This plan is unacceptable. We should be able to use our highway when we please, or when we need to
The Sunshine Coast is rallying against a BC Ferries trial whereby 95 per cent of the vehicle spots on the Queen of Surrey will be available by reservation only, with the other 5 per cent reserved for emergency vehicles and medical assured loading.
The trial will begin next month, Brian Anderson, BC Ferries’ vice president for strategy & community engagement, announced. Bookings under the new system can be made toward the end of May with sailings beginning in the third week of June; the trial will go on until after Thanksgiving.
How the fee structure will work
Under the new system, drivers will pay fares on both sides, with vehicles paying slightly more than half the present fare each way. Foot passengers will not be affected.
Reservations during the trial will be free, but drivers will pay the full fare at the time of reservation. They will be able to change their reservations until 45 minutes before sailing. BC Ferries has not said whether they will issue a refund in case of cancellation.
No-shows lose their money, and BC Ferries will charge an as yet unspecified penalty. The no-shows will also have to pay for a few fare again.
It will be possible to drive up to the terminal in the hope that not all spots have been reserved, but those vehicles will be charged $33 for one way, significantly more than half the present round-trip fare.
Will ferry users save money under the new system? Hardly. Based on the presentation BC Ferries made to the Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) on April 22, a Facebook user broke down drivers’ costs as follows:
This is a brilliant business model for BC Ferries. The company will collect full fares from drivers who were unable to make the ferry and could not cancel on time. BC Ferries keeps their payment, charges them a penalty, and reaps the cost of a new ticket. It then sells the spot to somebody else, collecting a fare again.
Of course the present situation, with long waiting times at the terminal in the summer is not ideal, to say the least. But this is worse. Way worse.
The new system will cause stress
Anything can happen to cause people to miss a sailing: a traffic jam, a flat tire, something urgent and unforeseen like a daughter going into labour prematurely or an elderly parent taking a fall, or something as spontaneous as someone in Vancouver unexpectedly inviting you for dinner.
Yes, the reservation can be changed until 45 minutes before sailing time, if you’re in a situation where you have access to a cellphone, if the battery isn’t dead, if you’re not driving in busy traffic unable to pull over, if you can get through to a possibly overloaded website.
What happens to a patient requiring same-day medical care in Vancouver on a day when the ferry is fully booked? One can drive up to the terminal, but during busy months chances of a spot becoming available are slim.
What about return trips? One can make a reservation for a reasonable time after a medical treatment, but someone else’s emergency may push back your appointment time, or the surgeon may decide to keep you under observation for a while longer, or the procedure itself may take longer than anticipated.
Even if you had made a reservation for a much later ailing, what happens if the procedure goes smoothly and ends on time? Can you change the reservation to an earlier, possibly busier time? Or do you cancel the later reservation (is reimbursement possible?) and wait at the terminal in the hope that an earlier spot will become available — at the more expensive $33 fare?
How will the reservation system work for sport teams? Can the length of competitions be predicted? What happens if a team proceeds to the next level in a tournament? Or gets knocked out early?
Economic fallout
The housing market on the Sunshine Coast is likely to be affected as well. Prospective buyers from Vancouver and elsewhere will quickly learn that travelling back and forth is difficult, with no guarantee of crossing on any given day. The decision to buy here will become less likely. Whether one thinks that is a good development depends on one’s perspective. But if prices go down, quite a few new homeowners here will end up with mortgages higher than the value of their house.
Living on the Sunshine Coast and commuting to work in Vancouver will be a much less attractive option. Indeed, current commuters will be in a pickle. Ideally they could make reservations for weeks or months ahead, but not everyone knows their long-term schedule. Even weekly schedules can be subject to change. In busy summer months, missing a sailing could mean not being able to get on the ferry until the next day – or longer.
Some commuters will certainly decide to leave the Coast.
And what about business people who have travelled to meetings that take longer than expected? Or truck deliveries being late?
BC Ferries’ dubious capabilities
The trial will require new infrastructure for BC Ferries. Let’s brace ourselves. We all know about the poor wifi on the ferry and in the terminals. For years, BC Ferries only accepted credit cards because the system was not set up for debit. The website is frequently down or the app doesn’t reload. The phone number is often unavailable due to high caller volume. Notifications of delays are sometimes mailed hours after the ship has sailed.
