bc-ferries-to-add-5-new-vessels-by-2031
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BC Ferries to add 5 new vessels by 2031

ByCharles Brockman

Posted September 16, 2024 3:46 pm. BC Ferries says it’s going ahead with the next steps in procuring five new major vessels needed on its busiest routes between Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland. The company says the new vessels will help it to address projected population growth, replace aging vessels, and meet customer expectations. CEO Nicolas Jimenez tells 1130 NewsRadio that the Ferry Commissioner still has to approve the designs, but they’re hoping to get the first of the five new vessels in the water by 2029 — with all of them operating by 2031. “What we would see is essentially a ship deployed about every six months. It takes a bit of time to bring a new ship into service. So it’s not like five show up day 1, and day 2 you take out five or four old ships. You need time to absorb that into your system,” Jimenez explained. For now, the company says, it’s going to work on maintenance to extend the operational life of two current vessels — the Queen of Surrey and the Queen of Oak Bay. The C-class vessels serve routes between Vancouver Island and the mainland, and BC Ferries has said its current fleet is aging. Last week, BC Ferries had to pull its ship, the Queen of New Westminster, out of service for six months after a propeller fell off the vessel into the sea. The company says the new fleet will help meet the record-breaking demand it saw this summer, with over 8,040,000 passengers and over 3,150,000 vehicles transported between June 1 and Aug. 31. “[We’re] one of the few transportation services, I think, in North America that have surpassed our pre-COVID high. So definitely we’re feeling the pressures and we’re going to continue to be there,” said Jimenez. Ed Hooper, the company’s executive director of shipbuilding says the five new ferries will be more environmentally friendly than its older ships. “These new vessels will be quieter and cleaner than the vessels they replace, allowing us to achieve a significant reduction in our corporate greenhouse gas emissions,” said Hooper. BC Ferries says it needs seven new vessels in total, but will look at adding in the remaining two ships later on.

one-of-bc-ferries-busiest-vessels-taken-out-of-service-for-6-months
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One of BC Ferries busiest vessels taken out of service for 6 months

ByEmma Crawford

Posted September 7, 2024 1:24 pm. Last Updated September 7, 2024 1:30 pm. The Queen of New Westminster, one of BC Ferries’ busiest vessels, will be out of service for approximately six months, the company says. The vessel services the Tsawwassen to Swartz Bay sailing — BC Ferries’ busiest route. Earlier this week, the company announced the 60-year-old vessel was being pulled due to mechanical vessels after one of its propellers was sheared off, leading to the cancellation of all the ship’s sailings for the rest of the month. “A preliminary visual inspection seems to indicate the fracture of the propeller shaft could be related to structural fatigue,” BC Ferries said. “The required repairs are anticipated to be significant and include work on both the port and starboard propeller systems before the vessel can be returned to service.” The affected parts need to replaced by specially manufactured systems. Return to service will be reliant on “global parts availability and manufacturing timelines.” “This situation highlights the clear need for resiliency in our fleet to meet customer expectations, and it’s why we will be seeking approval from the Ferry Commissioner to build and add a net new vessel to our major routes,” said BC Ferries president and CEO Nicolas Jimenez. “If we had a backup vessel available, this incident would have had minimal impact on service. It underscores the importance of our fleet renewal strategy to ensure we have the capacity and resilience to manage unexpected issues and vessel repairs.” Recovery of the 10,000-pound propeller, which was found half-submerged in the seabed, took two days. BC Ferries says it is still assessing the impact this will have on its sailing schedule. It says it is looking to see if it can add sailings by using other vessels and adjusting its refitting schedule. With files from Cole Schisler.