Ferry service to the upper Sunshine Coast may have returned to normal after six days of disrupted service during the height of tourist season, but the sting continues to be felt.
Before that sting fades, Powell River Regional District board took the opportunity to share its displeasure with Premier Christy Clark. In a July 29 letter, Electoral Area A director and board chair Patrick Brabazon described the week “an utter debacle” and “quite beyond belief.”
“An utter debacle, I don’t think there’s any other way to describe it,” said Brabazon at the regional district board meeting on Thursday July 28. “We needed to tell the premier we’re not happy. The extremely negative social and economic impact on this community will be felt for a long time.”
Electoral Area D director Sandy McCormick said she was cautious about sending a letter that, while pointing out a problem, did not provide any solutions. She added that she would like to see BC Ferries offer compensation to the community in the form of reduced fares or other travel incentives for those caught in the long lines.
“Tourism is an important industry,” said McCormick. “We can’t afford to turn all those people away.”
She said lines of ferry traffic similar to what occurred at Earls Cove and Saltery Bay on the July 23 weekend also happened on Texada Island.
“The gas station ran out of gas and the lineups were practically down to Van Anda waiting for the ferry to get off the island,” she said.
With the Queen of Burnaby back on its route between Powell River and Comox, BC Ferries said it understood the schedule changes and service disruptions were “not ideal” but they were pleased to get the ship back into regular service in time for the BC Day long weekend.
“We would like to thank customers and the communities affected by this temporary service disruption for their patience while this critical repair was carried out,” stated BC Ferries vice-president Mark Collins in a media release.
Brabazon, also a member of the Northern Sunshine Coast Ferry Advisory Committee, said the group collected 33 pages of stories from those affected by the service disruption.
While it is understandable to have to repair vessels when they break, what is not is when those repairs result in reduced schedules and service for all of Powell River’s ferry routes, he said.
Municipal director Russell Brewer said he could not separate the issue from the fact that BC Ferries sold its backup vessel, Queen of Chilliwack, before new vessels were brought into service.
“The government and BC Ferries need to be held accountable for that,” said Brewer.
North Island MLA Claire Trevena tried again to do that on Friday, July 29, during the provincial legislature’s special summer session when she asked why the ship was sold, this time to Shirley Bond, minister of jobs, tourism and skills training. Bond responded that government recognizes the “importance of the connection between transportation opportunities and tourism,” and then went on to say BC has seen record numbers of international tourists this year. After a supplemental question from Trevena, Bond conceded that “it was a very difficult decision to deal with the Queen of Chilliwack,” and that the government was committed to “ensuring BC Ferries is sustainable.”
Brabazon said BC Ferries also needs to be held accountable for designating MV Quinitsa a relief vessel, but not making sure it had the necessary crew to operate effectively on the route, a factor in record lines of backed-up travellers.
“These are the sort of planning considerations we would expect from any transportation company,” said Brabazon, “and are simply sound and practical business sense, whether private corporation or public monopoly.”