And now a number of people will be trying to access the website in the last hour before each sailing to change their reservations because of circumstances beyond their control, or they will be phoning only to find the lines overloaded or to hear the message “Your all is important to us. . .” Standing in the rain somewhere, with 5 per cent battery, cursing that if they can’t reach BC Ferries, they’ll lose their money, pay a penalty and be out of pocket for another ticket.
And of course it only takes the cancellation of one sailing to screw up the reservations. Luckily, the Queen of Surrey never has mechanical problems. . .
The trial will probably go ahead, and from BC Ferries’ viewpoint it will be a huge success. Despite operating only one vessel, long line-ups in the summer will be a thing of the past — or at least invisible to BC Ferries. No need to add a second vessel at peak times, everything runs smoothly from the company’s point of view. Earnings will be up, costs down. The human cost will remain under water, unseen.
Carrying out this trial during a pandemic with reduced traffic enhances the likelihood of its “success.” The new system stands a good chance of becoming permanent.
What is to be done?
Who will step in? With a “successful” trial, we don’t know if the provincial government will do anything.
The worst part of this reservation system is that we are no longer free to travel when we like. We live in Canada and should be able to use our only highway when we want or need to. Nowhere else in the country do people have to make reservations to use their highway. This curtailment of our freedom is unacceptable.
Our only hope at this point is a legal challenge.
Sunshine Coast resident Glenda Sewards started a petition which on Monday afternoon had more than 6,900 signatures, and counting. People are talking about organizing demonstrations. Seldom before have Sunshine Coasters rallied like this. It is time.
Margot Grant
If you complain to BC Ferries, please keep a record.
Margot Grant
Excellent reporting! Thank you!
Heaven forbid someone doesn’t own a credit card. Then what?
I didn’t qualify for a credit card for years because my income was too low (not because I don’t pay my bills).
A bean counter’s dream and the public’s nightmare. Taking BC FERRIES history with Route 3 into account the presentation is not believable. For some reason this service is continually in flux. The benefit, it seems, will be to non-residents who for tourism or pleasure have more flexibility in travel. Coast residents are left with too many unknowns and details to be determined at a later juncture. Hence the “in-flux” component. This trial balloon makes a case for once again, a certain group bringing up the subject of a bridge. I hope not. This trial smacks of a cash grab. Shoring up the corporate coffers while leaving Coast residents in the wake. Pun intended. Recently I had a medical situation requiring a very specialized procedure that I waited over a year for. I reserved my sailing more than a month ahead and in the interim my reservation was cancelled by Ferries to another time with no notice to me and then changed 5 times by Ferries causing me to be on hold for over 3 hours in order to make it right. I don’t have faith in anything the corporation floats in the direction of this service and hesitate to approve this current trial.
That was my thought — this will get people clamouring for a bridge again.
This plan would only work if life were 100% predictable. More frequent sailings is a better idea.
Thank you for the good story about the bad BC Ferries cash grab at our expense. Additional concerns:
– Our money BC Ferries holds in everyone’s Experience Card which are no longer useful.
– Having to prepay MTAPs and hope to get a refund from BC Ferries.
Our only way to the mainland is the ferry, private boats, and planes.
If they don’t want to transport us off this peninsula could they build a bigger hospital with all the specialists, a commercial airport to fly out to other parts of the world, a cruise ship terminal perhaps? This would absolutely create jobs that are very much needed.
Commercial vehicles could get their own commercial ferry and small ferry operators could get permits to transport those that need to get off the Coast, or they could use the commercial ferry.
They don’t want to put a bridge here, that would not be sensible. But other countries have toll bridges to pay for their construction.
Having travelled to many places around the world, I fail to understand why a peninsula would not have a bridge. So much talk about it and so much wasted time. The Coast is getting a bigger population now, check the real estate market.
What happens to seniors do we still get to travel free Monday to Thursday? Do we still use our Experience card? Seniors are on a tight budget we will not be able to use the ferry to visit families. It is our right to be able to travel on Canadian Highways we paid for, and pay taxes. What is happening to BC?
Excellent article and I would add that not everyone has a credit card.
This out-of-touch thinking is shocking. Imagine being stuck on the other side with children in the car only to find you can’t get home that day due to this stupidity.
Good article. I agree that a legal challenge is warranted. If there are any lawyers who are willing to support a legal challenge and guide the community through the process, please speak up.
