Chemainus Terminal Update

Members of the FAC met Stephen Mayall, Project Manager, Terminal Construction from BC Ferries on Friday September 25th, 2015. Below is the latest news on this project.

The trestle, ramp, pontoons and wing walls will be replaced.

The resulting structure will be highway legal at 63.5 tons on 8 axles.

Demolition/construction will begin in September/October of 2016.

The berth will be closed for 8 to 10 weeks, starting in early January 2017.

We had a good discussion on what alternate service might look like:

There will be a 40 to 50 person water taxi that will run (ideally) on the existing schedule and service Thetis, Penelakut and Chemainus. At peak times such as the school runs a second 15 to 20 person water taxi may be added if necessary.

Vehicles will go through the Crofton terminal. The details such as schedule and vessel still need to be worked out. For example it is possible that the Quinitsa, which currently services Denman Island and will be replaced later this year with a cable ferry, will be used. The Quinitsa has a 50 car capacity compared to the Kuper’s 32. Again, this is only a possibility. The travel distance is considerably longer and will need to be dovetailed into the existing Crofton Vesuvius run. The actual sailing times and schedule are still to be worked out.

Next steps: 

Ferries will meet again with the local FAC and other key stakeholders mid to late November of this year in Chemainus, and an initial alternate service plan will be developed.

There will be a series of Public Open Houses in the late winter, early spring of 2016 in Chemainus and on Thetis and Penelakut. The Open Houses are for public feedback as they work through the details of the closure plan. They will be looking for any details unique to Chemainus, Thetis and Penelakut.

Finally in September of 2016 there will Information Sessions on Thetis, Penelakut and in Chemainus. At this stage the project has been finalized. The Information Sessions are to communicate the final plan with all the details well ahead of the dock closure. This way people have plenty of time to prepare for the 8-10 week closure during which they will be using the water taxi and a less frequent and longer ferry run to Crofton.

Construction crews will start to show up in Chemainus in September/October 2016.

Any questions, please give me a call.

Keith

Keith W. Rush RPF (Ret)

keithrush17@gmail.com

Ph: 250-416-0013

Cell: 250-732-2766