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Post by DENelson83 on Feb 9, 2012 13:01:35 GMT -8
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Neil
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Post by Neil on Feb 9, 2012 15:21:39 GMT -8
Anybody know what that CBC article is talking about when it states a second ferry is making two additional runs per day, as well as what the NIP is doing? I don't see any service notice.
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WettCoast
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Post by WettCoast on Feb 9, 2012 15:46:37 GMT -8
Anybody know what that CBC article is talking about when it states a second ferry is making two additional runs per day, as well as what the NIP is doing? I don't see any service notice. Still no service notice.... The Tachek is to make two round trips per day carrying commercial traffic only. That would be in addition to the service she is providing to Texada Island. I heard this today on CBC Radio 1's noon news. I gather that there is no possibility of the NIP being coaxed into making a fifth round trip? It just does not have the speed, I gather.
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Post by Ferryman on Feb 13, 2012 23:49:08 GMT -8
Because there's no other dedicated thread for the situation between Routes 17 and 18 at the moment, other than some discussion in the Queen of Burnaby photo thread, I'll post this here.
Here's the protest at Blubber Bay this morning, with residents fed up with the boat swap.
While I can totally understand why they'd be upset, these folks don't have a very good understanding of what's happening. There doesn't seem to be much of an understanding that it was just unfortunate timing with the Queen of Chilliwack going for refit, and that there's no other appropriate replacement vessel to work up there at the moment. It just happens to be that BCF is pretty much at the peak of Refit season right now, with having 6 different vessels out of service. With the Burnaby out of service, that totals 7 vessels out of service. They're lucky that the Tachek wasn't filling in somewhere else like she normally is. Texada has a population of 1200 people, and the North Island Princess sails empty most of the time as it is. So I can see why BC Ferries went and tried to figure out which sailings they could get away with cutting out in order to have the Tachek help out on Route 17.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Feb 14, 2012 8:27:11 GMT -8
While I can totally understand why they'd be upset, these folks don't have a very good understanding of what's happening. There doesn't seem to be much of an understanding that it was just unfortunate timing with the Queen of Chilliwack going for refit, and that there's no other appropriate replacement vessel to work up there at the moment. It just happens to be that BCF is pretty much at the peak of Refit season right now, with having 6 different vessels out of service. With the Burnaby out of service, that totals 7 vessels out of service. They're lucky that the Tachek wasn't filling in somewhere else like she normally is. Texada has a population of 1200 people, and the North Island Princess sails empty most of the time as it is. So I can see why BC Ferries went and tried to figure out which sailings they could get away with cutting out in order to have the Tachek help out on Route 17. As a non Texadian observing from a distance, I think that the "Local Protest" was the culmination of a number of things that had built-up over the past few years. Hey, most revolutionary action starts out that way.... the seeds were various and were sown long before someone finally dared to step-out and protest. ...but I digress. I think that the Texadians appreciate the situation pretty well, because we all know how well islanders are in-tune with their local issues. I think that the target of the protest was mainly the Provincial Government: to get Victoria's attention to the perfect-storm crisis that was caused in part of the previous years' decisions and policy. Fact: The 'Chilliwack is in long-term refit and isn't available to be the usual replacement for the Burnaby - Related fact: The Chilliwack is in long-term refit because the Provincial Government decided that it was better to do 2 years of multi-million$ refits in order to squeeze 5-7 more years of life out of the ship, instead of starting the process for a replacement ship. Fact: The Burnaby breakdown took place during the height of refit season, when there are very few extra ships available. - Related fact: The Burnaby just finished her own multi-million$ refit, and experienced a significant break-down after her refit. Should her Autumn2011 refit have included all the items that needed attention? Fact: Texada has a low population and many sailings are low utilization. - Related fact: The Texada ferry is the fleet's oldest, and had a bad spell of her own post-refit breakdowns last year. The Texada people are aware of this, and this impacts their motivation to protest now. Conclusion: - it's a tough situation right now, based on what immediate options BCFS has. - But parts of this tough immediate situation can be traced back to decisions made in the past few years by the Ferry Company and by the Provincial Government. They let the factors leading to this situation occur, and now a perfect-storm has come up to bite them (and to bite the public). I don't see this situation changing for the next few years. Sure, the Chilliwack is likely not scheduled for part-3 of an extensive refit in winter 2012/13, but with such an old ship, who knows what her Comox availability and condition will be during next year's off-season. I wouldn't count on the Chilliwack for anything....
