BC Ferries

[Dizzy1]

I think I'm gonna see if I can scrounge up some of these and give BC Ferries Fairies a run for their money, IIRC, there was one sitting up in Northern BC back in the 90s ...

[sooperphreek]

build a bridge.

[Glacier]

build a bridge.

From Port Hardy to Prince Rupert?

[NAB]

Since I don't live in Nanaimo, nor do I use the BC Ferry system (although have family members who do use it on occasion, but less and less while flying more and more), I have little interest in and no personal stake in the heated debate over the two Ferry terminals there. However, If I did I would be supporting the elimination of one of them. Critics suggest it makes no sense to close the Departure Bay terminal in favour of an expanded Duke Point terminal. But I will submit that it makes a whole lot of sense.

Because of its location, the Departure Bay terminal and its approaches is a congested bottleneck at the best of times, and what is more, between it and its assembly area occupies land and foreshore of tremendous value on the private real estate market. That money (with probably money left over), could be put to far better use expanding Duke Point and, if well done, would provide cost relief to both the Horseshoe Bay and Swartz Bay terminals by offering sailings from the same Island centre point to either Horseshoe or Tsawwassen terminals (through easier access for both vehicle traffic and the ferries themselves) and better flexibility for travellers on the various routes depending on their ultimate destination. Plus the ferries would run better utilized in terms of payload per trip instead of running only half full or less much of the time.

A recent news article included... "NANAIMO, B.C. — Use of B.C. Ferries fell significantly in February, even as Nanaimo Airport use continued to climb from a year ago.
Vehicle and foot traffic fell between four and 7.3 per cent on both major ferry routes that month, according to the latest figures from Victoria-based tourism industry watcher Chemistry Consulting."

Well Duh!....

Way past time to make the necessary changes! Get rid of Departure Bay terminal, reduce # of trips on the main runs, substantially reduce fares on the main runs, and watch business pick up.

Nab

[sooperphreek]

build a bridge and a tunnel

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%98resund_Bridge

[twobits]

build a bridge and a tunnel

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%98resund_Bridge

Lol, not even one tenth of the engineering challenge of the Georgia Straight, one quarter of the distance, and ten times the population to pay for it. Just what is it you can't wrap your head around?

[sooperphreek]

if we can build an olympic village we can surely build a bridge?

[Bsuds]

build a bridge and a tunnel

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%98resund_Bridge

Info here as to why it probably will never happen.

http://www.th.gov.bc.ca/publications/re ... d_link.htm

[Thinktank]

China could probably build a bridge for us at a fraction of the price
if we agree to give them something in return.

[twobits]

if we can build an olympic village we can surely build a bridge?

Sorry, I had forgot the Olympic Village was built on pylons in the Georgia Straight.

[sooperphreek]

anything is possible. people probably said this was impossible. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millau_Viaduct

or this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%98resund_Bridge

or this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akashi_Kaiky%C5%8D_Bridge

or this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Pontchartrain_Causeway

i could go on but the next thing you know people will say the earth is flat.

[danmartin]

I don't know if it has been discussed here but I have to wonder if the possibility of a large earthquake has been discussed? I have met people that have moved off Vancouver Island because they fear the 'Big One'. Investors and that would include us the tax payers if the government built it would sure take a big loss if it was to happen and destroy such a expensive project! I for one would feel like I was playing Russian Roulette on such a long tunnel or bridge.

[sooperphreek]

funny how the bridge built eons ago in san fran where they actually have quakes is still standing........engineers must have gotten stupider since then.....

[twobits]

funny how the bridge built eons ago in san fran where they actually have quakes is still standing........engineers must have gotten stupider since then.....

No, engineers have not gotten stupider, only some members of the public who think the Golden Gate bridge is an engineering task equal to a bridge over the Georgia Straight.

