With cuts to many ferry routes supposed to kick in April 1st, ten Ferry Advisory Committee Chairs are meeting with BC Ferries representatives on Tuesday to see if they can negotiate.
FACC Co-Chair Brian Hollingshead says the sailings being targeted by BC Ferries are problematic and they’ve asked the company to reconsider some of the service cuts. Hollingshead says BC Ferries has said they’re willing to look at other options. However, they need time to gather feedback from the communities that would be impacted.
Hollingshead says they’ll be discussing the best way to gather the required feedback – whether it is public meetings in each of the communities, or discussions with intermediate groups.
He says ultimately, the FAC Chairs want the cuts delayed so there’s time to do a realistic assessment of the impact, and adequate time for people to adjust to the changes. Hollingshead says they hope to convince BC Ferries to delay the cuts until at least September. He says making the cuts in April would jeopardize the summer tourism season in BC, because many people have tours booked on routes slated to be cut.
