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  #1  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2017, 7:04 PM
sunsetmountainland sunsetmountainland is offline
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Nanaimo - Vancouver foot passenger ferry service

The passenger ferry should be in operation mid summer 2018.

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Island Ferries has made a bid for a berth at Vancouver’s SeaBus terminal in its effort to start a new passenger ferry service.

Island Ferries has responded to an expression of interest from TransLink, which says it’s exploring the possibility of hosting private ferry and water taxi operators for service between the Vancouver SeaBus terminal and Victoria, Nanaimo and the Sunshine Coast.

Island Ferries, looking to start up a passenger ferry between Nanaimo and downtown Vancouver, has already inked an offer to lease with Nanaimo Port Authority for its Port Way facilities.
http://www.nanaimobulletin.com/news/...ncouver-berth/

http://www.nanaimobulletin.com/news/...ort-authority/

https://www.facebook.com/islandferries/

https://twitter.com/IslandFerriesca
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  #2  
Old Posted Oct 30, 2017, 2:31 PM
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It's good to see this service so close to reality. Nanaimo may have a mini-boom coming.
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Old Posted Oct 30, 2017, 5:14 PM
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^ Depends on how fast it is I suppose. If it becomes economical time-wise to live in Nanaimo and take the passenger ferry to Horseshoe Bay you might see more people choosing the slower pace and affordability of Nanaimo, and commuting across the Straight for work.
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  #4  
Old Posted Oct 30, 2017, 8:27 PM
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Originally Posted by 240glt View Post
^ Depends on how fast it is I suppose. If it becomes economical time-wise to live in Nanaimo and take the passenger ferry to Horseshoe Bay you might see more people choosing the slower pace and affordability of Nanaimo, and commuting across the Straight for work.
I believe that it is supposed to be a one hour journey from downtown to downtown.
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Old Posted Oct 30, 2017, 8:43 PM
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^ that's not bad, I misread the part where they said they'd be docking at the seabus terminal

I have friends in the Vancouver area whos commute is longer that by car
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Old Posted Oct 31, 2017, 2:29 AM
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Originally Posted by 240glt View Post
^ that's not bad, I misread the part where they said they'd be docking at the seabus terminal

I have friends in the Vancouver area whos commute is longer that by car
It has been done before. The Seabus terminal is an excellent location and very central. Back in the 90s I used the seacat service quite a bit. There were two problems, the price (it was expensive). It could be a very bumpy ride in rough weather.

Good to see it come back. Perhaps the population, more people working from home and the property valuations in Vancouver will make this a success this time.
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Old Posted Oct 31, 2017, 2:38 PM
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It has been done before. The Seabus terminal is an excellent location and very central. Back in the 90s I used the seacat service quite a bit. There were two problems, the price (it was expensive). It could be a very bumpy ride in rough weather.

Good to see it come back. Perhaps the population, more people working from home and the property valuations in Vancouver will make this a success this time.
I didn't realize they ran that service before. I used the fastcat service quite a bit when I lived down there in the late '90's departing from Horseshoe Bay as I had friends in Nanaimo, didn't know there was a service from the seabus terminal. At the time though I was pretty poor being right out of school so I doubt I could've afforded it!
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Old Posted Nov 1, 2017, 3:37 AM
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Originally Posted by 240glt View Post
I didn't realize they ran that service before. I used the fastcat service quite a bit when I lived down there in the late '90's departing from Horseshoe Bay as I had friends in Nanaimo, didn't know there was a service from the seabus terminal. At the time though I was pretty poor being right out of school so I doubt I could've afforded it!
It was a passenger only service was using Royal Sealink Express.

Here is a wikipedia page on one of the services: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HarbourLynx
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  #9  
Old Posted Jan 12, 2018, 4:59 AM
sunsetmountainland sunsetmountainland is offline
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I have an update from the island ferry services website.

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Happy 2018 to our friends and followers!

Although we have been responding directly to messages, email, and media and personal calls, it has been awhile since we posted broader update. Indeed, one is overdue.

There are essentially 5 major components to this project – terminals in each of Nanaimo and Vancouver, two Transport-Canada-certified ships, competent people, and adequate financing. Of course there is a myriad of details but these are the big pieces.