You should see the nightmare from our end up in Powell River. Anything can happen on our route down – late ferry, full ferry, road problem. This will only encourage drivers to speed down the peninsula even more; knowing that if they can’t make their reservation ferry there is likely no more spots avalaible on it or the ferries later in the day. Nightmare.
I do think that it will affect who comes here and works online and in Vancouver. We, like the Lower Sunshine Coast have picked up quite a number of workers. They bought houses, pay taxes, buy groceries etc. It is just sticking a pin in a carefully created economic balloon. And no real consultation. Does anyone else have to put up with a highway system like this?
I heard back from Gibsons Mayor Bill Beamish. I had cc’d him and others on my letter to BCF brass.
It is important to note in his response, that local government had zero power to effect changes to the BCF plan. Sechelt Mayor Darnelda Siegers said the same. Zero power in this. My position acknowledges the bind local government is in, but I also said they should have added stronger provisos in exchange for endorsement (they did request changes).
Local leaders can still withdraw their support of the BCF plan, and by the outrage and whatever else may be coming they may well consider doing so.
This from Mayor Beamish this morning:
“I want to assure you that neither our Council or others on the Sunshine Coast simply rubber stamped the three month trial proposal by BC Ferries.
We asked the same questions you and others are asking and we looked for other solutions. BC Ferries has assured us that there is no plan now or in the near future for a second ferry and that absent of that option something needs to be done for the upcoming season.
We are assured that this trial period will be closely monitored and tweaked as needed to ensure that no one is unfairly dealt with. As well during the trial passengers will be surveyed to determine how they are impacted by the new service levels.
The trial will end and results will be analyzed and evaluated.
Our Council did request changes to parking in Langdale as well as improvements to the 10 min. cut off in Horseshoe Bay which BCF agreed to look into.
We have also asked that BCF ensure that it listens to concerns expressed by the community.
While we all agree that this may not be the final solution the purpose of the trial is to find ways to improve service. We need to give it a chance or live with no changes.” (end quote)
I’m grateful that the mayor asked BCF to listen to our concerns, but I disagree with his final point here. In my view we should absolutely not accept this steaming pile of nonsensical, chaos inducing weirdness. I would prefer ‘no changes’ than what BCF is planning.
I think we should give this a try. Perhaps the trial run could be 75 percent reservations that would appease much of the opposition. If the web sites work and it is easy to book and cancel I am all for it. Dynamic pricing would also help.
This proposal creates a totally unacceptable situation. Please sign the petition! As a vital part of B.C. Highway system, the B.C. Ferries mandate should clearly state that its role is to facilitate convenience and ease in travel. This is clearly not the case. The government needs to step in to stop this farcical bureaucratic nightmare before it begins.
I am very upset and worried about this new trial and this article articulates my concerns exactly. I feel totally held hostage by BC ferries Corp. more than ever and really think I should move away from this beautiful prison.
I wrote Counsellor Croal who sits on the Ferries Advisory Board a letter and he supports this new trial telling me that the ferries are only at 75% capacity in the summer so this is very doable.
To me this is skewing the numbers by using the 6:20 and last sailing from Horseshoe Bay to support their claims.
BC ferries has found a way to levy more money from us and argue that we do not need another ferry because we are not at capacity.
I am sick about this new proposed experiment disguised as better service and I hope we all protest loud and hard.
Well written Margot! It’s time for our politicians to admit they were wrong in having these back door meetings without public input and do the right thing by echoing the voices of their constituents. Tell BCF that we aren’t interested in this trial. Given many senior BCF employees and executives live in Victoria, I suggest giving them a taste of their own medicine and implement the trial on their route. I’m sure the residents of Vancouver Island would support it. Not.
Well written and to the point. The Langdale – Horseshoe Bay terminal is part of our highway, we cannot let it go to such a scrutinized system. I have never joined in a protest but this situation would create limitations that would be suffocating.
This plan screams “cash grab”, mass confusion, frustration, anxiety and stress.
Fulltime residents on the Coast should be given extra consideration for boarding, as well as those with TAP forms. Petitioning and legal action are good options!
I think the best thing we can do is throw up our hands, declare that we are helpless, that nothing can be done to fix the ferry system, and go back to the old way of sometimes waiting all afternoon for the off chance there will be room on an upcoming ferry trip. Who’s with me??? Let’s start a petition!!!
