310 replies to this topic

[Victoria Watcher]

maybe throw in free wax museum admission to sweeten it?  

 

but yes even the royal bay location seems all wrong.  people should board at the fisgard lighthouse.

[Nparker]

maybe throw in free wax museum admission to sweeten it?  ..

Wouldn't that require the re-opening of the wax museum?

[Coreyburger]

$100 million for a ferry. If it were $10 million, might make sense (just the cost a vessel or two). But not at $100 million. You could do a lot with that - including building most of commuter rail system on the E&N.

[Bob Fugger]

maybe throw in free wax museum admission to sweeten it?  

I hear that Fable Cottage is lovely this time of year.

[Victoria Watcher]

Wouldn't that require the re-opening of the wax museum?

 

the wax is just in storage no?  is it odd that the wax museum closes right when people love taking selfies? 

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 19 March 2019 - 08:15 AM.

[Mike K.]

$100 million for a ferry. If it were $10 million, might make sense (just the cost a vessel or two). But not at $100 million. You could do a lot with that - including building most of commuter rail system on the E&N.

Indeed you could, and countless other improvements, probably.

Furthermore, I can’t imagine Royal Bay residents will welcome nearly 1,000 vehicles flooding their neighbourhood every morning, if that many people actually do decide that they want to pay $16-$20 for a round trip sailing.

[Victoria Watcher]

950 cars would require about 4 acres.  1.6 hectares.

[Cassidy]

cassidy just point to any town big or small that has a similar successful service.  surely somewhere in the entire world has/had a similar dilemma that might have been solved with a ferry.

Here's your big:

https://www.ferry.ny...-and-schedules/

 

Here's your small:

https://www.bcferrie...gik-current.php

 

Here's your "tiny" (this one is mainly passenger, but does carry a couple of cars):

http://www.balboaislandferry.com/

[FogPub]

^Another example is Plymouth England.  To get from Plymouth to Torpoint - about half a linear mile across the harbour, if that - requires about 6 miles of driving including a toll bridge that sometimes gets choked, or a lot more driving if the bridge is also to be avoided.  So they run an open-deck ferry back and forth across the harbour, I'm not sure if it sails all night but it's every half hour during the day and evening (every 15 minutes at peak).  Holds about 60 cars I think.  Passengers and bicycles sail for free, cars pay £1.50 going one way and free the other way.  Motorcycles pay 30p one way and free the other.

[Rob Randall]

But none of those examples travel over open ocean like we have.

[Jackerbie]

Don't forget all the WSDOT ferries in Seattle. Port Townsend to Coupeville comes to mind, as do the Bainbridge and Bremerton ferries. They're running vessels much larger than a catamaran, comparable to the new Salish class ferries I think.

Edited by Jackerbie, 20 March 2019 - 09:00 AM.

[Victoria Watcher]

so nobody has given any reasonable comparables then.  where a 30-minute long passenger ferry over open water saves you a 25-35-minute car trip.

 

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 20 March 2019 - 09:12 AM.

[Rob Randall]

I think the Hong Kong/Macau ferry system is a better comparison as it is similar geographically being coastline ocean. Most fares are under five dollars. For instance, ferries from Hong Kong to the small islands surrounding it take anywhere from 20 to 40 minutes.

[Jackerbie]

^ HK/Macau ferry system makes BC Ferries look like a small operation. The ferry terminal is more comparable to an airport (both terminals contain heliports, too!).

[Victoria Watcher]

And does each side have about a 60,000 population? or more?

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 20 March 2019 - 09:45 AM.

[Rob Randall]

^The short run between Hong Kong Island (pop 1.3 m) and Kowloon (pop 2m) is the most famous but the ferries also go to some island that are virtually uninhabited.

[Victoria Watcher]

the ferries also go to some island that are virtually uninhabited.

 

so not really a commuter run then.

[Rob Randall]

Well, no. What I'm saying is Hong Kong's extensive ferry system means that there are ferries running from every couple of minutes to every half hour. And some go to uninhabited islands and some serve populations in the millions. So there is every type of run.

 

But it is interesting to think that even the Sunday/Holiday ferry to Lamma Island (pop 5,000) still goes every 30 minutes all day long. We could only dream of that service frequency.

[Victoria Watcher]

^ gabriola and salt spring might have similar frequency.

ssi alone has over 30 departures every day in the summer.  25+ year-round.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 20 March 2019 - 11:15 AM.

[Nparker]

...But it is interesting to think that even the Sunday/Holiday ferry to Lamma Island (pop 5,000) still goes every 30 minutes all day long. We could only dream of that service frequency.

Perhaps when the CRD has a population density approaching that of Hong Kong we too can have the heavy usage commuter routes subsidizing the small population areas.