September Project Update

As summer winds down, I’m pleased to share the following updates for the terminal rebuild projects. As always, I’d like to thank everyone for their ongoing patience and support while we work to upgrade the terminals to support the deployment of the Island Class Vessel between Cortes and Quadra.

At Heriot Bay, construction crews have made significant progress installing portions of the new trestle, including large steel piles and concrete beams that will eventually support the vehicle loading ramp for the new ferry. In the coming weeks, you will notice the terminal becoming quite busy as we ramp up production from both the marine and land side. The contractor is mobilizing additional marine equipment to assist the land-based crane with placing large pre-cast concrete beams and installing marine pilings. At the same time, crews will work from land to place new shoreline protection rock called rip-rap. The rock has been sourced from a local quarry on Quadra Island and will be trucked to the terminal.

The work at Whaletown has faced challenges over the last month due to unforeseen ground conditions and equipment issues. The crew has shown perseverance and advanced the work as much as possible. We are expecting phase one marine work will conclude by the end of September and the crew will join their colleagues at Heriot Bay as production accelerates into October. You may see crews on site at Whaletown installing a concrete pad near the terminal electrical room to support new BC Hydro infrastructure.

Offsite, fabrication work for both new terminals is progressing. On September 3rd, we reached a major milestone with the launch of new floating dolphins for both terminals in Campbell River. The dolphins will be stored in Campbell River until they can be installed on-site.

We look forward to being back in your communities later this fall to discuss the details of the planned alternate service next winter (February 2026). We will share the date and time of our in-person event as soon as it is confirmed. In the meantime, you’ll continue to hear from us through service notices, mail-outs, social media, sign boards, and this page!

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact our Customer Relations team at engagement@bcferries.com.

Thanks for reading,

Jeffrey Li

Project Manager, BC Ferries