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Post by Low Light Mike on May 18, 2015 19:02:22 GMT -8
Here's the thread you've been asking for, where bold super-sized font can be seen at the start and end of every week-end between now and mid-September...
Well, the topic of overloads, extra sailings (or lack thereof) etc is popular, so here's the thread.
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,171
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Post by Neil on May 18, 2015 19:08:28 GMT -8
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Post by hwy19man on May 18, 2015 19:20:42 GMT -8
You guys are terrific! I will be here every weekend and just like you said Flugel Horn, with the superior super sized bold font. Great post there Neil.
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Post by Low Light Mike on May 18, 2015 19:53:48 GMT -8
You guys are terrific! I will be here every weekend and just like you said Flugel Horn, with the superior super sized bold font. Great post there Neil. While we've got you here in such a good mood, please entertain us by telling us a bit about yourself. ie. Why you call yourself "Hwy19 Man" and what your specific ferry and other transportation interests are. Cheers !
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Post by WettCoast on May 18, 2015 20:30:57 GMT -8
I don't know for certain, but I suspect that the Northern Adventure has been fairly busy over the last few days as it continues with its weekly winter schedule of two round trips to Haida Gwaii, and one on the Inside Passage. Until last year the May long weekend was always when the Inside Passage day cruise season began. Now it starts in mid-June. It never occurred to BCFS that perhaps two rounders on the Inside Passage and three to Haida Gwaii per week might be a reasonable service level beginning say May 1st and continuing until full summer service begins in mid June.
I could say that BCFS has missed the boat here entirely but I know the real issue is the provincial government's pathetic handling of coastal ferry services.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on May 19, 2015 18:23:58 GMT -8
Are you blowing the signal to bring in the flanks, the Fluegels?
Just trying to figure out how to be Bold. Hope this works?!?
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on May 19, 2015 18:51:13 GMT -8
Are you blowing the signal to bring in the flanks, the Fluegels? Just trying to figure out how to be Bold. Hope this works?!?
It did. Now I know the difference between "quote", "reply" and "quick reply". Great forum! I have been reading for quite a while, before I signed up. Ferries are part of our life here on the coast, so we might as well discuss them and know what is going on. Meeting BCF management characters and seeing them perform was not very trust inspiring. Whoever you are behind the "proboards", thanks for hosting this great forum.
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Post by hwy19man on May 22, 2015 17:04:55 GMT -8
Nothing out of the ordinary on this Friday, just one wait on route three and the Surrey is running late.
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Post by hwy19man on May 22, 2015 19:31:53 GMT -8
The Surrey is now almost an hour behind schedule! The vessels on routes 1 and 2 are only 15-20 minutes behind.
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Post by WettCoast on Jun 2, 2015 10:36:24 GMT -8
I don't know for certain, but I suspect that the Northern Adventure has been fairly busy over the last few days as it continues with its weekly winter schedule of two round trips to Haida Gwaii, and one on the Inside Passage. Until last year the May long weekend was always when the Inside Passage day cruise season began. Now it starts in mid-June. It never occurred to BCFS that perhaps two rounders on the Inside Passage and three to Haida Gwaii per week might be a reasonable service level beginning say May 1st and continuing until full summer service begins in mid June. I could say that BCFS has missed the boat here entirely but I know the real issue is the provincial government's pathetic handling of coastal ferry services. Have a listen to this: audioboom.com/boos/3243692-bc-ferries-are-full-and-shipments-aren-t-getting-to-the-coastI see that the photo used on that linked site is one of mine. Keep these facts in mind: 1 - Demand ramps up in the spring, well before June 18th which is when Todd Stoned & BCFS now define as the end of winter. 2 - Just as demand ramps auto capacity is decreased by 22% due to BCFS's timing of the the Northern Expedition's annual refit. Auto capacity of the Northern Adventure is 101 versus 130 on the NorEx. I am also fairly sure that the NorEx can handle a better mix of vehicle traffic (over height, over length, over width) due to its much superior car deck layout, and having vehicle access at both ends. 3 - The current schedule of 2 trips per week to Haida Gwaii & just one on the Inside Passage means that the vessel is sitting idle (with a crew aboard) for a total of about three days per week. 4 - The Nimpkish, as pathetic as it is, is now also out for refit, replaced by a tug & barge service for vehicles, and water taxi passengers, thus further complicating things for mid-coast residents & would-be visitors. Maybe, just maybe, if BCFS and/or the BC Govt had a clue, they would bring up the Tenaka as the 'Discovery Coast Connector' vessel for the higher demand period of spring & summer.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Jun 5, 2015 19:00:10 GMT -8