[LongHaul]

Interesting article in today's (Sept 11,2014) THE Province by Michael Smyth. The article confirms a suggestion made months ago in this thread that BC Ferries should looked at as part of the overall provincial economic picture. Since 2003 BC Ferries have been handled as a separate company with the narrow focus of making a profit or at least break even through cut backs and fare increases.

The following article by Michael Smyth is based on a recent report by the Union of B.C. Municipalities which took a big picture look on what the changes to BC Ferries has cost the province by reducing revenue from tourists, job losses, business relocation due to cost of ferry service, etc.

In short the report by the Union of B.C. Municipalities is one of the first comprehensive studies linking skyrocketing ferry fares and squandered economic opportunity.

The report estimates what declining ferry ridership has cost all of us: $2.3 billion in lost economic activity for the province over the past 10 years.

Also the federal, provincial and municipal governments lost $609 million in squandered tax revenue during this period due to this reduction in economic activity, the report concludes.

Hopefully the provincial government if they are dubious about this report will do their own study to ensure it is accurate. If it is accurate it suggests a major rethinking is needed on the role of BC Ferries in the overall economic picture and how BC Ferries is managed.

Part of the article follows with the link to the complete article.

http://www.theprovince.com/news/Michael+Smyth+Ferries+cost+economy+billion+over+years/10192762/story.html

“Michael Smyth: B.C. Ferries has cost the economy $2.3 billion over 10 years
 
UBCM report says depressed ferry travel due to increased fare costs has hit multiple sectors across B.C.

Some pretty simple math sums up the situation at B.C. Ferries over the last decade: ferry fares have gone way up, and ferry ridership has gone way down as a result.

Now comes a stunning new report showing just what that declining ferry ridership is costing all of us: $2.3 billion in lost economic activity for the province.

The report by the Union of B.C. Municipalities is one of the first comprehensive studies linking skyrocketing ferry fares and squandered economic opportunity.

It blames soaring fares for an overall 11-per-cent decline in ferry ridership from 2003 to 2013. If those fares had risen at the rate of inflation, ferry ridership would have gone up 19 per cent instead, the report estimates.

What kind of impact did an 11-per-cent decline in ferry ridership — instead of a 19-per-cent increase — have on the provincial economy?

A massive one, the report concludes, noting depressed ferry travel hit multiple sectors, including finance, insurance, real estate, manufacturing, construction and tourism.

The $2.3 billion in lost GDP not only cost a lot of jobs, growth and community stability, it also cost governments a lot of money in the form of forgone taxes, said the report released Wednesday.

The federal, provincial and municipal governments lost $609 million in squandered tax revenue during the period, the report concludes.
“This confirms everything we’ve been saying for years, but it was even worse than we thought,” said Jim Abram, a municipal councillor with Vancouver Island’s Strathcona Regional District.
“The whole province has suffered because of this.”

The shocking numbers had the normally chatty transportation minister at a loss for words.
“It is too early to say whether I agree or disagree with the conclusions of this report,” said Todd Stone, while arguing the 2007-09 global financial crisis may also have hurt ferry travel.
“We went through one of the worst recessions the globe has ever seen,” he said.

But isn’t it interesting that other modes of transportation seemed to come through the dark times just fine, while ferry travel got hammered?

Traffic at Vancouver International Airport was up 23 per cent during the decade. Victoria International Airport was up 32 per cent.

Vehicle traffic on the province’s major highways increased, too. Traffic on Highway 1 in Metro Vancouver was up nearly nine per cent.

All the while, B.C.’s population increased more than 11 per cent.

So why did B.C. Ferries ridership slump so badly, when just about every other transportation mode in the province steadily increased?

It has to be stratospheric fare increases, the report concluded.
During the decade, fares on B.C. Ferries’ minor routes soared nearly 75 per cent, while northern-route fares went up 65 per cent and fares for the major routes between the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island went up 51 per cent.

The result has been disastrous for coastal communities, argues Abram.
“It’s killing tourism, hurting young families, damaging businesses and slashing real-estate prices and housing starts on the islands,” he said.