Wikipedia

BC Ferries

British Columbia Ferry Services Inc.,operating asBC Ferries(BCF), is a former provincialCrown corporation,now operating as an independently managed,publicly ownedCanadian company. BC Ferries provides all major passenger and vehicle ferry services for coastal and island communities in theCanadian provinceofBritish Columbia.Set up in 1960 to provide a similar service to that provided by theBlack Ball Lineand theCanadian Pacific Railway,which were affected byjob actionat the time, BC Ferries has become the largest passenger ferry line inNorth America,[2]operating a fleet of 41 vessels with a total passenger and crew capacity of over 27,000, serving 47 locations on the B.C. coast.

British Columbia Ferry Services Inc.
BC Ferries
Company typeOrganized as a privately held company, with the provincial Crown as sole shareholder
IndustryTransportation
FoundedVictoria, British Columbia(June 15, 1960)
HeadquartersVictoria, British Columbia,Canada
Key people
Joy MacPhail,Chair
Nicolas Jimenez, President & CEO
ProductsFerry service
RevenueIncreaseC$769.5 million (2023)[1]
Increase(7.070) million (2023)[1]
DecreaseC$1.842 million (2021)[1]
OwnerBC Ferry Authority(Government of British Columbia)
Number of employees
4,500 (2017)
Websitewww.bcferries.comEdit this at Wikidata

The federal and provincial governments subsidize BC Ferries to provide agreed service levels on essential links between the BC mainland, coastal islands, and parts of the mainland without road access. The inland ferries operating on British Columbia's rivers and lakes are not run by BC Ferries. The responsibility for their provision rests with theBritish Columbia Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure,which contracts operation to variousprivate sectorcompanies.

Structure

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At its inception, BC Ferries was a division of the British Columbia Toll Highways and Bridges Authority, a provincial Crown corporation. Through successive reorganizations, it evolved into the British Columbia Ferry Authority and then the British Columbia Ferry Corporation, both of which were also provincial Crown corporations. In 2003, the Government of British Columbia announced that BC Ferries, which had been in debt, would be reorganized into a private corporation, implemented through the passage of theCoastal Ferry Act[3](Bill 18–2003). The single voting share of BC Ferries Corporation is held by the provincial government'sBC Ferry Authority,which operates under the rules of the Act.

History

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In the summer of 1958, a strike by employees ofCP Steamshipsand theBlack Ball Linecaused theSocial Creditgovernment ofW. A. C. Bennettto decide that the coastal ferry service inBritish Columbianeeded to be government-owned, and so it set about creating BC Ferries. Minister of HighwaysPhil Gaglardiwas tasked with overseeing the newCrown corporationand its rapid expansion.

Tsawwassen terminalwas constructed by filling in a large area at the end of a causeway in 1960
Toll booths at Tsawwassen Terminal
A BC Ferries loading dock (berth 4 at Tsawwassen terminal)
Final loading of cars onto a ferry

BC Ferries' first route, commissioned in 1960, was betweenSwartz Bay,north ofSidneyonVancouver Island,andTsawwassen,an area inDelta,using just two vessels. These ships were the now-retiredMVTsawwassenand the MVSidney.The next few years saw a dramatic growth of the B.C. ferry system as it took over operations of the Black Ball Line and other major private companies providing vehicle ferry service between Vancouver Island and theLower Mainland.As the ferry system expanded and started to service other small coastal communities, BC Ferries had to build more vessels, many of them in the first five years of its operations, to keep up with the demand. Another method of satisfying increasing demand for service was BC Ferries' unique "stretch and lift" program, involving seven vessels being cut in half and extended, and five of those vessels later cut in half again and elevated, to increase their passenger and vehicle-carrying capacities. The vast majority of the vessels in the fleet were built in B.C. waters, with only two foreign purchases and one domestic purchase. In the mid-1980s, BC Ferries took over the operations of the saltwater branch of the B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Highways, which ran ferry services to very small coastal communities. This action dramatically increased the size of BC Ferries' fleet and its geographical service area. The distinctive "dogwood on green" flag that BC Ferries used between 1960 and 2003 gave the service its popular nickname "the Dogwood Fleet".

During the 1990s, the NDP government commissioned a series ofthree fast ferriesto improve ferry service between the Mainland and Vancouver Island. The shipsproved problematicwhen they suffered many technical issues and cost double what was expected. The fast ferries were eventually sold off for $19.4 million in 2003.