3 - The current schedule of 2 trips per week to Haida Gwaii & just one on the Inside Passage means that the vessel is sitting idle (with a crew aboard) for a total of about three days per week. A ferry miracle... from HERE
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Post by WettCoast on Jun 5, 2015 20:39:53 GMT -8
3 - The current schedule of 2 trips per week to Haida Gwaii & just one on the Inside Passage means that the vessel is sitting idle (with a crew aboard) for a total of about three days per week. A ferry miracle... from HEREBCFS & the provincial government need to reinstate the 3rd sailing (per week) to Haida Gwaii at the beginning of May and keep it in place until the summer schedule kicks in in mid June. They need also to do the same in September after the summer schedule ends just after Labour Day. I believe there should be 3 sailings per week until Thanksgiving. Full (i.e. 'regular') fares are charged on this route from May 1st until September 30th. Full service, however, only kicks in in mid June and ends on the day after Labour Day. Deb Marshall said this: If the car deck is packed, and the passenger load is high also, then the ship's operation will be as close to 'break-even' financially as it ever is. Keep in mind that when they are tied up to the dock they have on board (I gather) a full crew. It is costing them a fair whack of money just to have the ship sitting there.
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Post by northwesterner on Jun 5, 2015 23:24:21 GMT -8
If the car deck is packed, and the passenger load is high also, then the ship's operation will be as close to 'break-even' financially as it ever is. Keep in mind that when they are tied up to the dock they have on board (I gather) a full crew. It is costing them a fair whack of money just to have the ship sitting there. Sounds like a managerial accounting decision. Do they view the crew as a fixed cost or a variable cost? If they view the crew as a fixed cost, then it doesn't matter if the ship is moving or not. I don't agree with that logic, and I would view it as a variable cost. Hey Low Light Mike, accounting is your area, right? Any thoughts?
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Post by Low Light Mike on Jun 6, 2015 6:05:55 GMT -8
Sounds like a managerial accounting decision. Do they view the crew as a fixed cost or a variable cost? If they view the crew as a fixed cost, then it doesn't matter if the ship is moving or not. I don't agree with that logic, and I would view it as a variable cost. Hey Low Light Mike, accounting is your area, right? Any thoughts? If they view the crew costs as a fixed cost, then any extra bit of revenue that they can earn is a good thing. ie. the only variable would be fuel, and the passenger/vehicle revenue would offset that. I like what Mr. Wett Coast said, that this extra sailing would very likely be full of freight trailers, and those are the highest price revenue items......so this would likely be a high revenue sailing, deckspace wise.
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Post by Starsteward on Jun 6, 2015 8:04:24 GMT -8
A ferry miracle... from HEREBCFS & the provincial government need to reinstate the 3rd sailing (per week) to Haida Gwaii at the beginning of May and keep it in place until the summer schedule kicks in in mid June. They need also to do the same in September after the summer schedule ends just after Labour Day. I believe there should be 3 sailings per week until Thanksgiving. Full (i.e. 'regular') fares are charged on this route from May 1st until September 30th. Full service, however, only kicks in in mid June and ends on the day after Labour Day. Deb Marshall said this: If the car deck is packed, and the passenger load is high also, then the ship's operation will be as close to 'break-even' financially as it ever is. Keep in mind that when they are tied up to the dock they have on board (I gather) a full crew. It is costing them a fair whack of money just to have the ship sitting there. Listening to that CBC radio interview on the previous page of this thread, and subsequent utterings regarding the increased sailings to Haida Gwaii, I'm amazed that Deb Marshall can sleep at night after dishing out such balderdash! Going forward, we get the strong sense that the fear of losing money trumps providing the required number of sailings to move 2+ months of backlogged freight, to say nothing of the horrible personal inconveniences being heaped on the good folks of Haida Gwaii. Private ferry/freight companies across Europe, Scandinavia and other enlightened parts of the maritime world must shake their heads and wish their companies had a basic monopoly on the services provided by BC Ferries, which begs one question: If a company namely BC Ferries has a virtual monopoly on the coast, how in the name of all that makes sense, can't they make money? Economics 101: You can't make money if your sole concern and fear is losing money!
