FAC ~ BC Ferries update

Good day,

  

I thought it might be time for a brief update on the BC Ferries file. 

  

As you may remember MoTI (Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure) issued an RFP (Request for Proposals) earlier in the summer to conduct the second round of 'consultations' with ferry dependent communities.  We expect to hear who the successful bidder is shortly.  Personally. I will be surprised if it is not Judy Kirk of Kirk and Company who did the previous round of public meetings.  The public consultations on any proposed service reductions will likely take place later this fall...I will keep you posted as we receive information from BCF and the Ministry.  We, the FACC (Ferry Advisory Committee Chairs) are still trying to get a meeting with the new MoTI Minister Todd Stone.

 

Please find attached (pdf file) some terrific work by Brian Hollingshead and members of the FACC.  You will find a short recap of the 'user pay' legislation (2003) and how that principle, even though the language was removed with the amendment to the Coastal Ferry Act in 2012, is alive and well...and results in ferry dependent communities continuing to struggle to remain viable with fares that have long since past the 'tipping point' of affordability.  Brian spells out where the money comes from for BCF for Performance Term 3 (PT3) and what we might expect going forward in the face of continued declining ridership.  In other words a reality check into who is really paying what to make this system work. 

Click here to view the More User Pay document.

 

Any questions, please call...

 

Best Regards

Keith Rush