An announcement that the Conservative party pledged on Thursday to provide the “required financial support” to help the Island Ferries group establish a foot-passenger ferry service between Nanaimo and Vancouver can only be seen as good news.
Such a service remains an extremely important transportation link that would propel Nanaimo, and the entire mid-Island region, forward on a variety of levels.
John Duncan, the longtime MP and current candidate for Courtenay-Alberni, was correct when he said the service would be a “game-changer” for the Island.
For commuters, the ability to shuttle back and forth between downtowns in a more timely fashion would be a boon.
If a service sustains a long-term level of success, it will have a huge impact on Nanaimo.
It would make the city a viable option for workers in downtown Vancouver to raise their families in a quieter community, with housing prices being significantly more affordable.
Since one of the best ways to further revitalize downtown Nanaimo would be to have people living there, you have to figure development in the area would be spurred on if a host of new folks wanted to make it their home.
Many people have been behind the idea for years.
“I have lost count of the letters I wrote and phone calls I made,” said Nanaimo-Ladysmith Conservative candidate Mark MacDonald, whose support for the project dates back many years.
“The foot passenger ferry is the missing link in the Central Island’s transportation infrastructure.”
The project will boost tourism.
Day trips in either direction become instantly more affordable.
It should spur on new business in Nanaimo and area.
Basically, everyone’s a fan.
So far, Island Ferries has done everything right. Provided all their ducks are in a row, their own financing is in place and the vessels prove reliable, it could indeed be a “game-changer.”
And something we can all get behind.
Black Press