Mayors of two coastal communities are hoping a letter to BC Ferries will spark some positive change regarding local ferry service.
Bowen Island mayor Andrew Leonard and Gibsons mayor Silas White from the Sunshine Coast sent the letter to B.C. premier David Eby last Friday. In it they outline both historical and recent challenges with the routes to Bowen Island and Langdale which originate at the Horseshoe Bay Ferry Terminal. The letter also laments what they describe as a lack of accountability, communication, and engagement with BC Ferries (BCF), and concludes with a list of action items they wish to see take place over the next few weeks.
“We cannot go through another season like this, with boats that are decades old and breaking down and running into and destroying our docks in Snug Cove,” said Leonard during Bowen’s council on Monday. “It’s utterly unacceptable and something needs to change.”
Bowen’s ferry challenges, particularly in recent years and especially during summer months, are well documented and often experienced by both residents and visitors. Operational issues include frequent overloads, a lack of ferry marshalling in Snug Cove, wide variances between the ferry schedule and actual sailing times, and even occasional sailing cancellations when crew cannot be sourced for the Bowen runs. In February this year the Queen of Capilano crashed into boats at the Bowen Island Marina, heavily damaging the vessels along with the dock itself.
Issues on both routes were once again highlighted during the Easter long weekend in April after the Queen of Coquitlam servicing the Sunshine Coast broke down. The ferry had to be assisted back to Horseshoe Bay by tugboats, and the resulting backlog disrupted Bowen sailings and caused long vehicle lineups at the terminal.
“Given what felt like a disastrous first long weekend of the season, it feels very ominous for what’s to come,” said Leonard.
The mayors did not limit their criticism to the operations side of things either, reserving space for the engagement and governance side of BC Ferries too.
“The conversations that I had with mayor White were initially somewhat positively optimistic about this new engagement regime that BC Ferries was putting forward,” the mayor explained to council. “However that seems to have dried up.”
BC Ferries made the decision to disband their Ferry Advisory Committees late last year. Earlier this month council resolved to send a separate letter to BCF expressing their “disappointment” that there was no engagement on the new ferry schedule for the island set to be implemented on May 15 and lasting until March 2026.
Council also awaits an answer to another ask of BCF. “This also comes on the heels of... this council requesting $150,000 in annual funding to deal with ferry marshalling and infrastructure upgrades in Snug Cove,” said Leonard.
“We said if you (BCF) don’t want to take responsibility for your marshalling and investing responsibilities here in Snug Cove - fine. We’ll do it. But we can’t do it on the back of property taxes in a community of 4,200. To date we haven’t had a response.”
In addition, the letter called into question the governance structure of BC Ferries – comprised of the province, BCF Commissioner, BCF Authority, and BCF Board and Management.
“Each organization can — and often does — point to another for the reason that something cannot be done. Meanwhile, our residents face real-world consequences: lost wages, foregone medical care, cancelled recreation, and escalating costs of doing business,” read the letter.
“Our council brought this up with the Minister of Transportation saying the ministry is claiming BCF is a private entity, BCF Authority and the Ferries Commissioner say they don’t have operational control, and the BCF Board and Management say they don’t have the money to do anything… as a result there’s this circular unaccountability from all of the governance structures,” added Leonard on Monday.
Broadly, the letter called for focus on four main areas (with specifics contained within each) – an accountable governance table, transparent operational data, immediate reliability measures for the Bowen Island and Langdale/Sunshine Coast routes, and a restoration of meaningful community engagement. Leonard and White requested a written answer to how these four issues would be addressed by the end of May, and a meeting with the premier and transportation minister Mike Farnworth before the start of this summer’s peak season.
The mayors letter was copied to numerous provincial and local politicians along with BC Ferries executives. Leonard also thanked the many residents of Bowen and the Sunshine Coast who’ve sent in their own letters and urged them to continue doing so, saying they do indeed have an impact.