The BCF proposal, at base, should be focused on serving the community at large. However,the proposed trial is EXCLUSIVE in its service to a target group that:
– has a credit card
– has a cell phone
– is computer savvy.
Likely this is because the organizing decision-makers themselves fall within that very target group, a limited “mind set”. What those people seem to have overlooked is to consult the community that uses the service.
As is said repeatedly, it is our highway, an essential service. The BCF proposal, while an effort to make change within a system that has not been working well, misses the mark. The ferry system needs to be looked at as a sustainable public service, not as a profit-making venture. A PUBLIC SERVICE.
It is a proposal that discriminates against old people, poor people & people living on the fringe.
A definite case of bilking the customer by using the very same crummy boat year after year with limited capacity to transport people.
Probably the board thinks it is running some rocket ship and not an old smelly clunker. (check out langdale pollution index)
This from a monopolistic company, we thought trolls didn’t exist, these are the real and dangerous kind of trolls who keep smiling.
This was not an accurate article. The fare comparison is flawed and I hope it wasn’t done deliberately. The current fare did not include the cost of reservation which is $10 or $17 depending on when you book. Under the proposed system it’s included in the price. Travel is assured. No longer have to get in line hoping to get on. Not sure what the big hoopla is about. It is a change, but a good one.
So happy we moved off the coast!
Sorry for you all that remained! ?
Upon reading the Coast Reporter article of April 22, 2021, I was incensed regarding the BC Ferries trial announcement proposing a 95 per cent reservation system commencing this summer season on Route three. I was further dismayed to read the SCRD approved the proposal.
I’m critical care RN essential worker employed within the Fraser Heath region. I commute from the Sunshine Coast biweekly. My shift completion is unpredictable due to surgical patient recovery times. I may be asked to work overtime, I’m occasionally called to cover shifts on a days notice.
My husband and I travel to the lower mainland for medical, dental, and physiotherapy appointments. There are urgent family matters which arise, life happens that way.
Ten years of mixed ferry experiences educated us. Route three sailings are historically very busy if not overloaded during summer season, stat holidays and weekends. The summer period always means late sailings due to operational issues such as boarding times and breakdowns.
If reservations for Route three meet 95 percent capacity which experience strongly suggests, it’s a no-brainer consumers will be left helpless, if not stranded. Many folks blanket book, we know this happens and losing funds is not a deterrent. For an unplanned event or crisis, it’s reasonably possible under the new reservation system consumers could be stranded at Langdale or Horseshoe Bay for several days waiting for any sailing opportunity.
Route three is part of the highway system and the only vehicle artery between the Sunshine Coast and Horseshoe Bay. BC Ferries states the 95 percent reservation system will reduce traffic and road congestion. That is not a consumer benefit, it’s a BC Ferry operational panacea. See no evil, no problem, no solution required.
Commuters, commercial traffic, and travelers are not forced to pre-book their spot on highways, connecting bridges, George Massey Tunnel, nor anywhere else in our ‘free’ nation.
The Sunshine Coast Population is increasing, it’s already underserved during the summer period. Capacity and loading issues should be addressed by the BC Government and BC Ferry Corp. The onus of solutions should not be forced upon consumers, severely limiting freedom to travel and options when life happens (aka – waiting for the next ferry, sufficient capacity, Section 6 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms).
My husband and I are vehemently opposed to the 95 per cent reservation system unless there are workable, predictable processes in place to accommodate critical unforeseen travel needs.
For example, my husband’s 94-year mother is in a Fraser Health Region LTC home. If there were an emergency call from the care home, how would we travel if sailings are completely booked for a day or several days running, such as weekends and long weekends?
How do I get home if a patient does not recover within my travel window, or I’m required to work overtime?
How do I travel to work and return at short notice if reservations are maxed out?
Obviously people make medical appointments. How do we match critical appointments to maxed-out ferry reservations on any given day?
How does one travel when life’s unforeseen events occur requiring immediate travel?
Who is the arbiter for ‘necessary’?
Assuming a 95 per cent booked sailing and excess consumer demand (and there will be), how will overload sailings be determined, and how will consumers know?
See no evil: Perhaps there will be no overload sailings, further cutting summer capacity and consumer service?