We reported earlier that we had reached agreement with the Nanaimo Port Authority on the Terms of an Offer to Lease. Broadly, this agreement will permit us to operate from the Port’s passenger and ship berthing facility, as well as to lease a portion of their property at 100 Port Drive for parking.

In order to ultimately enter into a lease agreement, the NPA requires that that an Environmental Assessment be conducted to assess the impact of our operations. We have agreed on the scope of that assessment and have engaged an environmental consulting firm to do the work, an effort that will require input from key stakeholders, most notably the Snuneymuxw First Nation.

On the Vancouver side, there had been interest expressed from a few operators to make use of berth(s) at the South SeaBus Terminal. (You may have seen recent media reports where a Vancouver-Victoria proponent stated that they would not be going ahead with a possible service). Given that interest, TransLink issued a Request for Expressions of interest in mid-September 2016. Submissions were due on October 15, 2016.

Given the substantial interest from central Vancouver Island, we believe that our proposed service is likely to be the most consistent with TransLink’s public transportation mandate and is most likely to offer TransLink the best financial return.

Last Friday (January 5, 2018), their procurement staff advised that the RFI was closed (which we take to mean that their evaluation of responses is complete) and that their Real Estate Department will now make contact with the preferred proponent(s).

Construction continues on schedule on our ships. Although our first two vessel s were sold to a third party when we couldn’t put all the pieces together in time, the replacement ships are identical to those already certified by Transport Canada with one exception – the engines will now comply with the International Maritime Organization’s Tier 3 requirements, the most stringent air emissions standards in the marine environment. The ships are scheduled to be completed by end-May 2018, trialed and then transported to Nanaimo.

On the people side, we are delighted to have received over 150 resumes and expressions of interest. We respond to – and are holding onto – each and every such submission. Moreover, we intend to hold a hiring fair at some point in the spring of 2018

Finally, to close financially with our infrastructure investor, we need an executable lease from the NPA, an executable operating license from TransLink, and executed ship contracts. As noted earlier, we’ve moved forward on the critical pieces and, of these, are looking forward to entering into the key next piece -- discussions with TransLink.
https://www.facebook.com/islandferri...41007449426997
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  #10  
Old Posted Jan 12, 2018, 3:47 PM
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^ nice to see this has legs. We usually stay in Coal Harbour when in Vancouver, it’s be great to be able to take a side trip to the island without having to find our way to Horseshoe Bay
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Old Posted Jan 23, 2018, 3:43 AM
sunsetmountainland sunsetmountainland is offline
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A new update to the Island Ferry Services website

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A GOOD NEWS update to our post of January 8th….

We recently shared with you that Translink’s Request for Information process had closed, that the staff evaluation of responses appeared to be complete, and that their Real Estate team would be making contact with preferred proponent(s).

We’re delighted to let you know that Translink has advised that they have accepted our response. We will shortly enter a negotiating phase which we understand will kick off with Translink seeking responses to somewhat more specific and focused due diligence questions. Our best estimate is this process will be complete – that is, we will have completed negotiations for an offer of an Operating License – in 2 to 3 months.

Notably, we have been authorized to expand our work to include direct discussions with Port Metro Vancouver staff on aspects where their approval is needed.

This is great news and a major step forward. With ship construction on schedule, our target remains to start service in the summer of 2018.
https://www.facebook.com/islandferri...45489478978794

https://www.nanaimobulletin.com/news...abus-terminal/
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  #12  
Old Posted Feb 7, 2018, 3:56 AM
ClaytonA ClaytonA is offline
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If the Seabus terminal is getting busy or spots become a future issue, then some future service could also go to/by the Great Canadian Marina (marina by River Rock Casino) with indoor connections to the Canada Line and close proximity to YVR. They got the Waterfront Seabus spot, so not an issue for these guys.

