Doug
Voyager
Lurking within...the car deck.
Posts: 2,213
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Post by Doug on Jun 18, 2006 20:27:01 GMT -8
Mainlander, get it through your head, ALBION IS MAPLE RIDGE!!
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Post by Scott on Jun 22, 2006 18:17:40 GMT -8
The TransCanada was closed just past the Port Mann Bridge late this morning and early this afternoon after a big, fatal, accident. Around 3 oclock the radio reported a 10 sailing wait from the Fort Langley side.
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Post by Mike C on Jun 22, 2006 20:59:28 GMT -8
Pfffft oh god. horrible, horrible. Almost as bad as Departure Bay on Labour Day.
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Koastal Karl
Voyager
Been on every BC Ferry now!!!!!
Posts: 7,747
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Post by Koastal Karl on Jun 22, 2006 21:40:20 GMT -8
ah yeah I heard that on the Vancouver radio stations of a 10 sailing wait at Fort Langely! That is just crazy!
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Post by kylefossett on Jun 26, 2006 15:12:45 GMT -8
was that thursday june 22 that you heard about the wait. there was an mva at the coleman entrance to hwy 1 and they closed the hwy for about 4 hrs. coleman entrance is the second on ramp westbound after the port mann bridge, they were lined up all the way back to 200th street in langley. i believe it that there was a 10 sailing wait that day
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Post by Scott on Jun 27, 2006 21:40:27 GMT -8
Yeah, that was the day. There was another accident there this morning, but it only blocked two lanes.
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Mill Bay
Voyager
Long Suffering Bosun
Posts: 2,886
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Post by Mill Bay on Jul 2, 2007 15:21:42 GMT -8
Tripped on the Albion ferry the other night... (this would have been last tuesday, a week ago)
I had been at a thing in Coquitlam and decided the #7 highway was a straight shot down and back to Chilliwack, so I used it as an excuse to ride the ferry.
I ended up waiting forty-five minutes because it turns out they had just pulled the Klatawa out for fuelling...
I saw the Kulleet come in empty except for an Esso tank truck, and I thought at first it was a dangerous cargo crossing... but then the Kulleet loaded and left, and the Klatawa came in, unloaded and the Esso truck backed down the ramp and the Klatawa moved off and warped up to the wharf beside the ferry slip, so I clued in to the fact that they must be fueling the ferries.
All in all, it was worth it to spend forty-five minutes and get to see the fuelling operations, as well as the Kulleet go back and forth a couple times on her own.
Didn't have a camera (*curses*), but it was dark, dark anyway... I saw a neat train in New West and couldn't get a picture of it.
But I would highly recommend spending a (quiet) evening down at the ferry dock, listening to the sound of the river, the ferries and the container trains thundering by.
Forget about communing with nature, commune with the ferries instead.
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Post by BrianWilliams on Jul 4, 2007 18:44:18 GMT -8
" But I would highly recommend spending a (quiet) evening down at the ferry dock, listening to the sound of the river, the ferries and the container trains thundering by. "
Amen! Unlike a steamy, crawling car-bound wait on the Port Mann highway approaches, Albion or Fort Langley delays offer a chance to walk a bit, munch from the snack shack, wander down to the big river, see the CP trains (at Albion) roll by at high speed and generally de-compress.
Ferry good! Big traffic-jammed bridge bad!
PS: Years ago, when our daughter was young, we waited at Albion on a Saturday morning 'cause one boat was out. Wandering by the CP line, inbound 100-car grain trains roared by every 15 minutes. 9-yr old Bronwyn watched the big rails bend under their weight, rebound, and depress again as they passed.
"Are those cars full?" she asked
-Yep, 100 tons each-
"That's so much, and there are hundreds of them!"
-Right, kiddo, we're feeding the world- I said.
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Post by Nucksrule on Oct 19, 2007 17:25:33 GMT -8
I went on the Klatawa today. The ferries look nice, as if they had gotten a recent refit or upgrade as well as a new paint job. It was very busy (5 sailing wait from Fort Langley side ) but very pleasant. Too bad they won't be in service much longer as they're to be replaced in 2009 by the new Golden Ears Bridge. Very nice alternative to the backed up Port Mann Bridge.
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Post by Hardy on Oct 19, 2007 18:16:11 GMT -8
It is good to note that these boats are at least being maintained TOP SIDE. It speaks well to any potential future use once the GEB is in service.
