Compiled by James Bow
From the archive at Mike’s Transit Stop

February 15, 2000

The TTC commissions a new route to operate express service Kipling Station and Pearson International Airport (Terminals 2 and 3). Service operates during the peak periods and midday from Monday to Friday. Fully accessible buses serve bus stops only at Kipling Station, Dundas Street/The East Mall, and at the two airport terminals. At Kipling Station, the route uses the same bus bay used by the 30 LAMBTON and 191 HIGHWAY 27 EXPRESS routes. Regular TTC fares are charged for this service, which operates entirely within the Toronto fare zone. (See PDF of the service announcement)

Buses run northbound from Kipling Station, north on Aukland Road, west on Dundas Street, north on Highway 427, and west into Pearson Airport. Buses serve the arrivals level at Terminal 3 and then the arrivals level at Terminal 2. Southbound, buses run from from Terminal 2, east and south on Highway 427, east on Dundas Street, and south on Aukland Drive to Kipling Station. The first bus is scheduled to leave Kipling station at 5:40 a.m. and Pearson Airport at 6:00 a.m., while the last bus is scheduled to leave Pearson Airport at 6:45 p.m. and Kipling station at 7:10 p.m.

The name, Airport Rocket, is chosen by the TTC based on submissions by fans. Fan Mike Binetti is honoured for his suggestion at a dedication ceremony. “Rocket” would be applied to other TTC express routes including 191 HIGHWAY 27 ROCKET, 193 EXHIBITION ROCKET, 194 ZOO ROCKET and 196 YORK UNIVERSITY ROCKET.

The service runs in competition with coach shuttles operated to Islington, Yorkdale and York Mills stations by Pacific Western. The private carrier complains bitterly, and cancels these runs effective Monday, November 20.

This route is utilized using New Flyer D40LF buses operated out of Old Eglinton Garage.

November 20, 2000

Due to the popularity of this route, and additional funding by the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, service is expanded to include evenings, weekends and holidays. Service now operates from approximately 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m., Monday to Saturday, and from approximately 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. on Sundays. Buses operate every 45 minutes.

September 2, 2001

Afternoon service increased from 45 minute intervals to 22 minutes, 30 seconds.

November 25, 2001

Early evening service increased from 45 minute intervals to 22 minutes, 30 seconds.

March 31, 2002

The Old Eglinton Garage is closed and this route was transferred over to New Eglinton Garage on Comstock Road.

February 16, 2003

Service increased from 45 minutes to 40 minutes during the morning peak period and late evenings, and from 22 minutes, 30 seconds to 20 minutes during Monday to Friday midddays and afternoon peak periods and during weekends and holidays.

New night service provided every thirty minutes by a branch of the 300 BLOOR-DANFORTH NIGHT route. Every second bus on this route is extended to Pearson Airport Terminals 2 and 3 from the existing route via west on Bloor Street, north on The West Mall, east on Burnhamthorpe Road, north on Highway 427, west on airport internal roads to Terminal 3, then east on airport internal roads to Terminal 2. Returning, buses travel from Terminal 2, south on Highway 427, exit at Burnhamthorpe Road, east on Burnhamthorpe Road, south on The East Mall, east Bloor Street back to the route.

The TTC lists approximate departure times as follows:

From Kipling Station (every day of the week, except *Monday-Saturday only):

192 Airport Rocket: *5:20 a.m., *6:00 a.m., *6:40 a.m., *7:20 a.m., 8:00 a.m., 8:40 a.m., 9:20 a.m., 10:00 a.m., 10:40 a.m. 11:20 a.m., then 12:00 noon, 12:20 p.m., 12:40 p.m. and every 20 minutes at the same three times each hour until 10:40 p.m., then 11:20 p.m., 12:00 midnight, 12:40 a.m., 1:20 a.m., and 2:00 a.m.

Buses depart Terminal 3 approximately 12 minutes after departing Kipling Station, and depart Terminal 2 approximately three minutes after departing Terminal 3.

Approximate westbound departure times

From Kipling Avenue and Dundas Street (every day of the week, except *Sunday only):

300A Bloor-Danforth: 2:36 a.m., 3:02 a.m., 3:32 a.m., 4:02 a.m., 4:32 a.m., 5:02 a.m., *5:32 a.m., *6:04 a.m., *6:34 a.m.; *7:04 a.m., *7:34 a.m., *8:04 a.m.

June 22, 2003 to August 31, 2003

Due to seasonal increase in travel to the airport, morning service on 192 AIRPORT ROCKET increased from 40 minute intervals to 20 minutes.

Early April 2004

Due to the opening of the new Terminal 1 building, 192 AIRPORT ROCKET rerouted to serve the new facility, with no change to service levels or departure times. Buses serve the Departures level of the new Terminal 1, the Arrivals level of Terminal 2, and the Departures level of Terminal 3. Service to the Departures level of the new Terminal 1 is temporary, and will later move to the ground level, when terminal construction is complete.