A controversy began in July 2004 when BC Ferries, under a new American CEO, announced that the company had disqualified all Canadian bids to build three newCoastal-classships, and only the proposals from Europeanshipyardswere being considered. The contract was estimated at $542 million for the three ships, each designed to carry 370 vehicles and 1600 passengers.

The argument for domestic construction of the ferries was that it would employ numerous British Columbia workers, revitalize the sagging B.C. shipbuilding industry, and entitle the provincial government to a large portion of the cost in the form of taxes. BC Ferries CEO David Hahn claimed that building the ferries in Germany would "save almost $80 million and could lead to lower fares."[4]

On September 17, 2004, BC Ferries awarded[5]the vessel construction contract to Germany'sFlensburger shipyard.The contract protected BC Ferries from any delays through a fixed price and fixed schedule contract.Coastal Renaissanceentered service in March 2008, whileCoastal Inspirationwas delivered the same month and entered service in June that year. The third ship,Coastal Celebration,was delivered in June of the same year and entered service in November.

On August 18, 2006, BC Ferries commissioned[6]Flensburger to build a new vessel for its Inside Passage route, with the contract having many of the same types of terms as that for the Coastal-class vessels. The new northern service vessel,Northern Expedition,was delivered in March 2008, and entered service in May of the same year.

On August 26, 2012, BC Ferries announced that it would be cutting 98 round trips on its major routes starting in the fall and winter of 2012 as part of a four-year plan to save $1 million on these routes. Service cuts have included the elimination of supplementary sailings on the Swartz Bay–Tsawwassen route, 18 round trips on the Horseshoe Bay–Departure Bay route, and 48 round trips, the largest number of cuts, on the Duke Point–Tsawwassen route, with plans to look for savings on the smaller unprofitable routes in the future.[7]

Free ferry trips for seniors were suspended from April 2014[8]to April 2018.[9]

In the fall of 2014, BC Ferries announced the addition of three new Intermediate-class ferries to phase outQueen of BurnabyandQueen of Nanaimo.[10][11]These three vessels were to be named theSalish class;Salish Orca,Salish EagleandSalish Raven.In 2022,Salish Heron,the fourth Salish-class vessel, entered service. All four ferries were designed and built by Remontowa Shipbuilding S.A. in Gdansk, Poland, and are dual-fuel, capable of operating onliquefied natural gasand marine diesel. These vessels are a part of BC Ferries standardized fleet plan, which will take the number of ship classes in the BC Ferries fleet from 17 to 5.[12]The proposed replacement classes are Northern, Major, Salish, Shuttle and Island. Additionally, there will still be three unique (unclassed) vessels in the fleet after standardization is complete. BC Ferries has stated, however, that this total standardization of the fleet will not be achieved for another 40 years. As of March 2024, the fleet has so far been reduced to 11 classes of vessels, with 8 unique (unclassed) vessels remaining as well.

Financial results

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Year
End
[13]		Operating
Revenue
($M)		Operating
Earnings
($M)		Service Fees
(Ferry Tspt.)
($M)		Other Govt.
Subsidies
($M)		Net Regulatory
Earnings
($M)
200542200(4)092024040
2006436011092025050
2007452007091025049
2008481008104026037
2009523021103026009
2010549035126027003
2011557030125027004
20125550251270270(16)
2013571047149028015
2014594062144028025
2015620082148028041
2016673099144029065
2017697113155029088
2018735104159030071
2019712065188031057
2020707033198031022
2021460(146)194218022

Current routes

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Patronage

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Route numbers are used internally by BC Ferries. All routes except Route 13 and the Unregulated Routes carry vehicles.[13]

Figures displayed areannual vehicle equivalentandannual passengers.

