If BC Ferries is going to continue to be financially viable, wide-ranging actions by government, stakeholders and ferry users are needed, BC Ferry Commissioner Gordon Macatee concluded in a review of the Coastal Ferry Act. In all, he had 24 recommendations after the government-ordered review which took him to 27 communities and hearing from about 2,000 people.
Key to his report is his statement that current ferry fares and the proposed increases have reached the tipping point of affordability. He said the immediate challenge is to reverse the declines in ridership, make ferry travel more affordable, restore the company to financial viability and improve overall accountability.
The provincial government should back away from expecting the system to be supported by users, Macatee suggested, and should increase its subsidy to the company. He called for limiting future price cap increases to the rate of inflation and removing the ban on cross-subsidization among route groups.
Macatee’s report asks the provincial government to take the lead in creating a long-term vision for the future of the ferry service, which encompasses 35 vessels serving 25 routes. He said there were seven important moving parts to ferry service: fares, ridership, service levels, the capital spending plan, reduced costs, new sources of revenue and subsidies. The solution lies in a combination of those factors.
Ferry users will have to accept change, along with the provincial government and the company. Macatee concluded that users who want affordable fares will have to accept a reduction in service levels through the elimination of underused sailings. Some vessels sail with more crew members than passengers at times.
Macatee’s report makes it clear that change is necessary, both for BC Ferries’ financial sustainability and for the economic well-being of ferry-dependent communities. While it’s up to the government to accept, or reject, Macatee’s recommendations and start making changes, Powell River and Texada Island residents should accept that service levels may be reduced.
Change is difficult and in the past any minor change in ferry schedules led to heated discussions and numerous complaints. If stakeholders work together, change that benefits all will be possible, but users in ferry-dependent communities will have to keep the big picture in mind as well as the micro-picture of the number of sailings a day and when they sail. Conversely, ferry management and provincial officials will have to keep the needs of residents in ferry-dependent communities in focus as they juggle Macatee’s seven important moving parts.
