BC Ferries cancelling 60 sailings, rebooking 800 customers due to out-of-service vessel

B.C.'s provincial ferry operator is cancelling 60 scheduled sailings after the Labour Day long weekend while one of its largest vessels remains out of service for emergency repairs.

All of the cancelled sailings are on two routes serving West Vancouver's Horseshoe Bay terminal, officials from BC Ferries said during a news conference Thursday.

Brian Anderson, the company's vice president of strategy and community engagement, said roughly 800 customers with reservations on the cancelled sailings would be contacted by the BC Ferries customer care team and either rebooked on alternative sailings or refunded.

The affected routes are between Horseshoe Bay and Langdale on the Sunshine Coast and between Horseshoe Bay and Departure Bay in Nanaimo.

Anderson said the cancellations were necessary because of the offseason maintenance schedule that BC Ferries maintains, which he called a "complicated ballet" involving most of the company's ships.

During the peak summer season, he said, every available ship is in service, but during the nine months between September and June, when demand is generally lower, BC Ferries rotates ships out of service for offseason maintenance.

The unexpected breakdown of the Coastal Renaissance two weeks ago means the Queen of Alberni will sail on the Tsawwassen – Duke Point route in its place. 

That leaves the Horseshoe Bay – Langdale and Horseshoe Bay – Departure Bay routes without the vessel that was meant to add capacity at busy times during the off-peak season, Anderson explained.

"Our published schedule currently includes 60 extra trips between Sept. 9 and Thanksgiving spread between those two routes," he said. "These trips are planned in addition to the core schedule to provide that additional capacity around busy travel times. With the Coastal Renaissance out of service, there is no vessel available to provide this supplemental service during that time period."

Anderson said staff have assured him that there is enough capacity on alternative sailings to accommodate all 800 passengers who had reservations on cancelled sailings.

He said cancelling the 60 sailings was the option that affected the smallest number of travellers, but added that he sympathizes with those affected.

"I recognize that this change is very frustrating for customers," Anderson said. "We do not have spare vessels available."

LONG WEEKEND PREPARATIONS UNDERWAY

Before any of those cancellations take place, BC Ferries must get through the final long weekend of the summer.

Labour Day weekend is typically the fourth-busiest weekend of the year, according to BC Ferries president and CEO Nicholas Jimenez.

He said the company is expecting to transport roughly 520,000 passengers and 200,000 vehicles over the weekend, and is prepared for the influx.

"We've got our terminals ready to welcome guests," he said. "We've got traffic-control partners in place for busier terminals. We've got parking attendants in place for the busy terminals and they'll be adding extra staff as they did for the August long weekend."

Jimenez said travellers who don't have reservations should "find alternate ways to get on board" without a vehicle, because stand-by space for vehicles will be extremely limited.

"Take transit, carpool, get dropped off and walk on," he said. "Essentially, if you don't have a reservation, you will find it a very challenging experience, but if you have a reservation, you're going to get where you need to go and you're going to have a great weekend."