The pedestrian tunnel to Toronto’s Billy Bishop airport won’t open until late spring, as construction is taking longer than expected.

The $82.5-million project, begun in March 2012, is designed to link the mainland with the island airport, ending the need to wait for the ferry to catch a flight.

It will take less than six minutes to walk the tunnel, which spans 168 metres, or almost the length of two football fields. The distance from the mainland entrance to the island atrium is about 260 metres.

“Factors like the brutally cold winter certainly played a role, but ultimately the work is just taking longer to complete than expected,” said Deborah Wilson, a spokeswoman for PortsToronto, which was previously known as the Toronto Port Authority.

“It is a one-of-kind infrastructure project, so there is no time template,” she said, adding estimates were for 24 to 36 months.

While officials had initially suggested the tunnel could open by last summer, last year’s extreme winter slowed digging work, pushing the opening date into the winter 2014-2015.

Wilson compared it to building a house or doing home renovations, adding its contractor PCL hasn’t committed to a specific date yet.

“The work takes as long as it takes,” she said. “It’s a complicated project. The scope is massive.”

Wilson said the price tag won’t change, adding the public-private partnership is funded by $20 airport improvement fees paid by passengers, not from tax dollars.

The moving sidewalks under the Western Gap are in place as are the escalators — which came in 18 segments — leading up to the airport’s atrium. The crane on the island has been removed, and work is under way now to seal the tunnel.

The concrete shafts for six elevators on the airport’s mainland side are in, and work on installing the elevators can begin.

“We are definitely making great progress. We’re not about to rush the work or compromise the quality of the work,” Wilson said.

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Brad Cicero, spokesman for Porter Airlines, which is the main user at the airport, said the airline expected the tunnel to be ready in the first half of the year.

“Having it open for the busy summer travel period will be good timing,” he said in an email.