The mess on the mid-coastal run is also sad proof that a supposed "free enterprise" government is an embarrassment to such terminology! Perhaps a class action lawsuit against BC Ferries and the BC Liberal party by all negatively affected stakeholders who share the conviction that both defendant parties are in contravention of the BC Coastal Ferry Act? ....Just a thought.
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Post by Low Light Mike on Jun 6, 2015 10:31:53 GMT -8
Listening to that CBC radio interview on the previous page of this thread, and subsequent utterings regarding the increased sailings to Haida Gwaii, I'm amazed that Deb Marshall can sleep at night after dishing out such balderdash! slightly off topic: I'll defend Ms. Marshall, as she is simply the voice of the company, and she does not create or decide on policy. Senior management in the company makes those company decision. It's interesting to note that Ms. Marshall has been the voice of the company under 2 different regimes: the 1990's NDP influenced corp (remember her defending the non-slickness of the FastCat vehicle decks?) and the post-2003 company. A good spokesperson just focuses on communicating the message, based on what the company wants the person to say. It does take a certain kind of spokesperson to be able to ignore the impact/truth/balderdash in the message, and just present the message. Not all people can do that. A good spokesperson needs to focus on the art of communication, and not worry about the policy/content. ...and some people might be ok with that for a while, and then finally reach a tipping point.
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Post by Starsteward on Jun 7, 2015 7:06:53 GMT -8
Listening to that CBC radio interview on the previous page of this thread, and subsequent utterings regarding the increased sailings to Haida Gwaii, I'm amazed that Deb Marshall can sleep at night after dishing out such balderdash! slightly off topic: I'll defend Ms. Marshall, as she is simply the voice of the company, and she does not create or decide on policy. Senior management in the company makes those company decision. It's interesting to note that Ms. Marshall has been the voice of the company under 2 different regimes: the 1990's NDP influenced corp (remember her defending the non-slickness of the FastCat vehicle decks?) and the post-2003 company. A good spokesperson just focuses on communicating the message, based on what the company wants the person to say. It does take a certain kind of spokesperson to be able to ignore the impact/truth/balderdash in the message, and just present the message. Not all people can do that. A good spokesperson needs to focus on the art of communication, and not worry about the policy/content. ...and some people might be ok with that for a while, and then finally reach a tipping point. I am aware that 'spokespersons' do not create or formulate government or business policies, they possess an 'intellectual bias' switch that does have a shelf life and Mike you're right when you state that some spokespersons are ok with managing that switch for a period of time until they arrive at the tipping point when they leave the position. Ms. Marshall performs her duties in a difficult environment very admirably. My comment nakedly exposed what would be my personal inability to perform in that role past my first public interview. I suppose "damnation with faint praise" might be more to the point.
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Post by hwy19man on Jun 28, 2015 17:47:52 GMT -8
It has been an interesting few days to the start of the summer schedule. First off there are too many exceptions to the schedule. Starting with route 1, on Wednesday and Thursday, there was no 800h from TSA and 1000h from SWB. Radio stations in Vancouver and Victoria were saying the ferries were hourly from 700h to 1900h with a final sailing at 2100h. Adding to the confusion are the dates for the 2000h and 2200h sailings at both terminals and those sailings are not happening this evening. The 2100h sailing from TSA is almost full.
Route 2 also has many confusing exceptions. Route 3, by far, has the messiest schedule.
The Coastal celebration did an additional round trip on Saturday at 2000h and 2200h due to the soccer game. The Coastal Renaissance since Friday has been running behind schedule.
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Post by hwy19man on Jun 28, 2015 18:10:46 GMT -8
You guys are terrific! I will be here every weekend and just like you said Flugel Horn, with the superior super sized bold font. Great post there Neil. While we've got you here in such a good mood, please entertain us by telling us a bit about yourself. ie. Why you call yourself "Hwy19 Man" and what your specific ferry and other transportation interests are.
