Toronto Pearson International Airport – Terminal 1

Toronto Pearson International Airport
Toronto Pearson International Airport – Terminal 1
  • Client Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA)
  • Expertise Airports
  • Region North America
  • Location Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Project Facts
  • Status Construction Complete
  • Completion Year 2014
  • Design Finish Year 2000
  • Size Building Gross Area: 4,000,000 square feet
  • Gates 77
  • Collaborators
    Cini-Little International, Inc. Hh Angus Rowan Williams Davies & Irwin Inc. (RWDI) Yolles Partnership Inc. Adamson Associates Architects (Toronto) BNP Associates Inc. H.M. Brandston & Partners Leber Rubes Inc. Arup - New York Pentagram Hatch Mott Macdonald Moshe Safdie And Associates Inc. Napa Mitchell Partnership, Inc., The Smith & Anderson Mulvey & Banani International Inc. Hanscomb Ltd. Lock Mackinnon Domingo Gibson & Associates Ltd. Greater Toronto Airport Groundside Association Unison Consulting Architectura Pinchin Environmental Brook Van Dalen & Associates Limited Trow Consulting Engineers, Ltd. Entro
Project Facts
  • Status Construction Complete
  • Completion Year 2014
  • Design Finish Year 2000
  • Size Building Gross Area: 4,000,000 square feet
  • Gates 77
  • Collaborators
    Cini-Little International, Inc. Hh Angus Rowan Williams Davies & Irwin Inc. (RWDI) Yolles Partnership Inc. Adamson Associates Architects (Toronto) BNP Associates Inc. H.M. Brandston & Partners Leber Rubes Inc. Arup - New York Pentagram Hatch Mott Macdonald Moshe Safdie And Associates Inc. Napa Mitchell Partnership, Inc., The Smith & Anderson Mulvey & Banani International Inc. Hanscomb Ltd. Lock Mackinnon Domingo Gibson & Associates Ltd. Greater Toronto Airport Groundside Association Unison Consulting Architectura Pinchin Environmental Brook Van Dalen & Associates Limited Trow Consulting Engineers, Ltd. Entro

Airports can be the most exciting of spaces, the embodiment of our collective wanderlust. And yet, as most airports have grown piecemeal in response to increased demand and security needs, they are often cramped and confused—falling far short of their potential. Toronto’s Pearson Airport found itself skirting the latter category. It is expected to handle more than 29 million passengers by 2015, far exceeding the capacity of its two existing terminals. As a result, it engaged SOM, in conjunction with Adamson Associates and Moshe Safdie, to design a new main terminal as well as a phased redevelopment plan for Pearson’s airfield, maintenance, and cargo facilities.

A crescent-shaped terminal forms the project’s centerpiece, containing ticketing and baggage claim areas, while four concourses extending from the hub will accommodate retail shops and 77 gates. Natural light and views guide travelers through each space. Linear skylights aligned between ticketing islands help orient departing passengers and provide visual rhythm within the curving departure hall. After depositing their luggage, travellers cross over glass-floored bridges and then on to the gates, passing through a series of concrete buttresses that support the hall’s wing-like roof. An open call for artists’ work resulted in bright, colorful pieces by Sol Lewitt, Jonathan Borofsky, Ingo Maurer, Katherina Grosse, and others.