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Post by lmtengs on Oct 18, 2011 22:59:17 GMT -8
Here's a general thread for those questions or discussion that come up that don't fit into a currently existing thread, but really don't have enough importance to allow a whole thread being dedicated to them. This will basically halt the creation of threads that start up then die after the topic in question has been answered. Keeps clutter down. So, I'll start it off with a statistical question: Other than the Queen of Burnaby on route 17 (the upper pax deck), the Northern Adventure (the lower "hatched" car deck), and the Coastal Inspiration on route 30 (deck 5), are there any ferries that aren't used to capacity on a regular basis? (ie, passenger space that is closed more than 70% of the time, or car deck space that is never used.)
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Post by Mike C on Oct 19, 2011 16:15:33 GMT -8
So, I'll start it off with a statistical question: Other than the Queen of Burnaby on route 17 (the upper pax deck), the Northern Adventure (the lower "hatched" car deck), and the Coastal Inspiration on route 30 (deck 5), are there any ferries that aren't used to capacity on a regular basis? (ie, passenger space that is closed more than 70% of the time, or car deck space that is never used.) Not pax space, but the vehicle deck space on the Spirits are not used regularly. Also bear in mind that there are passenger areas that have been converted to crew spaces - this is a common occurrence on the minors, but I know that one of the saddle lounges on the Nimpkish as well as the rear space on the Quadra Queen II were both converted for crew uses.
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Post by chinook2 on Oct 19, 2011 18:31:07 GMT -8
How un(der) ultilized catering facilities? Snack bar on the Bowen comes to mind.
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Post by chinook2 on Oct 19, 2011 18:43:49 GMT -8
The original staterooms on the B's and the QofNW?? The Sidneys and Victorias all had them, and they were promoted to the public back in the WAC days--rentable for $5. Remember in the early 90s, when my son was young, the Vs had one converted to a breastfeeding room.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Oct 21, 2011 16:40:55 GMT -8
Good thread idea; I've changed the thread title slightly.
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Post by Ferryman on Oct 25, 2011 22:23:57 GMT -8
The Queen of Nanaimo had 4 Staterooms plus an "Executive Stateroom" available up until her refit last winter. Now There are only 2 Staterooms and the Executive Stateroom to rent now. They're around $15-20 to rent, and are quite often used actually usually by folks making the long trek to Long Harbour from Tsawwassen during the 3 hour milk run. The reason why she has two less Staterooms was so the Officers could have a lunch room to retreat to that is still near the bridge, and the other one converted to a computer server room. The Queen of Nanaimo and the 6 sisters originally had 8 staterooms.
The Queen of New Westminsters original staterooms were ripped apart and converted to crew lunchrooms to make room for the extra lounge space amidships on Deck 5. I believe they installed two staterooms in what was once the Solarium. It's been awhile since I was on the New West...two years now actually, so I can't remember the full layout anymore.
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Post by glasseye on Oct 25, 2011 23:23:05 GMT -8
What kind of IT setup does the Nanaimo have that it needs a whole room for servers and network equipment?
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Neil
Voyager
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Post by Neil on May 31, 2013 20:02:05 GMT -8
Does anyone (Chris?) know exactly what constitutes an 'arrival' in BC Ferries lingo? Is it when the ferry first enters the slip, when it stops moving, or when the ramp touches down? In the case of a Coastal at Tsawassen, it can be five minutes from the time it passes the first dolphin to the time it comes to a halt.
I was wondering this after noting the arrival time for the 3:15 Duke Point to Tsawwassen sailing of the 'Renaissance this afternoon. It says 3:21, but the ship did not stop motion until at least 3:25. That was also the arrival time that had been announced when we left Duke Point.
Which brings me to a second question. Has anyone else noticed that, usually, the sailing times announced at the commencement of a route 30 sailing are two hours and ten minutes these days? I have, but then, I normally travel at off peak times, and I'm wondering if BC Ferries has slowed down the Coastals slightly, when they can, to save on fuel.
