It wasn't just cars left behind last weekend as two Route 3 sailings reached passenger capacity the first Saturday in June, rousing frustration among those left behind.
"And so it begins…..how do 100+ foot passengers get left behind at Horseshoe Bay to Langdale ferry this morning for the 950 am?" read a post on the Sunshine Coast BC Ferry Complaints Facebook page.
An estimate shared with Coast Reporter puts the number of passengers left behind in the 50-person range.
The Queen of Surrey reached passenger capacity on its 9:50 a.m. and 12:10 p.m. sailings leaving Horseshoe Bay for Langdale on June 3, BC Ferries executive director of public affairs Deborah Marshall told Coast Reporter in an email. The ship was operating on a "C" licence at the time, meaning the ship could carry a total of 823 people.
"Crewing levels determine whether a vessel can sail on an “A”, “B”, or “C” licence and that affects the number of passengers that vessel can carry," explained Marshall. "We require a specific number of crew members on board the vessels to ensure the safety of our passengers in the unlikely event of an emergency and to comply with Transport Canada regulations."
The crew limits for the Queen of Surrey according to Marshall are:
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“A” licence – 1,430
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“B” licence – 1,239
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“C” licence – 823
"We know a reduction in service can impact customers travel plans and we exhaust all options before making the decision to reduce a licence. We recognize we fell short over recently due our inability to secure sufficient crew with required safety qualifications and we apologize for that," said Marshall.
Editor's note: This story has been updated with clarification of how many people were left behind.
