Ticket glitch briefly leads to long lines at Swartz Bay ferry terminal

There were reports of long lines and frustration at BC Ferries' Swartz Bay Terminal due to an issue with ticket processing.

The company advised travellers early Tuesday that the delays were being seen at both vehicle and foot passenger booths.

"The IT department has been engaged and is investigating the issue," BC Ferries said on its website. It issued an update just before 8:30 a.m. that said the ticket issue had been resolved and that booths were now functioning normally.

#BCFHeadsUp #SwartzBay The technical issues have been resolved. Ticket booths are now functioning normally. We thank everyone impacted for their patience while this issue was being resolved. ^gl

— BC Ferries (@BCFerries) May 21, 2019

Some travellers reported the point of sale system used to accept debit and credit cards were down, causing long lines at ticket booths.

POS down at Swartz Bay. Long queue to ticket booths.

— Jim Edwards (@wsbigband) May 21, 2019

BC Ferries said several sailings to and from Swartz Bay were delayed as a result "in order to load as many customers as possible."

Hourly sailings were scheduled up until 3 p.m. Tuesday to accommodate long weekend traffic.