Tag Archives: Crew Shortages

Think ferry meetings are scary? Ha. Try City Council.

Editor’s Note: On February 3, 2024, BC Ferries held community drop-in meetings on Cortes and Quadra Islands. There were 25 and 34 participants, respectively. A big concern on Cortes is ‘assured loading.’ BC Ferries stated they need to monitor the effect of using two ferries between Campbell River and Quadra first, but will reevaluate loading procedures after the summer. The first steps towards full electrification of the Campbell River run (design and BC Hydro upgrades) have begun. The design work is expected to take a year. Some sailings on the Campbell River – Quadra route were cancelled because of a lack of crew members and BC Ferries is in the midst of the biggest recruitment campaign in its history.

Originally published on qathet Living

For the past several weeks, Kim Barton-Bridges has tried to figure out when – or whether – BC Ferries executives planned to come to Powell River for the regularly-scheduled spring Northern Sunshine Coast Ferry Advisory Committee meeting, which she chairs. 

The last one was September 21, at the Town Centre Hotel. That one was a little raucous, because some locals were angry about a summer of waiting for hours in hot parking lots, a reservation system that had failed, the cost of traveling, and sailing cancellations due to staffing problems and occasionally technical problems. Although ultimately, Kim noted, everyone at the meeting was relatively respectful. 

Continue reading Think ferry meetings are scary? Ha. Try City Council.

Envisioning The Future of BC Ferries on the Cortes and Quadra Ferry Routes 

BC Ferries and the BC Ferry Authority have launched a joint visioning initiative called ‘Charting the Course,’ which may help shape the future of this service for years to come. In today’s story, Deborah Marshall, Executive Director for Public Affairs and Marketing for BC Ferries, describes the survey and also answered some specific questions about the Cortes and Quadra Island routes. 

Continue reading Envisioning The Future of BC Ferries on the Cortes and Quadra Ferry Routes 

BC Ferries Cancellations This Past Six Months

There was a marked decrease in the number of BC Ferries cancellations on the Campbell River run this past quarter, but little change on the Cortes Island Ferry. 

According to the corporations newly released report of cancellations statistics from July to September 2023, the new hybrid e-ferries only missed 24 sailings as opposed to 161 the previous quarter. 

Continue reading BC Ferries Cancellations This Past Six Months