FYI: In case I did not mention it anywhere else, I have learned that BCFS, the Coquihalla and the new GEB (and also future Port Mann) are all involved in standardizing transponders for TOLLING. The reason that BCFS is involved, is at this stage, they still administer what is now called "BC Ferries Commercial Travel Card (CTC)" as well as the "BC Ferries Travel Card (TC)". While these can be used for paying vehicle and passenger fares on board ALL BC Ferries Routes, they can (surprisingly enough) also be used at the Coquihalla toll boothes to pay vehicle tolls. This harkens back to the "old" days where the ferries were a provincial crown corporation.
Back to current though, I hear that the transponders for tolling on the bridges will also enable a bypass at the Coquihalla. When the tolls are first in place on the GEB, transponder-ized vehicles will have a 2-3 month grace period to test the new system, where information will be collected from the transponders, but no actual tolls will be charged (this could all change, but this is how it has been told to me as of a few weeks ago).
Also, there is "study" into using the transponders at BCFS terminals as well -- apparently, the transponders will be programmed with vehicle TYPE and LENGTH, as well as account information. I imagine that a ticket booth attendant would still need to finalize any transaction as to destination and passengers, but using a transponder for the basic information definately seems to be a way to speed up processing times at the booths.
I will update the forum if I get any further information in this regard.
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Post by Northern Exploration on Oct 19, 2007 18:56:55 GMT -8
These transponders are used for highway 407 toll freeway in Toronto. It is the highway bypass route that goes across the north of Toronto as a bipass to highway 401. The transponder records what ramp you enter on and what exit you leave on and charges your account according to the distance driven. When you don't have a transponder cameras record your face and license plate number and the cars owner is charged via mail and at a premium. People tried heavily tinted plate covers until it was outlawed to outwit the cameras. BCFC would find this information invaluable for frequent users and commercial accounts. The data contained would tell you a lot about patterns of use etc. Of course tourists and others who don't use the ferries as much wouldn't have a use for them. Frequent users could get a price break by using the transponders. There would have to be an input either by the user or by an attendant as to the number of passengers in the vehicle. Couple that with a feature that you can reserve on a ferry and BC Ferries would have a very useful gauge of traffic volume sooner and should be able to adjust accordingly - well in theory anyways . The transponder would reduce the attendants time to process a vehicle because so much would be automated. They would know whether the vehicle is a Lincoln Town Car or Smart Car. When you park in the new YYZ parking lot it is full of new innovations. Firstly the system knows when a parking spot is free, a green light is activated above the spot and at the beginning of the row there is a sign which reads how many spaces are free in that row. When you enter the garage a camera takes your face pic and plate. There was a rash of high end cars stolen from the old terminal parking lot. When you leave the system records your face and plate again. Big brother is watching you. However car thefts have almost disappeared. They haven't added a transponder feature for frequent parkers at the airport but that can't be far away. Your company or personal credit card could just be automatically billed.
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Post by Hardy on Oct 20, 2007 13:53:12 GMT -8
Part of this is what they are trying to automate with the introduction of transponders here. The GEB (and then the twinned Port Mann) will of course be the highest beneficieries of the transponders. The Coq would be next, with the ability to "drive thru" the toll booth without presenting a card or payment to an attendant. For BCFS, it would eliminate "length cheats" or having to process the CTC/TC's manually (also save a fleet the trouble of making sure that each driver has a card, just mount the transponder on each truck). Account info, plus unit length would be hard coded for straight trucks. For semi's, this would be a little harder, as they could be pulling differing length trailers. However, seeing some input for ROUTE and PAX would still ben required, length could be verified at that time. It is not hard to figure that a semi tractor-trailer with a 53' trailers is going to be some 75-80' long and adjust accordingly for Super-B's or shorter pups or train units.
I don't think there is exit/entry distance based tolling at this point in the plans for any area in Metro Vancouver (formerly Greater Vancouver); there has been some talk about a possible "congestion charge" like there is in downtown London (UK).
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Post by BrianWilliams on Oct 26, 2007 21:50:19 GMT -8
Yeah - I don't see why a single transponder and customer account shouldn't be used for all BC toll facilities: ferries, highways and maybe some major parking lots, like YVR, SkyTrain and BC Ferries parking.
Each agency gets its revenue, all contribute a tiny commission for the system, and the customer has a single monthly bill.
Congestion and distance charges are long overdue here. Transponder tolling is the simple way to make it work.
Maybe a little Big-Brotherish, but a crime fighter too: "My car was stolen..." A quick check of the BC Toll system, and the cops might know where your Toyota went on the night in question.