Route 1 –Georgia StraitSouth (Highway 17):Swartz BaytoTsawwassen

Route 2 – Georgia Strait Central (Highway 1):Nanaimo(viaDeparture Bay) toHorseshoe Bay

Route 3 –Howe Sound:LangdaletoHorseshoe Bay

Route 4 – Satellite Channel:Swartz BaytoSaltspring Island(viaFulford Harbour)

Route 5 – Swanson Channel:Swartz Bayto the SouthernGulf Islands(Galiano Island(via Sturdies Bay),Mayne Island(Via Village Bay),Pender Island(via Otter Bay), andSaturna Island(via Lyall Harbour)

Route 6 – South Stuart Channel:CroftontoSaltspring Island(viaVesuvius)

Route 7 –Jervis Inlet(Highway 101):Earls CovetoSaltery Bay

Route 8–Queen Charlotte Channel:Horseshoe BaytoBowen Island(viaSnug Cove)

Route 9 –Active PassShuttle:Tsawwassento the Southern Gulf Islands (Galiano Island(via Sturdies Bay),Mayne Island(via Village Bay),Pender Island(via Otter Bay),Saturna Island(via Lyall Harbour), andSaltspring Island(via Long Harbour)

Route 10 –Inside Passage:Port Hardy(via Bear Cove) toPrince Rupert(onKaien Island)

Route 11 – Hecate Strait (Highway 16):Prince Rupert(onKaien Island) toHaida Gwaii(viaSkidegate,onGraham Island)

Route 12 –Saanich Inlet:Brentwood BaytoMill Bay

Route 13 – Thornbrough Channel:LangdaletoGambier Island(via New Brighton) andKeats Island(via Keats Landing and Eastbourne).(Foot passengers only, no vehicles). (Operated by Kona Winds Yacht Charters Ltd.)

Route 17 – Georgia Strait North:Powell River(viaWestview) toComox(viaLittle River)

Route 18 –Malaspina Strait:Powell River(viaWestview) toTexada Island(viaBlubber Bay)

Route 19 – Northumberland Channel:Nanaimo HarbourtoGabriola Island(via Descanso Bay)

Route 20 – North Stuart Channel:ChemainustoThetis Island(via Preedy Harbour) andPenelakut Island(via Telegraph Harbour)

Route 21 –Baynes Sound:Buckley BaytoDenman Island(via Denman West)

Route 22 – Lambert Channel:Denman IslandEast (viaGravelly Bay) toHornby Island(viaShingle Spit)

Route 23 –Discovery Passage:Campbell RivertoQuadra Island(viaQuathiaski Cove)

Route 24 –Sutil Channel:Quadra Island(viaHeriot Bay) toCortes Island(viaWhaletown)

Route 25 – Broughton Strait:Port McNeilltoAlert Bay(onCormorant Island) andSointula(onMalcolm Island)

Route 26 – Skidegate Inlet:Skidegate(onGraham Island) toAlliford Bay(onMoresby Island)

Route 28 – Central Coast Connector:Port Hardy(via Bear Cove) toBella Coola(seasonal direct summer service)/Route 28A:Port HardytoBella Coola(with stops atBella Bella(via McLoughlin Bay, onCampbell Island),Klemtu,Ocean Falls,andShearwater)

Route 30 – Mid-Island Express (Highway 19):Nanaimo(viaDuke Point) toTsawwassen

Unregulated routes

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These are contracted routes that carry foot passengers only, but no vehicles, and are sponsored by BC Ferries.[14]

Maps

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Numbers in blue circles are ferry route numbers.Provincial highwaytrailblazers are added where appropriate.

  • Zone 1 – Southern Gulf Islands
  • Zone 2 – Central Georgia Strait
  • Zone 3 – Northern Georgia Strait
  • Zone 4 – Queen Charlotte Sound
  • Zone 5 – North Coast

Fleet

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Main article:List of BC Ferries ships

BC Ferries has the largest fleet of vehicle ferry vessels in the world. There are at least 45 vessels, ranging from small passenger-only water taxis, up to the 358-car Spirit-class ferries. All of the vessels in use by BC Ferries areroll-on/roll-offcar ferries. Most of the major vessels are based on similar designs, which are aggregated into classes of ferries:

Accidents and incidents

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Main article:List of BC Ferries accidents and incidents

In film

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Film Year Vessel or class
Five Easy Pieces 1970 Mill Bay
Food of the Gods 1976 Howe Sound Queen
The Other Side of the Mountain 1978 Queen of Victoria
Shoot To Kill 1988 Queen of Vancouver
Bird On A Wire 1990 Queen of BurnabyorQueen of Nanaimo
Another Stakeout 1993 Powell Riverclass
Mr. Magoo 1997 Queen of Esquimalt
Disturbing Behavior 1998 Queen of Capilano
Double Jeopardy 1999 Quadra Queen II
Black Point 2002 Mill Bay
Scary Movie 3 2003 Powell Riverclass
Battlestar Galacticaminiseries 2003 V class
Walking Tall 2004 Albert J Savoie
Elektra 2005 Albert J Savoie
The Mermaid Chair 2006 Mill Bay
The Suite Life Movie 2011 Northern Expedition
The Killing 2012 Queen of Capilano