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Neil
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Post by Neil on Feb 14, 2012 10:23:40 GMT -8
To Mr Horn's comments I would add that there simply is no reservoir of public goodwill that BC ferries can draw on right now. When you put together the controversy over David Hahn's salary, ongoing fare increases on thge 'minor' routes, so-called hard landings, and frequent breakdowns, you get an ongoing narrative that does not lead to people being inclined to cut them much slack. Throw into the mix an unpopular government that is seen to be a part of the problem, and you have difficult days for BC Ferries's pr types, even if there are legitimate excuses for particular problems.
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Post by Ferryman on Feb 16, 2012 12:43:24 GMT -8
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Post by Low Light Mike on Feb 29, 2012 13:01:34 GMT -8
Powell River Peak news article about the costs & stats of the recent Comox Route replacements. From here: www.prpeak.com/articles/2012/02/29/news/doc4f4d8d9454c71819146466.txt3,100 vehicles on 140 small-ship sailings is an average of 22.14 vehicles per sailing. - listed capacities for autos for Tachek and NIP are 30 & 40, respectively. Of course, the first sailing from Comox and last sailing from Westview would probably be lightly used, in any ship situation.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Mar 26, 2012 18:35:15 GMT -8
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Post by lmtengs on Mar 26, 2012 22:24:04 GMT -8
Who's up to make our Queen of Richmond crew (and the 'Richmond herself) a reality? I have my ship designs all drawn up.
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Post by DENelson83 on Mar 27, 2012 9:56:48 GMT -8
This is an opinion piece that I wrote and sent to the Nanaimo Daily News. It may not be realistic, but I meant it to be provocative. It shows that some people are really starting to get angry with how the Government has restructured our marine highway to behave more like a cruise line. And cruise ships obviously do not carry vehicles.
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Post by Scott on Mar 31, 2012 9:23:30 GMT -8
No word on which ferry it was... but an RCMP officer left his gun behind in the cafeteria last week.
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Post by Scott on Apr 7, 2012 8:34:01 GMT -8
Some near misses from BC Ferries recorded by TSB and published by the Vancouver Sun. It would be nice if they also gave us a list of incidents where BC Ferries crews helped in marine emergencies through the year, but I guess good news doesn't really sell.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Apr 19, 2012 11:14:46 GMT -8
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Post by Ferryman on Apr 22, 2012 19:22:18 GMT -8
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Post by Scott on Apr 24, 2012 21:40:00 GMT -8
From BC Ferries on Twitter:
Has anyone heard any more details about this anywhere? I couldn't find anything on their website about it... and I couldn't get far enough into the reservation system to see if I could actually do it!
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Neil
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Post by Neil on May 3, 2012 12:03:05 GMT -8
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Neil
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Post by Neil on May 5, 2012 11:13:32 GMT -8
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WettCoast
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Post by WettCoast on May 5, 2012 16:35:31 GMT -8
That is an interesting read hi-lighting just how dysfunctional our ferry service has become since the enlightened decision to 'privatize' it in 2003. Fixing the mess will not be easy.
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Post by Ferryman on May 29, 2012 15:29:19 GMT -8
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Post by Low Light Mike on May 29, 2012 17:11:09 GMT -8
Also a new Secretary-Treasurer, and so are the 2 VPs. They are all 3-year terms.
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WettCoast
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Post by WettCoast on May 31, 2012 9:59:15 GMT -8
Was the construction of the Duke Point Terminal a "gross error" as stated in the attached article which I found in my local newspaper last night... This article by Tom Fletcher, legislative reporter for Black Press, appeared in the Northern Sentinel (Kitimat) yesterday, May 30th. I expect that it has also appeared in many other Black Press papers around BC over the last few days. The 'gross error" statement is in fact quoted from the 2004 book Head On!, authored by a former deputy highways minister R. G. Harvey. I am fairly certain that some of the content of this article is article is incorrect, or at least misleading. The Mid-Island Express route came into being in the latter 1980's during Vander Zalm's (Social Credit) term as Premier. It was the NDP that opted to build a new Nanaimo terminal for this route however. If that move was in fact a "gross error" the current government/ BCFS have had a dozen years to correct it. Perhaps the recent extended closure of Duke Point is the beginning of the end for that terminal? BTW, this article entitled Ferry fleet Sails into storm is not just about Duke Point. Give it a read. Attachments:
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Post by Dane on Jun 2, 2012 15:32:59 GMT -8
Twitter, via BC Ferries and CKNW is reporting a bomb threat on the Queen of Coquitlam at this moment.
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Post by Dane on Jun 2, 2012 15:49:07 GMT -8
QoOB rerouted to Duke Point vice Departure Bay from Horseshoe Bay's 1510 sailing due to above noted threat.
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Post by Political Incorrectness on Jun 2, 2012 17:22:23 GMT -8
Departure Bay has now been closed for the night, Route 2 is being diverted to Duke Point and shuttles have been setup between the two terminals.
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