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Plans for vehicle-free ferry to Vancouver become a reality
Plans for vehicle-free ferry to Vancouver move forward
By Julie Andres - Bowen Island Undercurrent
Published: September 11, 2008 4:00 PM
Updated: September 12, 2008 9:33 AM
Peter Green is the marketing and communications director for Coastal Link Ferries. The construction of MV Coastal Runner, the first of three ships the company plans to have in service in the Lower Mainland over the next year, was completed in July at Sylte Shipyards in Maple Ridge. If all goes according to the current plan, the 65 foot aluminum boat will offer service on a regular route between Snug Cove and Vancouver. Sailing time will be approximately 30 minutes and full capacity will be 70 passengers. “We plan to have three runs in the morning and three in the afternoon, and to expand service, if needed,” said Green in a telephone interview.
Green, whose background is in tourism, says that he has been working with Vancouver hotels to create a four- to six-hour day trip from Vancouver to Bowen Island. He is also hoping to meet the needs of those on Bowen who want to attend evening events, such as hockey games, by having late runs directly downtown and back.
According to Green, Coastal Link Ferries founder and CEO Ihab Shaker is a master mariner who operated a passenger ferry service on Lake Ontario between Toronto and St. Catharine’s and other locations in the late 1990s. “We are hiring crew this week and next, then we will have fire drills and inspections by Transport Canada. We plan to visit Bowen in the last week of September and start trial runs then,” Capt. Shaker said.
In May Coastal Link was looking for public support for service from Gibsons to Vancouver, but, according to both Shaker and Green, moorage there proved to be more expensive than expected. “The Gibsons Landing Harbour Authority offered us rates that are above the published rates,” said Green. “Maybe they don’t realize the benefits.” They turned their interest toward Bowen Island and are pleased with the possibilities.
Carol Doyle of the GLHA said that they have made Coastal Link a “very fair offer ... as fair as any water taxi pays”. She added that, “The boat and crew are not certified by Transport Canada, they have no insurance documents and they have not secured moorage in Vancouver”. But Capt. Shaker said that it is all done. “The only thing we need is an operating certificate, which is obtained after sea trials and inspections,” he commented.
Coastal Runner is a light, fast boat designed for river travel. When asked how the ship handles in rough seas, Green answered that on July 19 on a trip in the Strait of Georgia they encountered sizable wakes from large vessels. “It handles surprisingly well,” he said.
A meeting with Norma Dallas, who operates the Bowen Island Marina, was planned for Thursday, Sept. 11 (before the Undercurrent’s press time). “It’s an initial meeting; we’ll see if we have room and if we have what they need,” said Dallas on Wednesday.
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