See also

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Other ferry services

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Ferry services elsewhere

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Shipyards

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References

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Citations

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  1. ^abc"BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2023".www.bcferries.com.p. 20.
  2. ^"Vancouver Tours: Victoria & Butchart Gardens Bus & Ferry Tour from Vancouver".RetrievedAugust 31,2011.Crossing the Fraser River Delta and through the agricultural land surrounding Metro Vancouver this short half hour drive ends at the BC Ferries Terminal where your bus will drive right onto a ship belonging to the second largest ferry fleet in the world.
  3. ^"Bill 18 -- 2003: Coastal Ferry Act".Legislative Assembly of British Columbia.March 26, 2003.RetrievedMarch 17,2023.
  4. ^"Construction to begin in Germany..."Professional Mariner(Oct/Nov 2005). 2005.RetrievedOctober 25,2011.[permanent dead link]
  5. ^Microsoft Word – 04-071 Super C.doc.Bcferries.com (June 21, 2012). Retrieved June 25, 2012.ArchivedJuly 3, 2007, at theWayback Machine
  6. ^Media Room | BC Ferries – British Columbia Ferry Services Inc.BC Ferries (June 21, 2012). Retrieved June 25, 2012.
  7. ^"B.C. Ferries to cut back on sailings".The Province.August 26, 2012. Archived fromthe originalon August 28, 2012.RetrievedAugust 28,2012.
  8. ^"Times Colonist, 20 Nov 2013".www.timescolonist.com.November 20, 2013.
  9. ^"Times Colonist, 4 Apr 2018".www.timescolonist.com.April 4, 2018.
  10. ^"New Salish Class Vessels - BC Ferries - British Columbia Ferry Services Inc".www.bcferries.com.
  11. ^"BC Ferries' Name Contest Backfires".May 20, 2015.
  12. ^Shipbuilding Plan.BC Ferries (Summer 2018). Retrieved September 8, 2023.
  13. ^ab"BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2005"(PDF).www.bcferries.com.pp. 7, 21.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2006"(PDF).www.bcferrycommission.ca.pp. 9–10, 24.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2007"(PDF).www.bcferrycommission.ca.pp. 9–10, 22.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2008"(PDF).www.bcferrycommission.ca.pp. 10–11, 24.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2009"(PDF).www.bcferrycommission.ca.pp. 10–11, 21.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2010"(PDF).www.bcferrycommission.ca.pp. 11–12, 22.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2011"(PDF).www.bcferrycommission.ca.pp. 10–11, 21.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2012"(PDF).www.bcferrycommission.ca.pp. 12–13, 23.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2013"(PDF).www.bcferrycommission.ca.pp. 11–12, 23.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2014"(PDF).www.bcferrycommission.ca.pp. 11–12, 22.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2015"(PDF).www.bcferrycommission.ca.pp. 12–13, 23.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2016"(PDF).www.bcferrycommission.ca.pp. 11–12, 22.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2017"(PDF).www.bcferrycommission.ca.pp. 13–14, 24.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2018"(PDF).www.bcferrycommission.ca.pp. 11–12, 26.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2019"(PDF).www.bcferrycommission.ca.pp. 8–9, 19.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2020"(PDF).www.bcferries.com.pp. 8–9, 19.
    "BC Ferry Services, Annual Rept, 31 Mar 2021"(PDF).www.bcferries.com.pp. 11–12, 21.
  14. ^Ferry Advisory Committee Chairs (February 10, 2012)."Non-major routes".facchairs.com.RetrievedMarch 4,2024.
  15. ^"Lasqueti Ferry | Lasqueti Island".lasqueti.ca.RetrievedSeptember 3,2020.
  16. ^"Damen cuts first steel on four full electric ferries for BC Ferries | Ships Monthly".
  17. ^"News release - Steel cutting begins on new hybrid Island Class vessels".

References

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  • Bannerman, Gary and Patricia.The Ships of British Columbia – An Illustrated History of the British Columbia Ferry Corporation.Surrey: Hancock House Publishers, 1985

Press releases

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