Residents in ferry-dependent communities may have a sinking feeling after the provincial government’s response to a comprehensive report by the BC Ferry Commissioner. The government tabled legislation last week that provides some life support for a deteriorating system, but essentially leaves the Coastal Ferry Act intact.
In his report released last January, the commissioner found that ferry fares have reached a “tipping point of affordability” and that “all of the principle stakeholders will need to be part of the solution.”
Blair Lekstrom, minister of transportation and infrastructure, responded to that by announcing the government will inject $79.5 million more into the ferry system over the next four years. BC Ferries has to find $15 million through efficiencies and coastal communities have to realize $30 million in service cuts. Lekstrom noted the government will focus on routes that are running at below 30 per cent utilization.
The government will consult with communities, Lekstrom also said, before any changes are made. But one of the outstanding questions remaining in the wake of the government’s announcement is how those consultations will unfold.
Powell River and Texada Island residents should be prepared to participate in the discussions and for changes to service. Two routes fall below the 30 per cent utilization threshold: Powell River-Texada, at 26.3 per cent, and Saltery Bay-Earls Cove, at 27.5 per cent.
Since 2003, fare increases have eroded ridership, hurt coastal economies and threatened the sustainability of BC Ferries itself. Traffic on the three routes servicing Powell River continues to fall.
The commissioner recommended limiting price increases to the rate of inflation, but the government has currently capped ferry fare increases at 4.15 per cent a year.
After the ferry commissioner’s report in January, the FACC (Ferry Advisory Committee Chairs) noted that any government contribution has to be enough to bring fares back from the tipping point. That would require an initial fare rollback, according to FACC, to create a sustainable baseline for inflation-indexed increases. That didn’t happen in this round of ferry act changes.
There are many demands on provincial coffers, but adequate support for ferries is critical economic investment. Economic growth depends on solid transportation infrastructure and adequate ferry support is vital for the sustainability of essential coastal transportation.
