BC Ferries’ Swartz Bay terminal north of Victoria will undergo significant changes in the coming years as the ferry operator sets a course for its future, according to the company’s terminal development plan (TDP).

 

Serving approximately 7.2 million passengers per year, BC Ferries expects traveller volumes at the North Saanich transport hub to rise to 7.7 million by 2032, and accommodating that growth while managing the expectations of the travelling public will necessitate a significant infrastructure and services overhaul.

 

The organization’s identified goals include a re-envisioning of the foot passenger terminal into a larger, airport-like facility (with retail amenities) designed to reduce mobility conflicts between arriving and departing passengers. The passenger terminal’s vehicle drop-off and pick-up zones will also be redesigned to better handle incoming and outgoing traffic.

 

Improvements to the terminal’s vehicle traffic area will materialize in the form of a new retail building and lounge which is currently described by BC Ferries as being “at the end of [its] service life.” What the new retail building will look like – and whether it will follow in the footsteps of Metro Vancouver’s Quay Market at the Tsawwassen terminal – remains to be seen.

 

Commercial and freight traffic may also see improvements in the form of an expanded drop trailer facility and a realignment of Dolphin Road which acts as an artery for Swartz Bay’s tractor-trailer traffic.

 

And what would be a welcome relief to passengers caught up in annual sailing waits in the heat of summer, sources tell Citified the frequency of high season sailings between Swartz Bay and Tsawwassen could increase to as little as 30-minutes to accommodate growing demand for the system's busiest route. A frequency of less than one hour would necessitate expanding the fleet of four vessels currently allocated to peak period sailings between the two terminals. Changes to the frequency are not considered a near-term goal and are under consideration over the TDP's 25-year outlook.

 

A request for comment from BC Ferries on future sailing frequencies and any timelines that may be under consideration was not received in time for publication of this article.

 

Underway since the summer of 2017, Swartz Bay’s TDP continues undergoing internal and external stakeholder consultation sessions to align the company’s vision with public expectations. A formal draft of the TDP is expected to be developed by late 2018 with a final adaptation of the plan by early 2019.

 

Budgets, implementation time lines and construction schedules have yet to be determined, although improvements to Metro Vancouver's Horseshoe Bay terminal were announced last year to the tune of $250 million and are set to begin within five years. As the third-busiest terminal after Tsawwassen and Swartz Bay, Horseshoe Bay is described as at-capacity and will require significant upgrades to its aging infrastructure and facilities. C

 

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