8 A “sNeeualel Two. 34 “metre { ILLS ft.) cataniacan forries,: 3 urrard’ Reaver and ‘Burrard: s Nene! pacity: 400 passer A rs and alx bleyctes'f' 21) in t day of ere! Jue l? ngewe "dis nce 178 nau i; thal miles ' 4 Crossing time!’ 12 minut * Service speeds: 11.8’ knot ‘; Bmployces 79 full lime, f fs art-tline Dassen 1996)" Most: ‘pasieng ers carried 20,248 (198: By Michael Becker News Editor y michael@usnews.com “KEN Smith remembers the " day'18 gorillas came to ride, ‘ the ScaBus. toy 7 “Ht was a stag, party, ‘They all want: "ed to get on the boat ‘and they were really in character, It was the guy’s last ae to.go ape before he got mar- a “ne ee Smith is'a SeaBus controllet-mate, "'He’s one of the people who navigate “and drive the. passenger ferry, Smith has prety much seen it all ~ over the More than 20 years he’s been working with the transit’ tem. ee, * There was the other time he was waiting at the terminal for his uv » sip to come ins... + One happy commuter was a bit worse for wear ‘with drink, The * fallow was in town to whoop it up after some hard work at a Jog- vp. ging camp up north, Said Smith, “He looked over to me and he says, ‘Hey captain,’ And I says, ‘Ya, what's up there trapper? And he says, ‘How fast * are we going anyway?’ The ship wasn’ t even In yet, And: I says, . ‘Pretty fast,” He goes, ‘Ya, smooth.’ ” oar “4° The system runs so smoothly in fact that ‘ou don’t’ notice “much of the Support team that makes it all work well. } “i. From’a rider's perspective it seems to. be automated save for. d+ the fare checkers at the turnstiles and the crew member aboard * the ferry passenger deck. “yg. The 81 SeaBus workers take’ pride i in the fact that commuters » can set their watches by ferries that,run on time. SeaBus opera- a ~ tions superintendent Ross Stevens Pegs the system’s efficiency rate aay at99.93%, ces “ _ SeaBus celebrated a 20th anniversary on June 17,: -_ It’s party time on Saturday with free SeaBus rides all day and: . cake and entertainment from 10:30 a.m, to t p.m. The milestone will be marked in conjunction with Lower Lonsdale Community , Celebration Day. * In 1974 the province sought proposals for the Burrard Inlet#, le mover,” The goal was for a passenger-only link betweeit’ ie foot of Lonsdale and the best location on the south shore of . Vancouver somewhere near Granville Street. ‘So ‘The system would have the flexibility to/prow for -future demands (from an initial two ferries to eight). Two all- aluniinum, ., double-ended catamaran passenger ferries were built by Yarrow Ltd, of Victoria, At first they were orange. Young hostesses rode the new ferries throughout the summer to provide passenger information and answer questions. “The prime contractor for the floating terminais*was . Dillingham Corporation Canada Ltd, of North Vancouver. Since inception, peak period SeaBus, ridership has increased steadily, BC Transit has no immediate plans to add to the SeaBus ficet. Its Transport 2021 Medium Range Pian recommends that service be increased by 2006 with a third vessel. Meanwhile BC Transit is looking at increasing, existing capaci- by allowing standees on the ferries, In 1989 BC Transit examined the feasibility of ferry service between Deep Cove and Waterfront Station and between Wes , Vancouver and Waterfront Station. The study concluded that ridershij and cost of service did not i Warrant the expansion, At the time there were no plans to replace u the Lions Gate Bridge.or to place tolls on cither of the Burrard ‘Tnlet bridge crossings. i ' 41994 BC ‘Transit study of North Shore ‘Transit options sugs _ (1 Bests there is merit in investigating potential marine service expan- "* sion in light of the fact that Lions Gate Bridge may be replaced and that tolls may become a reality, , -* —— ¢ Possible new marine connections could include: > fg Dundarave-Waterfront Station; : @ Horseshoe Bay-Dundarave-Waterfont St | Ambieside-Watertront Station; . vs ] Capilano- “Waterfront Station; _: @Arableside-False Creek; BM Ambleside-UBC; @ Lynnterm- Watertront Stations More than 76 million passengers carried rn ne mo B Deep C Cove: Waterfront Station; W Deep Cove-Lynnterm- Waterfront Station. i Any new marine services for the North Shore would demand extensive restructuring of transit services on the North Shore. In 1990 it was estimated thar the capital cost for a two-vessel passenger ferry service (200 passengers maximum. per ferry). roween Dundarave and Water mately $11 million, Ken Miller, SeaBus superintendent of engineering, says ‘the Burrard Beaver and Burrard Otter have held up well over 20 years. “In the last few year we've done’t non: -destructive testing of the hulls, measured thicknesses for corrosion and that and as far as we can see there’s no problem with these hulls at all. They're good for another 20 years,” said Miller, Meanwhile controller-mate