The Toronto Islands are getting another ferry

Traffic to and from the Toronto Islands is is much lighter this summer, but that's not stopping the folks who run Centre Island's amusement park from securing a new ferry to transport folks across the harbour.

Currently called the The Dartmouth III, the decommissioned former Halifax Transit ferry will be retrofitted before it starts making its way to Toronto as soon as next Friday, CBC reports.

The makeover includes a rebuild of the boat's twin engines as well as its generators, a new paint job and a recertification.

Once it's good to go, the ferry will journey from Sambro, Nova Scotia to Halifax, then through the Strait of Canso to the coasts of New Brunswick and Quebec. The final stretch will be floating through the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario into Toronto Harbour.

The ferry's top speed is 13 kilometres per hour, so the voyage will take about two weeks, well before the end of summer, at which point it will be taking folks to Centre Island.

This ferry will be privately operated (our current fleet the domain of the city's Parks, Forestry and Recreation Division) and will act an addition to the city's service to Centre Island.