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Post by Retrovision on Oct 27, 2007 0:45:02 GMT -8
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Post by Nickfro on Feb 18, 2008 17:25:29 GMT -8
OK. Since the Klitsa is currently running on the Albion route, I deem this thread as a legit spot for my inquiries. I tried to find these answers out in this forum, but couldn't pinpoint them so here I go.
When the Klitsa is running on the Albion route, does Translink pay BCFS to use the Klitsa? Also, would they ever run 3 ferries on the Albion route, especially considering the peak demand? I have never taken the Albion ferry so I don't know if there's even enough time to shoehorn a 3rd boat in on that run.
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Post by Dane on Feb 18, 2008 18:08:39 GMT -8
When the Klitsa is running on the Albion route, does Translink pay BCFS to use the Klitsa? Also, would they ever run 3 ferries on the Albion route, especially considering the peak demand? I have never taken the Albion ferry so I don't know if there's even enough time to shoehorn a 3rd boat in on that run. 1. BCFS pays a nominal annual fee to use a vessel when required and available from BC Ferries. Learned this at the '05 AGM 2. Speaking as an arm chair Captain I cannot imagine there being enough room, even with all three leaving at staggered times.
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Post by Hardy on Feb 18, 2008 23:44:44 GMT -8
That little patch of real estate on the Mighty Fraser would be awfully crowded with 3 boats running. As it is, with just the two of them, you are swinging very wide to keep from creating a wake problem for the boat coming opposite you.
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D'Elete BC in NJ
Voyager
Dispensing gallons of useless information daily...
Posts: 1,671
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Post by D'Elete BC in NJ on Feb 19, 2008 4:05:23 GMT -8
That little patch of real estate on the Mighty Fraser would be awfully crowded with 3 boats running. As it is, with just the two of them, you are swinging very wide to keep from creating a wake problem for the boat coming opposite you. Hmmm, is it a wake issue, or a safety factor for maneuvering room in the current. I ask this because I think you will observe the down-current boat always gives a wide berth to the up-current boat. It was interesting to see in Quebec where the current switches direction with the tide...readily observable with all the ice floating around!
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Post by Ferryman on Feb 19, 2008 8:08:06 GMT -8
As much as I'd like to see a third boat on the run, I think it's just way too short of a route for it to work properly. It takes literally not even 5 minutes from Fort Langley to Albion going somewhat upstream. Then coming back it's 2.5 minutes going somewhat downstream . There would constantly be a vessel having to circle around outside of one of the docks until the one in the dock has unloaded/loaded. It takes about 10 minutes to load/unload I believe. We could always chain the 3 vessels together, bow to bow to form a Ferry bridge . It will only be a matter of time until the Golden Ears Bridge is complete anyway, so it's probably not really worth expanding service after practically no changes for 30 some odd years. Especially when the route is about to be terminated. 1. BCFS pays a nominal annual fee to use a vessel when required and available from BC Ferries. Wouldn't you mean the Fraser River Marine Transportion (FRMT) pays BC Ferries a nominal annual fee?
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Post by Nickfro on Feb 22, 2008 15:32:22 GMT -8
1. BCFS pays a nominal annual fee to use a vessel when required and available from BC Ferries. Wouldn't you mean the Fraser River Marine Transportion (FRMT) pays BC Ferries a nominal annual fee? That statement confused me as well. So it's the FRMT and not translink then, I guess. Now that the Klitsa is operating on the Albion route, where does the 3rd vessel go when not in service? Do they have an extra berth or tie-down area out there? I'm considering making a trip out there this weekend to see things for myself, as long as I have the time to make it happen.
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Post by NMcKay on Feb 22, 2008 15:55:19 GMT -8
when the klitsa is there. then one vessel will lash onto the vessel sitting in the night berth.. the final vessel will dock on the albion side.. so all three vessels can be maintained by the night engineer
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,170
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Post by Neil on Feb 22, 2008 16:05:10 GMT -8
Here's the T'Lagunna tied up on the Albion side as the spare vessel, although I only see one other boat in service. I guess when she was first displaced, they often used just one boat (perhaps on weekends).
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Post by DENelson83 on Feb 22, 2008 18:47:14 GMT -8
So when the GEB is completed, will BCF acquire the Kulleet and Klatawa, or will they go elsewhere?
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Post by coastalcody on Feb 22, 2008 18:58:12 GMT -8
Yes i am thinking BCF will aquire them.
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Post by kylefossett on Feb 23, 2008 2:55:37 GMT -8
they will take over on the barnston island route and the galena bay inland route.
kidding
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