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Post by Ferryman on May 31, 2013 21:58:17 GMT -8
Does anyone (Chris?) know exactly what constitutes an 'arrival' in BC Ferries lingo? Is it when the ferry first enters the slip, when it stops moving, or when the ramp touches down? In the case of a Coastal at Tsawassen, it can be five minutes from the time it passes the first dolphin to the time it comes to a halt. I was wondering this after noting the arrival time for the 3:15 Duke Point to Tsawwassen sailing of the 'Renaissance this afternoon. It says 3:21, but the ship did not stop motion until at least 3:25. That was also the arrival time that had been announced when we left Duke Point. Which brings me to a second question. Has anyone else noticed that, usually, the sailing times announced at the commencement of a route 30 sailing are two hours and ten minutes these days? I have, but then, I normally travel at off peak times, and I'm wondering if BC Ferries has slowed down the Coastals slightly, when they can, to save on fuel. I suppose that's a bit of a grey area to look at. Typically the arrival time is supposed to be when the ship is in dock and has just stopped moving. The arrival time can be tricky to predict sometimes especially if the current isn't working in their favour, and is usually done by use of the ships electronics. As for what is posted online, the arrival time, or ETA that is given over the PA is also given to the opposing terminal upon departure from the initial terminal which is probably the time that makes it online. As for sailing times, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised for longer crossing times. The crossing times are typically longer on all routes now in favour of saving fuel. With that being said, the speed has to of course be carefully adjusted so that it doesn't have the ship departing late for the next sailing. Traffic waiting for the ship will usually dictate this time. No sense in having the Coastal Inspiration rushing over to Duke Point if there are only 100 cars waiting, which is where time would be made up in the dock with a fast turnaround time.
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Post by Deleted on May 31, 2013 23:38:42 GMT -8
Does anyone (Chris?) know exactly what constitutes an 'arrival' in BC Ferries lingo? Is it when the ferry first enters the slip, when it stops moving, or when the ramp touches down? In the case of a Coastal at Tsawassen, it can be five minutes from the time it passes the first dolphin to the time it comes to a halt. I was wondering this after noting the arrival time for the 3:15 Duke Point to Tsawwassen sailing of the 'Renaissance this afternoon. It says 3:21, but the ship did not stop motion until at least 3:25. That was also the arrival time that had been announced when we left Duke Point. Which brings me to a second question. Has anyone else noticed that, usually, the sailing times announced at the commencement of a route 30 sailing are two hours and ten minutes these days? I have, but then, I normally travel at off peak times, and I'm wondering if BC Ferries has slowed down the Coastals slightly, when they can, to save on fuel. I suppose that's a bit of a grey area to look at. Typically the arrival time is supposed to be when the ship is in dock and has just stopped moving. The arrival time can be tricky to predict sometimes especially if the current isn't working in their favour, and is usually done by use of the ships electronics. As for what is posted online, the arrival time, or ETA that is given over the PA is also given to the opposing terminal upon departure from the initial terminal which is probably the time that makes it online. As for sailing times, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised for longer crossing times. The crossing times are typically longer on all routes now in favour of saving fuel. With that being said, the speed has to of course be carefully adjusted so that it doesn't have the ship departing late for the next sailing. Traffic waiting for the ship will usually dictate this time. No sense in having the Coastal Inspiration rushing over to Duke Point if there are only 100 cars waiting, which is where time would be made up in the dock with a fast turnaround time. Pretty much what Chris has said, but to be specific for route 3; I've noticed twice that it's when the ship has stoppped its forward/backward motion due to coming in contact the berth 'walls.'
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Post by compdude787 on Jun 19, 2013 20:14:08 GMT -8
WSF has a vessel maintenance schedule on their website which is helpful in knowing what ferries will be on a certain route in the next week or two (though, I will note that it's just as accurate as a long term weather forecast when it comes to predicting what will happen in a month or two with maintenance activities).
Anyway, does BC Ferries has something like this on their website, too? As far as I can tell, they don't as I haven't been able to find it.
