BC’s ministry of transportation and infrastructure launched its public consultation process about the future of coastal ferry service Monday morning, October 29. The exercise, designed to inform decisions about service adjustments, includes 38 public meetings in 30 communities, a discussion guide and feedback form and website.
There is one meeting in Powell River and another one on Texada Island. The meeting in Powell River is scheduled from 6 to 9 pm on Monday, November 19 in Town Centre Hotel. Officials are also holding a small group meeting from 1 to 3 pm on the same day in the same location.
The Texada meeting takes place from 6 to 9 pm on Wednesday, December 5 at Texada Island Community Hall.
According to the ministry, the two largest operating expenses for BC Ferries are fuel and labour. The total amount of government funding is currently more than $180 million, $150 million from the province and $30 million from the federal government. The province is providing an additional $79.5 million over the next four years.
Declining ridership and rising costs resulted in a loss of more than $16 million in the last fiscal year. The BC Ferry Commissioner noted in his recent report that, without changes, increasing operational costs and the ongoing need to replace aging vessels could drive funding shortfalls to $56 million a year within the next five years.
BC Ferries has committed to achieving $15 million in cost reductions. The province is looking at finding $26 million in savings to 2016.
The ministry has supplied detailed information about routes in the discussion guide. It is asking residents to consider service reductions on routes that experience: significant annual financial shortfalls before taxpayer contributions; low annual utilization, such as less than 55 per cent per year; and low round-trip utilizations, such as less than 20 per cent.
The three routes that service Powell River—Saltery Bay-Earls Cove, Powell River-Comox, and Powell River-Texada Island—fall well below those numbers.
Saltery Bay-Earls Cove has an annual utilization rate of 28 per cent and an annual shortfall of $11.73 million.
Powell River-Comox has an annual utilization rate of 35.2 per cent and a $11.72-million shortfall.
Powell River-Texada has an annual utilization rate of 27.5 per cent and a $7.05-million shortfall.
Mary Polak, minister of transportation and infrastructure, said the province has “elevated the discussion to a place of principles so that we have BC Ferries users, communities, taxpayers, all reflecting on the principles that should form the foundation for the decisions that are affecting routes and the operations of them.”
Polak also said she hears from British Columbians around the province that the taxpayer has a role in supporting a service for people who live in coastal communities. “The question for taxpayers is to what extent should that contribution increase, decrease? What should it look like?” she said. “This is getting at the overarching principles and then, subsequent to that, it will inform our decisions around the way we address routes.”
The consultation will ask residents if they support cable ferries, passenger-only service, bridges, property-tax increases or fuel-tax hikes.
Mike Corrigan, president and CEO of BC Ferries, said the company will have technical people available to answer questions, “but this is clearly a government policy issue.”
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