Scott Stanfield
Record staff
Installation of a cable ferry from Buckley Bay — Denman Island is behind schedule, but BC Ferries still expects the vessel to be operating this year.
In April, the corporation had said construction of the 78.5 metre cable ferry was nearing completion at Seaspan. But on Monday, BC Ferries said the vessel is still at the North Vancouver shipyard.
“They will have it ready to be towed up to the Buckley Bay area mid-August,” director of media relations Deborah Marshall said. “Once it gets up there, we expect about six weeks of crew training and familiarization.”
The company figures it will be ready to run by fall.
“It is taking a bit longer than we expected, but we’ll have a great ship in service,” Marshall said.
The ferry will operate with one drive cable and two guide cables. As opposed to a crew of six that manned the self-propelled Quinitsa, three people will be aboard the new vessel, which will be the longest of its kind in the world.
BC Ferries expects the cable ferry will save more than $80 million over 40 years.