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Post by BreannaF on Oct 22, 2013 21:28:26 GMT -8
The fog has been thick in my own neighbourhood for a few days now, and the sound of foghorns on the ships have been ongoing.
That got me in the mood for a ferry roundtrip in the fog after work today (on a WSF ferry, of course). And that led to the following (trivial) question about BC Ferries:
There are days of really thick fog when the ferry sounds the horn every few minutes. On BC Ferries, there seems to be a warning message before the horn is sounded. So, do they have to do the message every time this happens, or if the horn is being used a lot, do they just tell everyone to stay inside if they value their hearing? Or what?
Just a curious trivia question that popped into my mind today......
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Post by Low Light Mike on Oct 22, 2013 21:31:24 GMT -8
There are days of really thick fog when the ferry sounds the horn every few minutes. On BC Ferries, there seems to be a warning message before the horn is sounded. So, do they have to do the message every time this happens, or if the horn is being used a lot, do they just tell everyone to stay inside if they value their hearing? Or what? Only one warning, at the beginning, which explains that the horn will be sounding regularly throughout the voyage.
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Neil
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Post by Neil on Oct 22, 2013 21:48:37 GMT -8
There are days of really thick fog when the ferry sounds the horn every few minutes. On BC Ferries, there seems to be a warning message before the horn is sounded. So, do they have to do the message every time this happens, or if the horn is being used a lot, do they just tell everyone to stay inside if they value their hearing? Or what? Only one warning, at the beginning, which explains that the horn will be sounding regularly throughout the voyage. The above posts make me think of something that I was wondering about earlier today, after reading on line news stories and references to ferry 'foghorns'. Of course, ferries don't have foghorns. They sound their 'whistles', and that's what officers warn passengers about. But I've always wondered why something that seems so clearly horn-like (No, not you, Mike) is referred to as a whistle. Lauren Bacall once very alluringly said, back in the days when movie eroticism was much more gentle than today, " You know how to whistle, don't you, Steve? You just put your lips together and... blow." That's a whistle... as is one of those little tin things with a reed in it. It's a long standing tradition...a ship's 'whistle'. Even though it's definitely more a horn, or even a foghorn.
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Post by WettCoast on Oct 23, 2013 7:24:14 GMT -8
Only one warning, at the beginning, which explains that the horn will be sounding regularly throughout the voyage. The above posts make me think of something that I was wondering about earlier today, after reading on line news stories and references to ferry 'foghorns'. Of course, ferries don't have foghorns. They sound their 'whistles', and that's what officers warn passengers about. But I've always wondered why something that seems so clearly horn-like (No, not you, Mike) is referred to as a whistle. Lauren Bacall once very alluringly said, back in the days when movie eroticism was much more gentle than today, " You know how to whistle, don't you, Steve? You just put your lips together and... blow." That's a whistle... as is one of those little tin things with a reed in it. It's a long standing tradition...a ship's 'whistle'. Even though it's definitely more a horn, or even a foghorn. In the days of steam, ships' whistles (& railway locomotives, too) were truly whistles. When steam gave way to diesel power in the 1940-50's, tradition had us continuing to refer to these warning devices as whistles rather than horns which is what they actually are.
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Post by Ferryman on Oct 23, 2013 19:56:34 GMT -8
The fog has been thick in my own neighbourhood for a few days now, and the sound of foghorns on the ships have been ongoing. That got me in the mood for a ferry roundtrip in the fog after work today (on a WSF ferry, of course). And that led to the following (trivial) question about BC Ferries: There are days of really thick fog when the ferry sounds the horn every few minutes. On BC Ferries, there seems to be a warning message before the horn is sounded. So, do they have to do the message every time this happens, or if the horn is being used a lot, do they just tell everyone to stay inside if they value their hearing? Or what? Just a curious trivia question that popped into my mind today...... Others beat me to the chase on the answer to your question. But just to elaborate a bit more...the whistle timer can be set to automatically sound one prolonged blast (4 to 6 seconds long) every two minutes as per regulation. One generic announcement would be made before hand mentioning the sounding every two minutes, and then that would be it for the voyage. Also, the whistle will sound every two minutes generally when the visibility decreases to about one nautical mile or less. This next bit may depend on the vessel, but each vessel I've worked on in this next bit was the same on each one. As the whistle timer is turned off, the whistle automatically sends out a quick blast. This signals to the Deckhand who's standing look at the bow to stand down from lookout, since visibility has increased.