Cheers ! My apologies for not responding to this quickly. I did mention this before, but, the original welcome lounge thread must have been deleted a while ago. I call myself hwy19man because I followed the Vancouver Island Highway Project through out the 1990s. I went to many of the public meetings and information sessions and collected lots of information through out the entire process and continue to drive up and down highway 19 frequently. I have lived on the west coast for most of my life and route 1 is my primary ferry route as I live in Victoria. My other transportation interests are with BC Transit (Cowichan Valley and Victoria Systems) and Translink.
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Post by hwy19man on Jun 28, 2015 18:16:47 GMT -8
Route 1 from TSA is now full for the final sailing at 2100h. It will be interesting to see if the NW will do a 2000h sailing.
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,171
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Post by Neil on Jul 5, 2015 17:29:14 GMT -8
3:00 this afternoon, I counted 150 AEQ waiting for the ferry off Hornby. The Kahloke can take 27 at best, so that represented a five to six sailing wait, or a minimum of three hours, with more waiting on the other side of Denman. All sorts of families with kids, many stuck the better part of a mile from bathroom facilities. At 5:50, ten minutes from the last scheduled sailing, there were still 82 cars in line.
Highwayman's biggest caps would not do justice to the appalling level of service to these islands, particularly when BC Ferries' own figures show that year after year, more than half of all the extra runs in the system are on these two routes, still leaving many overloads. I wonder how many visitors just decide not to come back, after waiting three hours for a ten minute ferry ride.
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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 Jul 5, 2015 21:59:23 GMT -8
did they add another sailing?? What I dont get is why BC Ferries lies to people?? They put out a service notice tonight saying that all vehicle traffic tonight from Duke Point was full. And yet the last sailing at 10:45pm was less than 90% full. They did add a 8pm from Swartz Bay and a 10pm from Tsawwassen and a 9:15pm from Departure Bay due to heavy traffic.
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Neil
Voyager
Posts: 7,171
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Post by Neil on Jul 5, 2015 22:15:29 GMT -8
did they add another sailing?? What I dont get is why BC Ferries lies to people?? They put out a service notice tonight saying that all vehicle traffic tonight from Duke Point was full. And yet the last sailing at 10:45pm was less than 90% full. They did add a 8pm from Swartz Bay and a 10pm from Tsawwassen and a 9:15pm from Departure Bay due to heavy traffic. Karl, I don't know about your other points, but I imagine the Kahloke kept sailing until the traffic was cleared. Last sailing officially at six, but given where they were, they would have sailed at approximately 6:20, 6:55, 7:30, and 8:05 to get everyone off. Overtime for the crew, and an extremely long trip for any holidayers needing to connect back to the mainland.
I also don't know how they work it when they're sailing continuously without lunch breaks. Grabbing a bite while underway, I guess.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 6, 2015 12:52:22 GMT -8
At the very least they cleared traffic. Traffic is so seasonal that it just doesn't seem worth having a bigger boat in the summer.
Some time ago it was mentioned on the website that crews provide a 14 hour service on Fridays, then have to be back on Saturday ready to go for 0715 the next day. There are benefits and pitfalls of having a two-watch rotational system.
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Post by hwy19man on Jul 6, 2015 13:52:51 GMT -8
did they add another sailing?? What I dont get is why BC Ferries lies to people?? They put out a service notice tonight saying that all vehicle traffic tonight from Duke Point was full. And yet the last sailing at 10:45pm was less than 90% full. They did add a 8pm from Swartz Bay and a 10pm from Tsawwassen and a 9:15pm from Departure Bay due to heavy traffic. The Cowichan did do the MD sailing at 2115h. That sailing used to be every Sunday through out the summer schedule except on the BC Day weekend. It is now scheduled to begin on the last Sunday of July. I guess this MD sailing was the reason why the 2245h from Duke Point was not 100% full.
The Celebration's 2000h/2200h sailing is a scheduled sailing every Sunday except the last Sunday in June and BC Day weekend. Did you mean the New West did a MD sailing from Tsawwassen at 2000h and SWB at 2200h?
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