Replacement vessels, fare increases and home porting were on the agenda when BC ministry of transportation and infrastructure representatives recently met with the Northern Sunshine Coast Ferry Advisory Committee and other community representatives.
The meeting, which was closed to the media, covered many of the same issues that were discussed during community consultations in 2005 regarding vessel replacement and service changes. The Queen of Burnaby and the North Island Princess were slated for replacement at the time but life extension work means they are now good until around 2015.
Bill Cripps, committee chair, said members wanted to have the meeting to ensure that, as six years have passed since the last consultation, their views are still known by the ministry. Among other issues the committee is advocating for the Powell River/Comox vessel to be ported in Westview so that Powell River residents can go over to Vancouver Island on the first sailing and back on the last, maximizing their visit and increasing commercial possibilities.
Options were also discussed for replacing the vessels, including having two medium-sized ships rather than one large and one small, or having one large vessel that provides Texada Island service at the same time as travelling between Comox and Westview. As in 2005 the committee supported an option that sees the ships replaced with similar-sized vessels and the transportation routes staying the same.
Represented at the meeting were Powell River Regional District Board, School District 47, City of Powell River, Tla’Amin (Sliammon) First Nation, Powell River Chamber of Commerce, Vancouver Coastal Health and others. Participants engaged in an open discussion to provide the ministry with different points of view on what they could do for the community.
“I think it was a very productive discussion,” said Chris McNaughton, city councillor and appointed committee member. “It was a good exchange. The ministry officials are equipped with community input to help in discussion with BC Ferries.”
In 2012 the province will enter into a new four-year contract with BC Ferries, at which time service levels will be discussed and the provincial government will decide how much money it is willing to give the subsidized private corporation.
Kevin Richter, assistant deputy minister, noted that the timing was right to listen to concerns and hear what the community is thinking. “It was a meeting where there was a lot of frank discussion, a lot of open discussion and I found it very productive.”
Richter said he will take the information back to the ministry so that it can be taken into consideration when making decisions relating to BC Ferries. Richter said he knows that Powell River residents want similar levels of service, similar-sized vessels for replacement, that they want home porting and they are concerned over increasing fares.
“It was very worthwhile from my point of view,” said Cripps, who went on to say he felt optimistic about the meeting’s outcome.
Richter wouldn’t go so far as to state that rising fares are causing lower ridership, something which BC Ferries denies, but did say it could be a contributing factor among “a whole menu of items.” Richter pointed to larger economic factors related to the recession as the overall cause.
