BC Ferries announces several cancellations and delays Sunday, Monday

BC Ferries has announced several cancellations and delays Sunday and Monday, all stemming from a mechanical issue Saturday.

Following some problems with the Queen of Surrey’s engine Saturday evening extending into the morning, the service said it was moving the Queen of Oak Bay onto the route to get sailings going again.

“As this is a rapidly evolving situation, we ask customers planning to travel today to refer to the Service Notices for the latest details on cancelled or delayed sailings,” BC Ferries said Sunday morning. 

“Customers with reservations on affected sailing will be hearing directly from our Customer Service team, who are doing everything possible to accommodate everyone on alternate sailings later today. In the case of a cancellation, a full refund will be provided.”

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Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay route:

The following sailings between Horseshoe Bay and Departure Bay have been cancelled:

SUNDAY:

Cancelled Sailings – Sunday, September 21:
11:05 am leaving Horseshoe Bay
12:20 pm leaving Departure Bay
10:40 pm leaving Departure Bay
5:20 pm leaving Departure Bay
7:30 pm leaving Horseshoe Bay

MONDAY:

Cancelled Sailings – Monday, September 22:
6:15 am leaving Horseshoe Bay
2:45 pm leaving Departure Bay
7:25 pm departing Horseshoe Bay
10:40 pm leaving Departure Bay

Other sailings for that route are expected to run as scheduled.

Horseshoe Bay to Langdale route:

The following sailings between Horseshoe Bay and Langdale on the Sunshine Coast are cancelled:

SUNDAY:

Cancelled Sailings — Sunday, September 21:
6:20 am departing Langdale
7:30 departing Horseshoe Bay
8:40 am departing Langdale
9:50 am departing Horseshoe Bay
11:00 am departing Langdale
2:55 pm departing Horseshoe Bay
4:10 pm departing Langdale

MONDAY:

Cancelled Sailings – Monday, September 22:
5:30 pm departing Horseshoe Bay

BC Ferries says that as a result of those cancellations, an additional sailing between Langdale and Horseshoe Bay is being added on Sunday:

Added Sailings – Sunday, September 21:
11:05 am departing Horseshoe Bay
12:00 pm departing Langdale

The service employed a water taxi Saturday evening after an afternoon mechanical failure forced the cancellation of all scheduled sailings between the Sunshine Coast and the mainland.

Sailings between Horseshoe Bay and Langdale from 4:45 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. were cancelled, stranding hundreds of travellers.

BC Ferries described the issue as a “mechanical difficulty with the vessel’s main engine.”

“In the meantime, a 38 passenger water taxi has been sourced to provide service starting at 5:45 pm until further notice. It will be operating in Shuttle Mode,” said a notice on the company’s website Saturday evening.

Posts to social media show confusion and long lines at the two terminals.

BC Ferries diverted another vessel to provide additional sailings to and from the Sunshine Coast.

In a statement to 1130 NewsRadio, the company says its team is doing everything it can to repair the issue as quickly as possible.

Those dependent on ferries express frustration with ongoing issues

William Polk, a retiree on Texada Island, says he has been using BC Ferries for more than 60 years.

He says he has experienced countless delays and disruptions over the years, and he places the blame squarely on the provincial government.

“The lack of money and investment from this government over the last 10 years on the Sunshine Coast, they’ve gaslighted the people in Vancouver to think everything is all peachy-cream,” he said.

“It’s a fallacy.”

Polk says he used to have a produce stand, but product freshness was continually at risk due to constant BC Ferries vessel cancellations.

Would-be passenger Karl Sturmanis was on his way from Vancouver to Nanaimo Sunday morning when he got stranded at Horseshoe Bay.

He says delays aren’t uncommon.

“It’s kind of a regular roller coaster of, you’re always feeling like you don’t quite know if you are going to stay a long time,” he said.

Sturmanis says he has found that BC Ferries delays fall into two categories: staffing issues and mechanical problems.

Issues with ferries impacting mayors’ trips to this week’s Union of BC Municipalities meetings

Both Gibsons Mayor Silas White and Sechelt Mayor John Henderson say their trips to this week’s Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) meetings in Victoria are being impacted by this weekend’s ferry issues.

Henderson says he isn’t surprised by the delays.

“It is a very frustrating example of a systemic and structural issue that we have on the coast,” Henderson said. “The actual vessels and BC Ferries have been allowed to get too old, and the replacements are coming too slowly.”

Breakdowns such as those seen this weekend are “inevitable,” given the lack of updates, he said.

“I really do put the responsibility at the feet of the provincial government, because they could have initiated better practice.”

He says the government should have directed BC Ferries to do a fleet renewal 10 years earlier than they have.

“This is deeply frustrating,” he said. “It has a horrible impact on our community.”

As for White, he says he had to take a water taxi to get to the meetings on time.

Ironically, he says, some of the meetings he has planned are directly related to issues with BC Ferries.

“Among my meetings, there are meetings with the Minister of Transportation to follow up on our urgent call for sufficient service from BC Ferries,” he said

“Another meeting [was planned for] this afternoon with other ferry-dependent communities across the province who are all finding, not the exact same issues, but similar problems with lack of engagement and lack of efficient service from BC Ferries.”

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