In Your Community - Discover your community's page

Over the past several months communities and interested and impacted groups, including Community Prioritization Panel (CPP) members and Ferry Advisory Committees (FACs), took part in both in-person and virtual engagements that focused on their top priorities.

“As an essential public service, hearing directly from passengers, local businesses and municipal governments better enables us in providing reliable, efficient connections across the coast. This feedback will help us address system-wide, near-term priorities while taking the necessary time to consider longer-term work and sustainability, so we can continue supporting all coastal communities effectively,” said Morningstar Pinto, Executive Director of External Relations at BC Ferries.

The CPP was made up of FAC chairs, specially appointed to review and rank shared, coastal-wide priorities to help BC Ferries consider where to best focus efforts to be impactful to the customers and communities it serves. Based on this process, five key areas were identified as priorities:

• service reliability
• scheduling
• medical travel
• cycling and traffic management
• vehicle staging and loading

As the first action we are taking in response to what we have heard, starting November 12, 2024, customers on our busiest routes can now get more specific details about the status of sailings and terminal traffic, with the launch of a new beta Current Conditions site.

Other actions underway include the establishment of a task force to identify options for minimizing delays out of Horseshoe Bay terminal, expanding how we will work with local communities and transportation partners to address congestion and improve safety at terminals, and reviewing staging and loading/unloading processes to enhance traffic flow.

To read the full report from the Community Prioritization Panel, visit the Reports and Information section on this page, or click here: BCF -CPP Final Report or to read the full news release visit bcferries.com/contact-us/media-room/news-release, or by clicking here: Media Room | BC Ferries

We would like to thank all those community members, interested and impacted groups, the FAC and the CPP for their input throughout the engagements.

We will continue using these insights, including the success of the digital engagements, to evolve how we engage with the communities we serve and to incorporate into decisions across routes, creating balanced, community-centred outcomes that benefit all passengers.

BC Ferries Commissioner has approved a major capital expenditure that allows BC Ferries to take the next step towards the purchase of four new hybrid electric Island Class vessels that will increase capacity for passengers across the ferry system. To see the BC Ferries Commissioner’s ruling, visit: BC Ferry Commission: Major capital approvals

By 2027, the four new vessels will enter service on the routes connecting Nanaimo Harbour and Gabriola Island (two vessels) and Campbell River and Quadra Island (two vessels), with corresponding electrical upgrades for shore-based rapid charging made to the four terminals on these routes.

The Island Class vessels that currently serve the above routes will be able to be redeployed to greatly benefit a number of communities with increased capacity to help address current and future demands. Specifically, the Crofton to Vesuvius route will see capacity increased by 20 per cent along with increased frequency provided by two-vessel service. The Quadra to Cortes route capacity will increase by about 70 per cent through the deployment of a larger vessel, and the existing system relief vessel will be redeployed to the Denman to Hornby route year-round, doubling its capacity and particularly improving travel certainty throughout the year.

The introduction of these four new vessels will take BC Ferries a step closer toward standardization of the fleet which can help reduce the number of vessel classes the company operates. This in turn helps with maintenance, refit, training and other operational activities.

To read the full News Release, visit the News from around the fleet on the right hand side of the page, or by clicking below:

Island Class Phase 3 Electrification