ADAM OLSEN – While the provincial government scrambled to address the impacts of the pandemic across the province, BC Ferries were left to fend for themselves
The ferries system connects us to our homes, our businesses and our communities. They are critical for the economic survival of coastal British Columbia. When an issue with the BC Ferries service arises, it is usually followed by an immediate and visceral reaction from the public.
With at least a third of our provincial economy linked by our marine highways, the provincial government must ensure that the service is robust, reliable, convenient and affordable. This is a message I have heard consistently from my constituents in Saanich North and the Islands and across British Columbia.
BC Ferries was deeply impacted when Dr. Bonnie Henry responded to the COVID-19 global pandemic by asking people to stay home and ordering strict social distancing measures. Their revenue plummeted with the restrictions on non-essential travel and the dramatically reduced ferry schedules.
While the provincial government scrambled to address the impacts of the pandemic across the province, BC Ferries were left to fend for themselves.
To maintain the critical service the corporation had little choice but to turn to their reserves. I am deeply concerned about their ability to maintain a modern ferry service without those funds for important capital projects like vessel renewal and terminal upgrades.
Thankfully the federal government’s $1 billion contribution, that must be matched dollar-for-dollar by the province, will provide some financial relief for the ferries service. However, it’s not before hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent.
I raised this issue with the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, Honourable Claire Travena, more than a month ago. It’s likely that a generation’s worth of capital investments in the ferry service are gone and it’s unlikely that any of the recently announced funding will replenish the reserve accounts of the corporation.
With the potential of a second wave this fall there may be choppy waters ahead and BC Ferries can not afford further losses of revenue.
I appreciate the federal government stepping up and including the BC Ferries as an eligible transit service for their recovery funds. It means the provincial government is also now on the hook for investing further resources in keeping this critical service operating.
Our ferry system is a critical part of our provincial transportation network, they are marine highways, and despite the current complex governance structure they are squarely a provincial responsibility.
The provincial
government has to take responsibility for BC Ferries once again to ensure the
long-term viability of the critical service keeping our coast connected.
Adam Olsen ... is the interim leader of the BC Green Party, and the MLA for Saanich North and the Islands
BC Ferry Corp. began as a prov govt entity when W.A.C. Bennett was Premier but it shifted to an arm's-length private corporation when Bill Vander Zalm was Premier and Mel Couvelier was Minister of Finance - which was done so BC Ferry Corp's capital costs could be deducted from federal taxes since Ottawa at the time was reluctant to help pay for a provincially-owned business even though it was part of the trans-continental highway system. Semi-privatizing B.C. Ferries has had mixed results. The feds should help pay for it. Google this: "Are Canadian maritime ferry services subsidized by the federal government?" - and you'll see the Atlantic provinces get huge subsidies from Ottawa for their ferry services but B.C. gets only small help - until a recent handout related to Covid.
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