https://www.google.ca/search?dcr=0&q...E,lf:1,lf_ui:2
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  #13  
Old Posted Feb 7, 2018, 7:27 PM
EastVanMark EastVanMark is offline
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Originally Posted by ClaytonA View Post
If the Seabus terminal is getting busy or spots become a future issue, then some future service could also go to/by the Great Canadian Marina (marina by River Rock Casino) with indoor connections to the Canada Line and close proximity to YVR. They got the Waterfront Seabus spot, so not an issue for these guys.

https://www.google.ca/search?dcr=0&q...E,lf:1,lf_ui:2
Or we can expend the terminal as a part of a much larger development of that area and turn it into a transportation hub that would rival anything on planet earth....but I guess its Vancouver so we shouldn't hold out much hope.
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Old Posted Feb 16, 2018, 5:02 AM
sunsetmountainland sunsetmountainland is offline
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Soon no more monopoly with regards to the ferries.

Quote:
The future could also soon lead to competition for the business of all those BC Ferries foot passengers. Island Ferry Services is set to finish its five-year-long effort to set up a downtown-Nanaimo-to-downtown-Vancouver ferry service for foot passengers.

Nanaimo Chamber of Commerce President Kim Smythe says that ferry looking more like a reality by the day.

"The operators have cited July as their start time. They say they'll have one vessel in the water in July and another vessel in the water in September," said Smythe.

"I'm very confident that's going to happen. "It seems like everything is pointing in the right direction now."
https://www.cheknews.ca/foot-ferry-b...n-july-418910/
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Old Posted Sep 21, 2018, 2:34 AM
sunsetmountainland sunsetmountainland is offline
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Island Ferries 'disappointed' Nanaimo-Vancouver foot ferry won't start this summer

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NANAIMO — Another summer will sail past without passenger ferry service between Nanaimo and Vancouver.

Island Ferry Services (IFSL) announced Monday it will not begin service this summer due to delays in various approval processes the company said are out of its control. The proponent has been working to establish a passenger-only ferry service between the downtowns of the two cities for the better part of five years.

"We're disappointed. We appreciate this is a complex project and there are interests that other organizations have. They have to do their due diligence and regulatory stuff...We're just going to plow through the process," David Marshall, Island Ferry's director of operations, told NanaimoNewsNOW.

He said there are three hurdles remaining, the timing of which are out of IFSL's control:

Approval of an environmental assessment with the Nanaimo Port Authority (NPA)
Lease negotiations with TransLink for use of a berth at the SeaBus terminal which are "nearing completion and going well"
An unexpected environmental assessment related to some minor terminal work in Vancouver
Marshall said the review involving the NPA is "taking much longer" than they planned, noting it took the port authority nine weeks to respond to a draft version of the report. He said the updated final version will be submitted this week and "We hope the NPA will review and approve it in short order."

Once all outside approvals are secured, it will take six months for IFSL to get the service up-and-running, Marshall said, adding the only time of the year they wouldn't launch is November or February.
https://nanaimonewsnow.com/article/5...t-start-summer

https://www.nanaimobulletin.com/news...e-this-summer/
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  #16  
Old Posted Jan 17, 2019, 8:32 PM
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Update on the progress of the route

https://www.timescolonist.com/busine...mer-1.23583563
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  #17  
Old Posted Jan 18, 2019, 7:20 PM
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Originally Posted by msmariner View Post
Update on the progress of the route

https://www.timescolonist.com/busine...mer-1.23583563
Good to see this moving forward. I was surprised at all the environment assessment work needed since this type of service has operated between the two cities several times in the past.
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  #18  
Old Posted Jan 18, 2019, 10:16 PM
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The ticket cost is surprisingly reasonable. Thought it would be more.
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  #19  
Old Posted Jan 19, 2019, 7:13 PM
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The ticket cost is surprisingly reasonable. Thought it would be more.
Every previous operator has allocated 1 ship to the Vancouver-Nanaimo run. These guys are allocating two ships. That probably helps drive down the cost per seat.

Wonder how much they need to sell to break even on the run.
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  #20  
Old Posted Jan 21, 2019, 7:44 PM
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Good to see this moving forward. I was surprised at all the environment assessment work needed since this type of service has operated between the two cities several times in the past.
Never underestimate the bureaucracy. Things we have been doing for years are suddenly coming under new scrutiny.
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