A passenger-only ferry service will launch next summer, leading to excitement and skepticism in the Nanaimo market (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

all aboard

Top stories of 2022: Fast-ferry between Nanaimo and Vancouver months away from launching

Dec 28, 2022 | 2:10 PM

NANAIMO — “I’ll believe it when I see it”, “I’ve heard this before”, “Yeah right”.

Those common and completely justified reactions from many Nanaimoites followed a celebratory event last month declaring a passenger-only ferry would at last launch in the summer of 2023.

The long-discussed downtown-to-downtown service between Nanaimo and Vancouver has been planned at great length and expense by a prior entrepreneur who ultimately couldn’t round up the cash to convert talk into action.

Things are different this time around.

Backed by a multi-billion dollar Toronto-based private equity firm Conquora Capital Partners and a team of investors, two new Dutch-built catamarans holding about 350 passengers will service the route in an estimated 70 minutes.

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An exact launch date has not yet been revealed, while details about the schedule and fares will be announced this spring, according to Vancouver Island Ferry Company CEO Alastair Caddick.

He said late-night service will be included to cater to people attending concerts and sporting events in Vancouver.

“We are real, we are invested here for the long term. The boats are fully funded and we are funded to operate for the long-term,” Caddick told NanaimoNewsNOW at the Nov. 9 event at the Nanaimo Port Authority’s administration building.

All of the seats will be fully reservable, while walk-on passengers will be welcomed.

Fifty to 60 employees are envisioned for the Nanaimo-based operation, Caddick said, which will involve the vessels running between the Nanaimo cruise ship dock and the Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre at the base of Thurlow St.

A 30-year lease is in place in partnership with the port authority and Snuneymuxw First Nation.

There’s excitement from an economic and convenience perspective to narrow the geographical gap between the mid-Island area and the Lower Mainland.

Flight options are available, but are out of reach financially for many, while BC Ferries’ passenger-only service isn’t as direct or convenient for others.

Despite well-warranted skepticism, the Nanaimo market in particular is extremely excited about the return of passenger-only ferry service between the Harbour City and Vancouver.

The last such service, while popular, lasted only a short time and went out of business in 2006 following constant mechanical failures.

In a year which has seen its share of negative news stories in Nanaimo, having the assurance that a privately funded passenger-only ferry service will launch next year has a lot of people on the mid-Island extremely excited.

Who’s up for a day of shopping, Science World or a Canucks/BC Lions game and returning the same night?

Join the conversation. Submit your letter to NanaimoNewsNOW and be included on The Water Cooler, our letters to the editor feature.

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