Editor:
BC Ferries’ reduced Sunday service between Langdale and Horseshoe Bay is catastrophic. On Sunday, June 8, we arrived at Langdale an hour early for the 11:30 sailing. We missed the ferry, as did three lines of waiting vehicles. The next ferry was at 2:45 p.m.
What message is BC Ferries sending local residents and tourists? Bad news sells fast! Why should tourists even consider visiting the BC Sunshine Coast with such poor ferry service? The same day, guests from Europe had to wait for more than six hours for the ferry from Earls Cove to Saltery Bay.
Sunshine Coast Tourism Association (SCTA) boasts an excellent rapport with the five regional districts and prides itself on selling the Sunshine Coast as a tourism destination. However, BC Ferries’ reduced travel services directly compete with SCTA’s and the regional districts’ tourism goals and directly impact local tourism business profitability.
Surely, it is time for SCTA to engage the regional districts in a dialogue with the BC Liberal government and BC Ferries Corporation to reverse the devastating effect of fewer scheduled runs, particularly now that the summer season is heating up.
Advertising the Sunshine Coast is great, but SCTA leadership on the issues that affect Coast tourism travel is imperative.
Colin F. MacLean, Roberts Creek
