British Columbia鈥檚 ferry system is a constant target of criticism, and while it is not all it should be and, we hope, not all it will become, we should pause occasionally to recognize what a jewel it is.
It鈥檚 easy to find reasons to complain, especially if you鈥檙e driving the car just behind the last one to make the 9 a.m. sailing to Tsawwassen, but no ferry schedule can be convenient for everyone all the time.
sa国际传媒 Ferries has tried different things to improve services and be more frugal. Some have worked; some haven鈥檛, but many changes have been positive.
People complain about the reservation system, but it鈥檚 a substantial improvement 鈥� $18.50 is not an exorbitant price for assurance you will arrive on time for your business appointment or some other important event.
And it鈥檚 voluntary 鈥� if you don鈥檛 like it, don鈥檛 use it.
Another improvement is the installation of electronic signs at Sidney and Ladner that inform travellers of how the next ferry is filling up.
The big vessels on the longer runs offer Wi-Fi so you can keep texting and surfing the Internet, if the magnificent scenery gliding by isn鈥檛 enough to hold your intention.
A frequent complaint is that sa国际传媒 Ferries should be concerned with basic transportation, not tourism. The vessels that sail from Swartz Bay, Duke Point and Departure Bay to the mainland are occasionally compared to cruise ships with their restaurants, gift shops and other luxuries.
The irony is that those 鈥渃ruise ships鈥� are profitable. They ply the only routes that make money.
Transport sa国际传媒 dictates that the ferries must carry a certain complement of qualified crew to direct evacuation in case of an emergency. Rather than sitting idle waiting for something to happen, those crew members work in food services and gift shops. 鈥淭hey contribute to the bottom line,鈥� says Deborah Marshall, sa国际传媒 Ferries鈥� director of media relations, noting that onboard retail services netted $47 million in fiscal 2013.
sa国际传媒 Ferries is often compared to Washington state鈥檚 ferry system. While there are similarities, there are huge differences. Washington鈥檚 system is the biggest in the U.S., with 22 vessels travelling routes totalling 85 nautical miles. sa国际传媒 Ferries, the largest in North America, has 36 vessels travelling routes totalling about 1,000 nautical miles.
Washington ferries carried 22 million passengers in 2012; in sa国际传媒, the total was 20 million. Moving more people over shorter distances, the Washington system operates more economically, yet it is still subsidized and plagued by rising fares, aging vessels and funding problems.
When it gets down to it, the main complaints are cost and frequency of sailings, two sides of the same coin. Operating the ferry system will always cost the public purse, and many costs, such as fuel, are beyond BCF鈥檚 control.
Executive pay also attracts negative attention, particularly bonuses. sa国际传媒 Ferries CEO Mike Corrigan鈥檚 remuneration totalled $560,000 last year. That鈥檚 about half what former CEO David Hahn made, but a significant chunk of Corrigan鈥檚 pay came as a performance bonus, and shareholders 鈥� the people of sa国际传媒 鈥� don鈥檛 like the sound of a bonus when ferry fares are rising and routes are being cut. Still, executive pay is not a huge factor in an $800-million annual budget.
sa国际传媒 Ferries will always have challenges, one being the link between rising fares and declining ridership. But there are no easy answers, and anyone who believes in quick fixes doesn鈥檛 have all the facts.
We can鈥檛 ignore the problems and challenges, but neither should we forget that sa国际传媒 Ferries is a remarkable asset.
