BC Ferries will implement a 1.5 per cent fuel surcharge on June 1, 2019, due to current fuel market conditions.
According to a media release, the company closely monitors the cost of fuel and applies a rebate or surcharge, or neither, under a regulatory process that is independent of fares.
The following is an example of what a 1.5 per cent fuel surcharge will be: 25 cents for an adult and 85 cents for a vehicle on the Metro Vancouver-Vancouver Island routes, and 15 cents for an adult and 45 cents for a vehicle on a variety of inter-island routes.
Over the past 15 years, BC Ferries has been using a fuel rebate/surcharge mechanism to manage the volatility in the price of fuel. When fuel prices are lower, BC Ferries passes lower fuel prices on to customers through a fuel rebate. When fuel prices are higher, BC Ferries charges a fuel surcharge specifically designed to cover the additional cost of fuel. There have also been periods with neither. The company states it does not benefit financially from surcharges or rebates.
“We now have five vessels operating on liquefied natural gas, a cleaner and less expensive fuel source than the ultra-low sulphur diesel we use for our other vessels,” said BC Ferries president and CEO Mark Collins. “LNG is approximately 50 per cent less expensive than diesel, and its use results in fuel savings that are passed on to our customers.”
Caring for the environment, coupled with travel affordability are top priorities for BC Ferries, according to the release.
“Despite fuel switching and other initiatives to burn fuel more efficiently, a fuel surcharge is now necessary; fuel is our second largest expense,” said Collins. “We know that the affordability of travel is important to our customers, and we will continue to take measures to reduce our fuel consumption further through the introduction of diesel electric battery hybrid vessels.”
For information regarding the cost of ferry travel, go to bcferries.com.
