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Post by Olympic Ferries on Apr 13, 2022 14:50:03 GMT -8
Though they are rare, it can happen! Every sailing has a foot passenger traffic quota. This quota is different for each ship and different for each sailing so one vessel's passenger quota on it's 3rd run of the day could be completely different than its passenger quota on its 6th run. It is never a hard number you can pin down. The variables are the amount of vehicles projected and their passenger counts. One thing which is guaranteed though, is if the ticket booth sold you a ticket, you will not be held for the next sailing. When foot passenger quotas are reached, toll booths simply stop selling tickets. * * * Overall... I think giving foot passengers the option to reserve is stupid. Sure, it gives predictability to the ferry system, and potentially introduces another revenue stream, but if you don't have an idea when peak travel periods are by now, you probably deserve the criticism people direct at you. Additionally, this just causes more problems for the toll booth agents when they have to explain why others arriving after them are permitted through when they are denied. Not BC related, but still share related to this topic - only come close to hitting foot passenger capacity one time to my knowledge, and it was onboard the Elwha departing Friday Harbor on Memorial Day Monday way back when. We nearly hit 1000 passengers with their capacity at just under 1100, it was definitely pretty hectic. |
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Post by 1foot2ships on Jun 8, 2022 21:05:44 GMT -8
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Post by 1foot2ships on Jun 17, 2022 13:35:46 GMT -8
I had to read this article twice to understand it, but in this case, I'm firmly with the passenger. BCF definitely screwed up this one. vancouversun.com/news/b-c-ferries-customer-frustrated-with-lack-of-refund-from-cancelled-sailingIt's good BCF did the minimum, refunding her reso + fare from DB-HSB, but I also think it was a huge slap in her face to be up charged taking the DP-TSW route considering this whole problem was BCFs fault If BCF really wanted to make it right, everybody who got screwed over like that should have been given the option of free passage on the next sailing out of DB or free passage on next sailing out of DP. |
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Post by Blue Bus Fan on Aug 14, 2022 21:40:44 GMT -8
Is this question is coming from average person point view. Does anyone else have trouble redeeming foot passenger reservation at self service kiosk at the terminal?
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Post by Ferryman on Nov 26, 2022 22:30:59 GMT -8
25 years ago, the reservation system was started at BC Ferries. I can't remember if it was specific only for route 1 at the time, but Chek news did a throwback news story on the event
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Neil
Voyager 
Posts: 7,311
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Post by Neil on Oct 6, 2023 19:44:05 GMT -8
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Post by Ollie on Oct 6, 2023 20:00:57 GMT -8
Why would they make the Tsawwassen - Southern Gulf Islands route fully bookable for both vehicles and foot passengers? That route is so often fully booked and they don't give any space for people who can't get reservations!
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Post by WettCoast on Oct 6, 2023 20:12:41 GMT -8
Why would they make the Tsawwassen - Southern Gulf Islands route fully bookable for both vehicles and foot passengers? That route is so often fully booked and they don't give any space for people who can't get reservations!
The Tsawwassen - SGI route has had reservations since pretty much since the beginning in the 1960's. That route, or maybe the Inside Passage route, was the first route served by BCF to have reservations. There was no reservation fees charged and that is still the case today.
I believe that the TSW-SGI route (and the Inside Passage) have been fully bookable since the reservation system (on those routes) was first implemented way back when.
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Post by WettCoast on Oct 7, 2023 19:55:41 GMT -8
Just to confirm, reservations for routes 9 & 10 go all the way back to 1966 (maybe a year earlier for route 9). For route 10 the schedules from the time 'recommended' reservations while for route 9 it was 'required'. I got this info from going to the 'Old Schedules' thread and reading a few posts. |
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Post by 1foot2ships on Dec 22, 2023 15:44:53 GMT -8
weird thing ive never experienced before: girl at the toll booth got me to pull over to the side. she didnt have a lane for drive-up traffic yet. ...huh? went over and was fine with it, but u know how everybody sooner or later gets that ferry rush anxiety comparing yourself to that idiot who just showed up and is getting sent ahead of me?!? hahhaahahah. anybody know what i mean? luckily... she came to get me few mins later before any of that set in. she sent me far left (#35). i think all the way to the right ends at 55(?). anybody here work for the terminal or know how they separate traffic now? am i ok to assume that when i arrived, there really were no designated lanes for drive-ups? the entire SWB compound was reserved for reservations?!? outside the toll booths, there were lots of cars waiting to the side with their flashers on. im assuming those guys were early for their reservations? why cant the toll booths bring them in and jump them onto an earlier ferry? they were NOT sold out. it seems like a series of bad decisions leading to underutilisation of the car hold.  ide love to do away with the whole reservation system, but i do recognise its a fantastic cash cow and its a great way to shift the cash suck onto those whos time is more valuable than mine. im biased cause im just another poor guy, but i dont think 90-something % is fair. has anybody from the co. ever said anything about shifting this to something more equitable? |
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Post by WettCoast on Jun 4, 2024 10:18:04 GMT -8
I'll put these items here because the topic is a reservation system, under discussion in 1980. These are from the Victoria newspaper, the Colonist. Read them in order, 1, 2 & then 3 ...
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,311
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Post by Neil on Jul 11, 2024 21:57:00 GMT -8
This morning, a friend and I set out From White Rock, with time to spare, to catch the 10:25 sailing to Galiano. We didn't know about the overnight accident on Highway 99, and shortly after getting on the highway, we came to a standstill. My friend's Galiano friends called to ask just where we were, and told us about the closure, which let us know right away we weren't going to make our reservation. We called BC Ferries from the car, less than an hour before sailing time, and they cancelled our return reservations, and the agent said he would try to get the cancellation fee waived as well, given the situation.
I imagine BC Ferries lost a fair number of passengers and revenue well into the morning because of an accident that occurred at 1:30am. I was just impressed by the considerate customer service. I don't know if they're always as understanding, but they were with us.
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