May 9, 2004 to September 7, 2004

Seasonal service increase in the morning period, from 40 minute intervals to 20 minute intervals.

November 21, 2004

Operations switched over from Eglinton Garage to Queensway Garage.

January 2, 2005

Service increased to reduce crowding and to accommodate increasing ridership. Morning service improved from every 40 minutes to every 20 minutes. Afternoon and evening service improved from every 20 minutes to every 15 minutes.

November 20, 2005

Service will be increased to reduce crowding. Service improved from every 15 minutes to every 10 minutes Monday to Friday during the early afternoon and evenings as well weekend afternoon and evenings. Service further improved to 12 minutes during the afternoon peak period on Monday to Friday and to 15 minutes on Saturday mornings.

September 16 or 26, 2009 (Date Uncertain)

According to some reports, a local supervisor ordered this route be changed so as to no longer operate on Highway 427, citing safety concerns about standing passengers and loose luggage. Buses now take at least fifteen minutes longer to run from Kipling station to the Airport, operating via Auckland, Dundas, East Mall Crescent, the East Mall, Eglinton, Renforth and Silver Dart, reversing this route on its return. This change was not communicated to transit commissioners, who only heard about this diversion after receiving complaints from members of the public. An investigation begins to assess why the change was made, and how best to reverse it.

November 2, 2009

Buses return to Highway 427, operating on a revised route to reduce the number of lane changes. Northbound buses operate from Kipling station via Auckland, Dundas, Highway 427, Highway 27 to Dixon Road before heading west on Dixon Road and Airport Road, entering the airport and using the airport’s internal roads to access the arrivals level of Terminal 3 and the ground level of Terminal 1. Buses return via the old route of Highway 427 and Dundas Street to Kipling station. The new route adds four minutes travel time to the northbound service. The TTC adds two additional buses to the service to compensate for the increased travel time and to increase frequency, reducing the number of standees aboard.

December 23, 2012

A new stop is added to the 192 AIRPORT ROCKET route on its northbound trip at Jetliner Road, south of Airport Road. Buses serve this stop after making the left-turn from Airport Road onto Jetliner Road.

February 17, 2013

Service revised to shorten travel times to and from the airport. Northbound buses now travel from Kipling station via west along St. Alban’s, north on Aukland, west on Dundas, north on Highway 427 and northwest along Airport Road to Toronto Pearson International Airport. Within the airport, buses make stops at Jetliner Road at Airport Road, then at the Airport Roadway at Jetliner Road, then at the ground level of Terminal 1, and then at the arrivals level of Terminal 3. Buses run express between Kipling station and the airport, picking up passengers only at the intersection of Dundas and East Mall. This change eliminates the portion of the route on Highway 27 and Dixon Road.

Possibly coincident with this change, the TTC replaces four seats across from the rear door of ten buses with luggage racks. This likely removes the concerns over loose luggage that caused the TTC to reroute the service over the East Mall, and then over Highway 27 back in 2009.

September 6, 2015

Service increased on weekend and holiday afternoons so that buses operate throughout the route at intervals of 10 minutes or better whenever the subway is open.

Saturday, November 17, 2018

Last day of operation. The following day, service is renumbered and renamed 900 AIRPORT EXPRESS, bringing the service in line with the TTC’s re-branding of its express bus operations.

192 Airport Rocket Image Archive

	An official TTC map of 192 AIRPORT ROCKET operations, effective June 2011.
	In January 2015, the TTC embarked on an initiative to promote its 192 AIRPORT ROCKET. The route was placed on the TTC's subway maps like a rapid transit line, and the buses that plied the route were given a special wrap and paint scheme. TTC Orion VII bus #8005 lays over at Kipling station in its AIRPORT ROCKET wrap while unwrapped TTC Orion VII bus #8001 heads out to the airport on a snowy afternoon on January 29, 2015. James Bow took this photo.
	TTC Orion VII bus #8002 is shown here heading east on Dundas Street on the 192 AIRPORT ROCKET run to Kipling station on October 1, 2015. It is a wrap for the airport service. Photo by Edward Brain.
	On a busy afternoon rush hour at Kipling station (on April 23, 2013), TTC Orion VII bus #8011 in service on 192 AIRPORT ROCKET pulls out of the bus terminal, while two other Orion VIIs, in service on 45E KIPLING EXPRESS, pull in. Photo by James Bow.
	This photograph, taken by Roman Fomin on January 5, 2012, shows Airport Rocket (Orion V 8016) leaving Kipling Station. In total, there were 4 buses in service on this route during morning peak on this day, according to TTC Service Summary.