In summary: Why not employ the Horseshoe Bay-Nanaimo run for the 95 per cent reservation trial? At least those sailings present alternatives to stranded consumers.
Also emailed to BC Ferries
Just when you thought BC Ferries couldn’t get any worse. They’ve again proven beyond a shadow of doubt that the only interest they have is “increased profit” at our expense.
I travel the Coast for work as part of our forest industry, supporting many operators and communities.
The need to travel is not predictable at all. We never know when projects start and end, when there will be breakdowns, when somebody decides to start their project, etc.
With this plan, I have no idea how I will be able to conduct business!!!
This is insane.
It’s not all about travel for camping: some of us live and work up and down the Coast.
What are they trying to solve?
When were the Open Houses to help them get input for their perceived problem?
This is an idea developed by narrow-minded folks and/or non-users of the ferry with an “I know best ’cause I got the the job” attitude. . . Ridiculous!!!!!
I worked on Route #3 back in the days of the Sussie Q and the Langdale Queen. . . That was a pretty good service: TWO vessels and a schedule that ran well into the evening.
Then the first big corporate decision:let’s make this a ONE-ship operation. . .
It’s been downhill ever since. That decision actually had people moving off the Coast, quitting night school courses in Vancouver, not going to concerts and movies, et cetera.
But people have short memories, and now the CaCa has hit the fan.
The only way to fix this is to add vessels year-round, increase service to at least 20 hours a day, and get rid of Island vessels from Horseshoe Bay.
Perhaps it is time to relocate the BC Ferries head office to Sechelt. . .
BCFC has proven they will not listen to customers and will do what they feel is in their own best interest. The only way the essential highway issue will be addressed is through political will. This new plan will impact peoples’ livelihood therefore people need to write to their MLA and the premier and explain how their livelihood and freedom of movement will be impacted. Global, CTV and other media outlet needs to be made aware of this issue of restricting free movement and being held hostage by BCFC. Letters to the MLA and media should shine some light on this issue and get the movement required to solve this problem.
The following was sent to CEO Mark Collins this morning.
“Good morning,
Thank you for setting up the Moving Forward Together website which lists the numerous ways that BC Ferries will be engaging with the community of the Sunshine Coast. It is a start. However, after reviewing the list below, nowhere does it allow for an open dialogue to address the concerns of the residents of the Sunshine Coast.
‘We will ensure Sunshine Coast residents and visitors know about the trial well in advance, including how to take advantage of new lower fares and free reservations, while still maintaining the flexibility of last-minute travel.’
Here’s how BC Ferries intends to engage with the community and share information:
‘BC Ferries’ CEO Mark Collins will be speaking to business and community groups on the Sunshine Coast;
Information will be available to the public on bcferries.com;
Updates will be posted regularly through social media;
Local community newspaper articles;
Ongoing community engagement throughout the trial to learn if there are ways to further improve service;
Input and engagement will be reviewed to determine the success of the trial when it concludes in the Fall.’
Item #5 speaks of ongoing community engagement. So how about we start there.
BC Ferry research is faulty. Only 59 people (0.002% of the population) listed in the Phase 2 study actually attended a community meeting. How does that reflect for a community of over 30,000 people? There are currently over 7,800 residents (26% of the population) that have signed a petition to halt the current plans for this summer. What does this tell you?
BC Ferries has successfully got the attention of the Sunshine Coast. So, what message will BC Ferries send out? Will it be a message of “This proposed plan is going to be rammed down everyone’s throat whether you like it or not”? Or is the message going to be “This was a bad idea, let’s review and come up with something that truly works for the traveling public.
This would be a way for BC Ferries and the Sunshine Coast to truly be Moving Ahead Together on the Sunshine Coast”
The choice is yours….
Regards,
FYI Mark Collins will be speaking tomorrow with local business leaders in Sechelt. Not sure if it will be in person or not. My guess is it will be a video link. He probably doesn’t feel too welcome on the Coast right now.
For those who would like to view Chamber of Commerce and Mark Collins
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_s-vX1nYmTgCN72tRrpVzUQ?fbclid=IwAR3LSTJ1JlKz477oQNvLVrcOhjvWDF8ciXGYdEZ9j1eQ5E_w-hpiAFATyys
Every weekend I visit this website, for enjoyment and because it contains good,funny data.