Engine snags send ferry to sidelines
V2V Vacations’ Empress ferry between downtown Victoria and Vancouver’s Coal Harbour is out of service for the next three to four weeks after engine problems took the vessel out of action on Sunday.
Both of the ferry’s refurbished engines are expected to be replaced, Luisa Dizon, V2V’s sales and marketing manager, said Tuesday.
Passengers with bookings were offered trips Monday, Tuesday and today via the B.C. Connector bus service which carries riders between the two downtowns on board B.C. Ferries running from Tsawwassen and Swartz Bay. Thirteen guests had to use the B.C. Connector service on Tuesday. A V2V representative was on board.
Plans for Thursday and onward are still being worked out, Dizon said.
She also said that V2V is “looking at alternative comparable modes of transportation.” However, because those arrangements have not been confirmed, she could not say what they might be.
Asked if that meant bringing in a temporary replacement vessel, Dizon replied: “perhaps.”
V2V Vacations began service in May to offer a luxury trip between Victoria’s Inner Harbour and downtown Vancouver.
It was launched by Australia’s Riverside Marine, owned by Hume Campbell. A total of $10 million was spent to develop the service, which included a complete refit of the colourful Empress catamaran, which holds 254 passengers.
It was out of service for two days in mid-May due to electrical problems, but has operated every day until problems cropped up on Sunday, Dizon said.
The ferry started experiencing problems on the 2 p.m. trip out of Victoria, she said. As a result, it did not pull in to Vancouver until shortly before 7 p.m., rather than at 5:30 p.m.
Passengers received free food and beverages and the captain spoke individually to all 47 passengers, Dizon said.
As far as what happened at sea, Dizon said she can’t say anything because an insurance investigation is underway.
V2V Vacations is not accepting reservations at this time, Dizon said.
She could not say when reservations would resume.
“It’s still too early to tell exactly what sort of engine we will be replacing it with and what kind because they are actually on the ground trying to find them with the company’s team in Canada and Brisbane, Australia.
“We just don’t know yet what that’s going to look like. This has only come up in the last 48 hours.”
The ferry was docked at Coal Harbour in Vancouver on Tuesday.
Such delays are not unexpected in the first year of operation, the company said in a statement on Tuesday.
By doing repairs, the company is putting safety and passenger comfort first, it said.
Once the new engines arrive, they will have to be installed and tested to “make sure everything is completely operational ,” Dizon said. “We are taking it day by day. Obviously, our guests are the priority right now.”