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Koastal Karl
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Post by Koastal Karl on Jan 6, 2014 14:03:58 GMT -8
Anyone know why on route 30 at Tsawwassen before departure they announce that this ferry is going to Nanaimo?? I find it odd cause you need a ticket to board and the right ticket too so the chances of someone getting on the wrong boat are slim!
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Post by Mike C on Jan 6, 2014 14:35:20 GMT -8
Anyone know why on route 30 at Tsawwassen before departure they announce that this ferry is going to Nanaimo?? I find it odd cause you need a ticket to board and the right ticket too so the chances of someone getting on the wrong boat are slim! I've never seen someone actually get on the wrong ship, but I have heard of it happening. They have been doing this ever since I can remember traveling on Route 30 (going back 20+ years), in fact, they would have an automated "Bing-Bong" announcement from Bill McKenzie. Today, they have a Kelly (Karen?) announcement for Routes 9 and 30. I've also heard such announcements played on Routes 2 and 3. I always found it funny for vehicle passengers, since it's pretty much 100% commitment once you drive on the boat.
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Post by Ferryman on Jan 6, 2014 15:13:48 GMT -8
It's amazing how many people slip through the cracks and end up on the wrong vessel. Cars sometimes end up heading for the wrong lanes in the terminal after they leave the ticket booth, which end up lining up for a different destination than they had hoped. The tower does a fairly good job at keeping an eye out for this, but they have lots of other things to focus on at the same time. Also, the ramp attendants on the overhead walkway might not be able to read the ticket fast enough to ensure that every passenger is getting on the right vessel. I guess it's mostly up to the people themselves to figure out where they need to go at the terminal to get on the right vessel.
At Tsawwassen, whenever the Queen of Nanaimo arrives, you'll notice that the terminal will no longer announce over the PA system that the "Queen of Nanaimo has arrived...", but instead they will now say, "The Gulf Islands ferry has now arrived...". This is because some people would only end up hearing the name, "Nanaimo" over the PA, and then people automatically assume that would be the ferry bound for Nanaimo, but wouldn't realize what had just happened until they came aboard the Nanaimo, and was well on their way to the Gulf Islands. There are all kinds of measures in place to try and prevent confusion, despite all of the simple announcements, and clearly marked signage (everywhere you go), that people just don't fully clue into where they're going or where they need to be. Especially since there are hundreds of people stampeding their way towards the ferry to try and be first in line for the cafeteria. But instead more focused on their cell phones, getting pictures of the harbour seals and fat seagulls, or are trying to figure out where the nearest Starbucks is.
I can remember on more than one occurrence on the Skeena, where the ship was seconds from departing Swartz Bay to Salt Spring, where a curious passenger would track down a crew member to confirm that this was the ferry to Vancouver. Sure enough, they were on the wrong ferry, AND their vehicle was buried among a few dozen other vehicles. The Ferry crew do their best to try and accommodate these people, but sometimes it's a little bit too late and they're forced to do a round trip, or even worse, spend the night on Salt Spring (true story).
Personally, I couldn't imagine traveling somewhere unfamiliar, and not making a modest effort figure out what might I need to look out for, or what kind of variables there could be, ie arriving at a terminal that has more than one destination. Yes, we all make mistakes, But there are still a lot of cases that make you go, "REALLY??!".
