BC Ferries cancels sailings as major vessel out of service between Victoria, Vancouver
The Coastal Celebration is hardly living up to its name.
The BC Ferries vessel is out of action for repairs to its propulsion system, meaning the Swartz Bay-Tsawwassen route is down one vessel, with eight cancelled sailings each day, until it's fixed.
The lost sailings mean very long lineups and multiple-sailing waits for those drivers without reservations.
By 10 a.m. Thursday, if a driver didn't have a reservation, the earliest ferry they could get on from Swartz Bay to Tsawwassen was the 4 p.m. sailing.
By 11 a.m., the line of vehicles trying to get to the Lower Mainland snaked down Highway 17, well outside of the ferry terminal.
Seven-thousand travellers had made reservations on the Coastal Celebration over the coming week.
Those reservations are being moved to different times. Until those thousands of reservations get sorted, the BC Ferries online system won't allow new reservations.
The current chaos is just the latest for BC Ferries, which is currently enduring major staff shortages and routine cancellations due to mechanical issues. Those are issues that Premier David Eby says new BC Ferries CEO Nicolas Jimenez is tasked with fixing.
"This is a huge source of frustration for people who depend on the ferries for their livelihood, to see loved ones," Eby said. "It's a priority for our government to address these issues, that’s why we've made significant changes to the leadership."
The Coastal Celebration is expected to be back in action at the end of next week. Until then, BC Ferries has added two late-night sailings and warns travellers should brace for long waits.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
DEVELOPING Slovakia's populist prime minister shot multiple times in attempted assassination
Slovakia's populist Prime Minister Robert Fico is in life-threatening condition after being wounded in a shooting after a political event Wednesday afternoon, according to his Facebook profile.
Transport Canada's UFO 'lead' planned to meet with U.S. intel officials, called info requests a 'wild goose chase'
Canada's transportation department had a UFO 'lead' who tried to 'quell' media interest and planned to meet with U.S. intelligence officials.
'Very expensive lunch': Sask. driver handed a cell phone ticket for using points app in McDonald's drive-thru
A warning from a Saskatoon driver about using your fast-food app while in the drive-thru line — a trip to get some free lunch cost him a lot more than he bargained for.
'The Fly' has become notorious in France after a brazen escape. What's his criminal history?
A prisoner nicknamed “The Fly” has become notorious in France overnight after a daring and bloody escape from a prison convoy in Normandy that left two guards dead.
BREAKING Ontario's 'crypto king' Aiden Pleterski arrested
Aiden Pleterski, the self-proclaimed 'crypto king' from Whitby, Ont., has been arrested in Durham Region after allegedly running a Ponzi scheme worth more than $40 million.
BREAKING Barge hits a bridge in Texas, damaging the structure and causing an oil spill
A barge hit a bridge in Galveston, Texas, on Wednesday, spilling oil into surrounding waters and closing the only road to a small island, officials said.
Person responsible for 1996 drugging of 'Titanic' crew likely not a local: Halifax police
Halifax Regional Police believe a non-resident could be responsible for the infamous drugging of numerous crew members of the 'Titanic' movie with a hallucinogenic in 1996.
Latest updates on the biggest wildfires burning in Canada
Thousands of people in Western Canada remain displaced from their homes as wildfires threaten their communities, triggering evacuation orders and alerts.
OPINION Your attention span is shrinking, studies say. Here's how to stay focused: Sandee LaMotte
Regaining your focus requires you to be mindful of how you are using technology -- a daunting task if you consider the average American spends at least 10 hours a day on screens.