several U.S. airlines.
Passengers at Hamilton and Kitchener, Ontario will be able to check into their flights at local airports, check their bags, and then travel by luxury coach directly to Toronto’s Pearson Airport for their longer-haul flights; arriving passengers for the two towns will have the option going the other way.
The buses, operated in Air Canada colors and with ‘flight numbers’ of their own will be operated by Landline, which operates similar services for United at Denver, American at Philadelphia and Sun Country at Minneapolis.
Baggage is handled directly between the bus and plane without passenger involvement, but passengers arriving by bus at Toronto will be dropped landside and have to go through security. Passengers arriving at Toronto for Hamilton or Kitchener will be picked up airside by the bus. Only at Philadelphia do bus passengers arrive airside, although that could be expanded in future.
