BC Ferries

BC Ferries announced today the regular vessel serving the Swartz Bay – Salt Spring Island route, the Skeena Queen, will return to service for the 9 p.m. sailing from Swartz Bay tonight, after undergoing a mid-life upgrade. The vessel was removed from service on Oct. 28 to undergo the upgrade, which was necessary to provide required maintenance on the ship and enhance the customer experience.

The MV Bowen Queen will be commencing service on the Vesuvius-Crofton on Monday, March 30, 2020, until October 2020. The following changes to the Vesuvius – Crofton schedule will be in effect Wednesday, April 1, 2020, until further notice. • 7:20 pm sailing is changed to 7:55 pm sailing from Crofton • 8:00 pm sailing is changed to 8:30 pm sailing from Vesuvius • 8:30 pm sailing is changed to 9:00 pm sailing from Crofton These changes are to facilitate the introduction of the MV Bowen Queen on the Vesuvius – Crofton route and create operational efficiencies in our service.

BC Ferries continues to roll out its Clean Futures Plan and has awarded Remontowa Shipbuilding S.A. of Gdansk, Poland a contract to build an additional liquefied natural gas (LNG)-fuelled vessel scheduled to go into service in the Southern Gulf Islands in 2022. This vessel will be identical to the three Salish Class vessels built by Remontowa for BC Ferries in 2016. “Our Clean Futures Plan is our path to replace diesel fuels with cleaner energy options. While this cannot be achieved in a single step, we are continually seeking energy sources that offer a cleaner, lower carbon-intensity option to displace non-renewable diesel,” said Captain Jamie Marshall, BC Ferries’ Vice President, Business Development & Innovation. “In our move towards a sustainable future, adopting LNG is one way to reduce our impact on the environment today. This new vessel will be our sixth ship fuelled by natural gas.” The agreement with Remontowa is a design-build, fixed-priced contract…

Note: This Service Notice applies to the following route(s): - Victoria (Swartz Bay) - Salt Spring Island (Fulford Harbour) Update as of 3:39 pm: Please be advised that the Queen of Cumberland has cancelled the following sailings due to adverse weather conditions - high winds: 5:50 pm departing Fulford Harbour 7:00 departing Swartz Bay 7:50 departing Fulford Harbour 9:00 departing Swartz Bay Note: This Service Notice applies to the following route(s): - Crofton - Salt Spring Island (Vesuvius Bay) Update as of 3:20 pm: Please be advised that the MV Quinitsa has cancelled the following sailings due to adverse weather conditions. 6:45 pm departing Vesuvius Bay 7:20 pm departing Crofton 8:00 pm departing Vesuvius Bay 8:30 pm departing Crofton 9:30 pm departing Vesuvius Bay 10:00 pm departing Crofton Note: This Service Notice applies to the following route(s): - Vancouver (Tsawwassen) - Southern Gulf Islands Update as of 2:00 pm: Please be advised that…

Today, sailings on the south coast after 3:00pm will be cancelled due to the 70 - 90 km/h winds predicted by ECCCWeatherBC. For info on specific sailings, check our travel advisory here: http://ow.ly/j7mE30q9KXW ^js

Update as of 6:32 pm: Please be advised that the MV Quinitsa will resume sailing with the 6:45 pm sailing departing from Vesuvius Bay.The ship was experiencing a problem with its Right Angle Drive which has since been resolved. We appreciate your patience and apologize for any inconvenience you may have experienced as a result of the earlier cancellations. -------- Please be advised that the MV Quinitsa has cancelled the following sailings due to a mechanical difficulty: 5:30 pm departing Vesuvius Bay 6:05 pm departing Crofton 6:45 pm departing Vesuvius Bay 7:20 pm departing Crofton 8:00 pm departing Vesuvius Bay 8:30 pm departing Crofton 9:30 pm departing Vesuvius Bay 10:00 pm departing Crofton The ship is experiencing a problem with its Right Angle Drive. A water taxi will sail in place of the MV Quinitsa on the same above posted schedule. Vessel will dock at both public docks adjacent each terminal. We appreciate your patience and apologize for any …

BC Ferries announced today the current 1.5 per cent fuel surcharge will be removed as of December 17, 2019. BC Ferries closely monitors the price of fuel and applies a rebate or surcharge, or neither, under a regulatory process that is independent of fares. Over the past 15 years, BC Ferries has been using a fuel rebate/surcharge mechanism to manage the volatility in the price of fuel. When fuel prices are lower, lower fuel prices are passed on to customers through a fuel rebate. When fuel prices are higher, a fuel surcharge is implemented specifically to cover the additional cost of fuel. There have also been periods with neither. The company does not benefit financially from surcharges or rebates. “The recent decrease in the price of fuel allows us to eliminate the fuel surcharges, which is great news for travellers,” said Alana Gallagher, BC Ferries’ Vice President and CFO. “We understand that affordability is important to our customers and every bit helps.” …

Vesuvius Bay terminal is located on the northwest coast of Salt Spring Island. This terminal provides service to Crofton on Vancouver Island, via a 25 minute ferry crossing on the Quinitsa. The Quinitsa has a vehicle capacity of 44 AEQ* (automobile equivalent) and can carry 300 passengers and crew; it is equipped with accessible car deck lounges and accessible washrooms and provides daily service year round. By 2022, the Quinsam will replace the Quinitsa, providing 63 AEQ* and carrying 400 passengers and crew. This terminal is an important link between Salt Spring Island and Vancouver Island for residents and visitors alike. After hearing customers' concerns on this route with overloads that affected their travel experience, BC Ferries met with Salt Spring community members in August to explore solutions for improvement. In September, we announced that as a result, we will deploy the Bowen Queen (61 Automobile Equivalent – AEQ) on the route during peak seasons until the MV Q…

