Editor:
In 1958, Premier W.A.C. Bennett recognized the need for a continued reliable ferry service under the mandate of the provincial government.
When I first arrived on Texada Island in 1972, our ferries were classified as part of the highway system.
According to a BC Ferries website, their “commitment to customer safety and service has never been stronger.”
Unfortunately, words are cheap, and the ability of the 2003 privatized coastal ferry fleet to “improve service and shield taxpayers from future debt” has only downgraded the service on all of the northern runs to the detriment of the coastal economies.
The privatized corporation is pursuing non-resident travel dollars with the creation of their “coastal getaways” in an attempt to reimage the fleet as “cruise” ships rather than the original highways they were intended for.
Commerce and tourism are dependent on good transportation links that are reliable and timely. The current management of our fleet has the Queen of Burnaby (Comox to Powell River) back in dry dock at the peak of tourist season with the North Island Princess (Texada) filling the gap on the Sunshine Coast right after needing a tugboat to ensure her ability to cross the water – and in the middle of a weekend on Texada that draws as many tourists to our island as the people who live here!
Northern rural economies have always had challenges with freight cost and location. The privatization of our ferries can be summed up nicely in the bumper sticker “BC Ferries, Sinking Coastal Economies.” I suggest the Coast is the tourism jewel of B.C.
If you do not support the local resident populations, the businesses that attract tourism cannot survive the offseason.
Leslie Goresky, Texada Island
