In Your Community - Discover your community's page

This spring and summer we’re getting back out with our Ferry Advisory Committees and the communities we serve. With a focus on resetting conversations, we’ll be looking at what we’ve heard from FACs and communities over the past two years. Click on your community page listed above to see where and when your community workshop will take place!

At these upcoming events, we’ll work together to:

• Review the list of feedback we’ve received from each community
• Prioritize the feedback we can action
• Establish criteria that will help a new Community Prioritization Panel make recommendations about what’s most important across the ferry system

This work will result in a prioritized list of action items for each community. From there, a Community Prioritization Panel (CPP) will work to consolidate these items into a prioritized list for the whole BC Ferries system.

All FAC chairs have been invited to participate in the CPP and the panel will deliver a final public report by October 31, 2024. This report will help guide how BC Ferries reviews and makes decisions on changes needed to improve service and experience for customers, and also help inform long-term decisions that align with the ongoing Charting the Course vision process.

Workshop details

Please note that event space is limited. RSVP on your Community Page to reserve your spot and receive full event details!

Agenda

• Introduction & presentation: 20 minutes
• Reviewing the feedback we’ve heard from you (interactive stations): 35 minutes
• Prioritizing the feedback we’ve heard from you (interactive stations): 30 minutes
• Wrap-up & close: 5 minutes

Session Format

This community workshop will begin with a short presentation, followed by two interactive sessions that ask participants to help us:

1. Ensure the feedback we have captured from the Ferry Advisory Committee and community is complete and accurate
2. Prioritize the feedback we’ve captured based on what is most important to the community

Participants will also walk away with a better understanding of:

• How BC Ferries makes decisions
• The aspects of ferry service that are rising to the top as most important for their community
• The next steps for considering and taking action on the feedback provided
• How to stay involved and connected in the next steps

To get the most from the session, participants are encouraged to stay for the entire workshop, but are most welcome to drop in and stay as long as they wish. We understand life is busy and time is precious.

There will be an online engagement component hosted on this page that mirrors the workshop input, for those who are not able to attend.

To stay connected, please click the ‘Stay Informed’ icon at the right hand side of your Community Page.

We look forward to meeting you.

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

Now is the time to shape the vision of the coastal ferry service in BC.

Transportation, transit and ferry systems around the world are under pressure resulting from the pandemic, population growth, climate change, inflation and other factors. BC’s coastal ferry system is no exception, and BC Ferries is responding with actions to address current operational issues. We are also embarking on a long-term transformative journey to reshape our coastal ferry services in response to the evolving needs of the communities we serve.

We invite you to participate in Charting the Course, an initiative that aims to define what is needed to keep people, goods, and services in coastal communities connected and moving through to 2050 and beyond.

Hearing from you is an important part of this initiative to help us build a more sustainable and resilient ferry system. The first phase of engagement is open until November 28. Learn more and participate here: https://www.bcferriesprojects.ca/bc-ferries-charting-the-course