BC Ferries extends Coastal Renaissance repairs to March

BC Ferries said the Coastal Renaissance will not be back in service until March, the third delay so far in its repair schedule.

The BC Ferries C-class vessel which has been dry-docked since August, will now be sidelined longer than expected.

The company said the Coastal Renaissance will not be back in service until March.

The Renaissance was taken out of service in August following a motor failure, causing thousands of cancelled and reassigned bookings. It was first expected to return to the water mid-October, but that timeframe was extended to mid-December. But, once again, the date has been pushed back into early March.

BC Ferries said the Coastal Inspiration will be the fill-in for the Tsawwassen and Swartz Bay route. No change to passenger or vehicle capacity is expected.

“BC Ferries is taking a flexible approach to the deployment of its vessels across routes and is pleased to be able to put its passengers first and maintain the same capacity levels that were originally planned,” a spokesperson said.

News of the additional repair delay comes just one day after BC Ferries closed its public feedback survey on customer service, the results of which are slated to be released in January or February.

It also comes less than two months after the provincial government announced it would start fining the company thousands next April for sailings cancelled due to crew shortages. Staffing shortages were responsible for roughly four in 10 cancellations last year, according to a BC Ferries report.

Official Opposition MLA Trevor Halford, shadow minister for transportation, said he was recently told by Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Rob Fleming that the Coastal Renaissance would be back in the water by mid-December and was surprised by Wednesday’s revelation.