Ships are designed to be fully electric when electric charging technology matures - BC Ferries continues to roll out its Clean Futures Plan and has awarded Damen Shipyards Group of the Netherlands contracts to build four more battery electric-hybrid Island Class vessels scheduled to go into service in 2022. In the spring of 2017, BC Ferries awarded Damen contracts to build two “first in class” of these battery electric-hybrid vessels. These vessels have successfully completed sea trials and will arrive in Victoria, B.C. by January 2020. With the extension of the partnership between BC Ferries and Damen now confirmed, Damen will extend its agreement with Point Hope Shipyards of Victoria, B.C. to provide technical and warranty support for the new vessels with their local staff. “Our Clean Futures Plan spells out our strategy to reduce GHG emissions by replacing our legacy carbon intensive fossil fuelled vessels with ships using clean energy,” said Captain Jamie Marshall, BC…

Please be advised that BC Ferries will be conducting necessary testing of fire suppression systems on the Salish Orca during overnight hours after the scheduled sailing have completed on both Wednesday, October 16 and Thursday, October 17. The work may require sounding of ship alarms at various intervals, and all measures will be taken to minimize the volume and frequency of these alarms. BC Ferries would like to thank its customers and neighbours for their patience and understanding as we complete this necessary systems testing. For traffic updates or more information please call us toll free at 1-888-BCFERRY (223-3779) or check our website at www.bcferries.com

Bowen Queen to be used during peak seasons - After hearing Vesuvius-Crofton customer concerns with overloads that affected their travel experience, BC Ferries met with Salt Spring community members in August to explore solutions for improvement. Customers identified a number of common concerns, including insufficient vessel capacity, lack of customer amenities at terminals, inadequate customer information and commercial/dangerous good vehicles congesting peak time sailings. During the workshop, BC Ferries representatives and community members arrived at possible solutions and priorities for the ideas that would be most realistic to implement, while offering the greatest benefit. As a result, BC Ferries will deploy the Bowen Queen (61 Automobile Equivalent – AEQ) on the route during peak seasons until the MV Quinsam (63 AEQ) is brought into service in a few years time. In 2020, the Bowen Queen will service the route between April and October. BC Ferries…

Please be advised that BC Ferries will be doing maintenance work on the Crofton and Vesuvius trestles. This work will take place from September 23 to November 1, 2019. There will be no impact to operations. Work will include replacement of piles, guardrails, deck boards and other minor items. A barge will be used to facilitate this work. Equipment being used may increase the normal sound levels within the terminal Monday to Saturday between 7:00 am and 5:00 pm. All efforts will be made to minimize noise. BC Ferries would like to thank customers and neighbours for their understanding as we complete the necessary work. For more information or traffic updates please follow @BCFerries on Twitter, visit our website at bcferries.com, or call us toll-free at 1-888-BCFERRY (223-3779).

The Crofton terminal is located within the Municipality of North Cowichan on Vancouver Island. The terminal connects the community to Vesuvius Bay on Salt Spring Island. Passengers travel on the Howe Sound Queen for a 25 minute sailing. The Howe Sound Queen has a vehicle capacity of 52 AEQ* and can carry 300 passengers and crew. It is equipped with a car deck lounge, vending machine and washrooms and provides daily service year round. In May 2019, upon retirement of the Howe Sound Queen, the route will be serviced for approximately three years by the Quinitsa which has a vehicle capacity of 44 AEQ* and can carry 300 passengers and crew. By 2022, the Quinsam will provide ferry service between Crofton and Vesuvius Bay. This terminal is an important link between Vancouver Island and Salt Spring Island for residents and visitors alike. Switching to the Quinitsa As of April 1, BC Ferries added sailings and adjusted some sailing times to the Vesuvius-Crofton route. The remainde…

BC Ferries is advising customers that due to current fuel market conditions, the company will implement a fuel surcharge of 1.5 per cent on June 1. BC Ferries closely monitors the cost of fuel and applies a rebate or surcharge, or neither, under a regulatory process that is independent of fares. Here is an example of what a 1.5 per cent fuel surcharge will be: 25 cents for an adult and 85 cents for a vehicle on the Metro Vancouver – Vancouver Island routes, and 15 cents for an adult and 45 cents for a vehicle on a variety of inter-island routes. Over the past 15 years, BC Ferries has been using a fuel rebate/surcharge mechanism to manage the volatility in the price of fuel. When fuel prices are lower, BC Ferries passes lower fuel prices on to customers through a fuel rebate. When fuel prices are higher, BC Ferries charges a fuel surcharge specifically designed to cover the additional cost of fuel. There have also been periods with neither. The company does not ben…

Night work is required on the evening of January 29, 2019 to remove a right angle drive on the MV Skeena Queen. The work is done at night time to prevent a service interruption. The work is scheduled to take place between 9:35 pm Tuesday January 29 and 5:30 am Wednesday January 30. All efforts will be made to minimize the level and duration of the noise. BC Ferries appreciates the patience and understanding of our customers and neighbor’s as we perform this required work at Fulford Harbour.

Please be advised that night work will be required on the Salish Eagle while berthed at Long Harbour terminal. Work will commence after the last scheduled sailing on the evening of September 12. This night work is necessary in order to prevent a service disruption. All efforts will be made to minimize the level and duration of the noise created during the night work, however, at times the sound levels may be noticeable for nearby residents. BC Ferries would like to thank its customers for their patience and understanding while these necessary night work activities are completed.