With a record-breaking year of vehicle traffic behind them, BC Ferries is looking toward the future and their near-record breaking amount of overall passengers boarding their vessels.
More than 22 million passengers sailed on BC Ferries ships in fiscal 2018, reaching a 20-year high.
While more than 8.7 million vehicles also made the voyage, itB次元官网网址檚 the increasing foot passengers BC Ferries has its eye on.
B次元官网网址淲e almost hit our record number ever of passengers, just not quite. We might hit it this year, weB次元官网网址檒l see,B次元官网网址� BC Ferries President and CEO Mark Collins said. B次元官网网址淐ertainly, traffic is approaching historic highs for the ferry system.B次元官网网址�
He said the surge in passengers is partly because of the fare freezes, economy and lower fuel prices encouraging more travel, but increasing popularity of ride-hailing apps could also be the cause.
While Uber is not yet offered in Vancouver or Victoria, apps such as Zipcar are named in BC FerriesB次元官网网址� Performance Term Five Submission to the Commissioner, which would begin in 2020. The company anticipates there will be more walk-on passengers than those travelling by vehicle if theyB次元官网网址檙e using ride-sharing apps to and from the terminals, but not taking them onboard.
READ MORE:
B次元官网网址淲e look down the road at trends, development and the economy, technology and things like that to make sure weB次元官网网址檙e considering everything that could influence our infrastructure decisions. Ride-hailing and autonomous vehicles are two emerging trends which weB次元官网网址檙e watching very carefully. I canB次元官网网址檛 say for sure where theyB次元官网网址檙e going to go, but what we can see is one possibility is that people may move more and more over to ride-hailing services and autonomous vehicles and own fewer cars,B次元官网网址� Collins said.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a possibility, then that could have big implications for the ferry system.B次元官网网址�
BC Ferries models such scenarios drawing up potential accommodations. In Swartz Bay and Tsawwassen terminals, Collins said that could include more waiting areas with more refreshment services and seating, different check-in systems, and potentially more green space.
B次元官网网址淲here do those cars go when theyB次元官网网址檙e dropping people off? Will there need to be smart technology on the terminals to facilitate the movement of driverless vehicles? All of these things have a big impact on our infrastructure, so we spend some time thinking about those possible futures,B次元官网网址� Collins said. B次元官网网址淭hereB次元官网网址檚 always some waiting associated with getting on the ferry because you have to wait for it to dock, walk on board and things like that, so we want to do what we can to make it more pleasant for the travellers.B次元官网网址�
READ MORE:
@KeiliBartlett
keili.bartlett@blackpress.ca
Like us on and follow us on