Anyways, the list goes on for those kinds of stories. But that's just an example as to why those sorts of announcements are made, regardless if people choose to listen to them or not.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 6, 2014 16:04:43 GMT -8
Anyone know why on route 30 at Tsawwassen before departure they announce that this ferry is going to Nanaimo?? I find it odd cause you need a ticket to board and the right ticket too so the chances of someone getting on the wrong boat are slim! It is very typical for route 2 vessels to make this announcement as well. Over the summer in HSB, I always found the Chief Steward on the Queen of Cowichan to be making 3 announcements before departure. She would say "Your attention please passengers, just a reminder that this vessel is bound for Departure Bay Nanaimo on Vancouver Island only." I assume that this is because there are many C class vessels entering & departing HSB, with different destinations.
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Koastal Karl
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Been on every BC Ferry now!!!!!
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Post by Koastal Karl on Jan 6, 2014 17:12:48 GMT -8
I had a girl ask me last night while waiting at berth 3 for the Inspiration where she was suppose to go! lol! I asked her where she was going and she said Nanaimo! I said that's right here! lol! Is Tsawwasseen really that confusing I thought to myself! I also think cause the Rennie was in berth 2 the Nanaimo was probably gonna use berth 3 too! I heard someone looking for the gulf island berth too!
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Post by hwy19man on Jan 10, 2014 13:40:17 GMT -8
Anyone know why on route 30 at Tsawwassen before departure they announce that this ferry is going to Nanaimo?? I find it odd cause you need a ticket to board and the right ticket too so the chances of someone getting on the wrong boat are slim! I've never seen someone actually get on the wrong ship, but I have heard of it happening. They have been doing this ever since I can remember traveling on Route 30 (going back 20+ years), in fact, they would have an automated "Bing-Bong" announcement from Bill McKenzie. Today, they have a Kelly (Karen?) announcement for Routes 9 and 30. I've also heard such announcements played on Routes 2 and 3.
I always found it funny for vehicle passengers, since it's pretty much 100% commitment once you drive on the boat. It certainly happens especially during busy times. I have been on both routes 1 and 30 leaving Tsawwassen and some passengers realized they were heading to the wrong island destination. Crew members have said it is mostly foot passengers that make the mistake by not looking at which berth they are heading to and the employee not noticing the printed ticket destination. The situation happened more often when route 30 would leave on the hour in the early 1990s, vessels would depart at 800h, 1300h, 1800h, and 2300h. Since then, the ships leave 15 minutes earlier.
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Post by Starsteward on Jan 10, 2014 17:48:35 GMT -8
Cars, drivers and foot passenger mis-direction isn't only germain to Routes 1 and 2 One Summer way back in 1967, 15 minutes from leaving Kelsey Bay for Prnce Rupert, a couple came up to the Purser's Office to check in and declared:"What a big boat BC Ferries runs up to Port McNeil! Whaaaat? Chief Steward promptly told them we were in fact headed to Rupert not McNeil. Quick call to the Bridge, and Captain, Loading Officer et al were informed of the situation and to hold tight. Did they have a vehicle? Thankfully no So it ended up being a quick boot back down the stairs to the car deck, rummage through the baggage wagon, pulled their four huge bags, and hustled them up the loading ramp and bid them adieu! Time lost: 10 minutes. Departed Kelsey at 13:10 hours.
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Post by Starsteward on Jan 10, 2014 22:28:09 GMT -8
...Oops, forgot to add one small detail to the wayward Port McNeil passenger post. At the time the folks should have been travelling to P.M. on the (pre-catamaran) North Island Princess. No wonder the "waywards" thought the 'Rupert' was a big boat to be running to that small community.
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Neil
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Post by Neil on Jan 11, 2014 22:45:07 GMT -8
Ferry nerds need to keep in mind that there is a shockingly large percentage of the population which doesn't spend hours of leisure time hanging around ferry terminals watching boats come and go, and snapping photos. These unenlightened folks are only concerned with getting from point A to point B, and in their unfocused state, especially if they're not paying attention to announcements or signboards, it's easy to stand around at the wrong boarding point along the foot passenger area at Tsawwassen... hence the need for onboard announcements about destinations. Shame on them, but one can only hope that eventually they'll clue in.
At least once they've bumbled their way onto the correct sailing, Chuck Currie is there to tell them they've picked a great day to sail.
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