October 6, 2012.
B.C. Ferries is again raising fares, in spite of a
declining user group; not the usual business decision.
The Ferry system is not your usual business, because BC
Ferries is obliged to cover major losing runs, such as the Gulf Islands.
According to the figures reported in the Annual report of
the BC Ferries Commissioner, the annual revenues for twelve months to March 31
2012 are $51,495 million for the Islands Trust area south of Cortes Is. The
annual expenses BC Ferries has to absorb are $76,224 million, thus showing a
loss/subsidy of $24,729 million. Clearly this is not sustainable.
Referring to the Gabriola ferry service only, the
revenues are $5,672 million, with expenses of $7,425 million and a subsidy of
$1,753 million annually. The revenue is more than adequate to pay for a 100 year bridge
system, thus releasing the BC Ferries from their unsustainable expense.
If the subsidy is shared by all inhabitants of an island,
the following examples are illustrative of the problem.
The Gabriola Is. loss/subsidy, shared equally by the 5000
or so inhabitants, works out to approximately, $1,134 per person. Another example is Thetis Island, with
approx. 350 inhabitants and a loss/subsidy of $2,695 million, works out at
$7,700 per person.
We will leave the Saltspring Is. issue alone for now,
with its three ferry services and the use of six terminals.
The Islands Trust Act is for preserving and protecting
the Islands for the Province as a whole, not just the inhabitants, who, on
average, own ½ acre. What does the rest
of the Province think of paying for such an unsustainable ferry system in the
present economic climate, when for Gabriola at least, the ferry can be replaced
by a far more sustainable bridge system.
