Ferry fares threat has minister calming waters

BC Ferries President David Hahn said in an interview Thursday that fares might rise more than 20 per cent on the main routes, more than 60 per cent on the minor ones and more than 100 per cent on the northern routes over the next four years.

He blamed what he called "soft" ridership and rising costs.

Bond said Hahn is just putting forward his company's projections and the B.C. Ferry Commissioner will have to review the submissions before any final decisions are made and that won't come until September.

"There is no intention to increase fares tomorrow," she said. "There is a process under way that would impact fares more than a year from now, so in fact there's a lot of work to be done."

Bond said B.C. Ferries should also be looking for cost saving measures that could reduce the impact of any fare hikes. In an interview on Shaw TV, Hahn said the projected rise in rates is substantial unless service is cut or the government provides a larger subsidy.

Hahn's pay cited

"It could be somewhere between 12 and 14 per cent on the minor routes and on the norththis will blow everybody away it's 26 per cent [per year for four years]," Hahn said.

"It's very substantial. The ferry advisory committees and the local communities have been very aware of this for the last two or three years. The government is as well. There's a big policy decision looming off of this and we'll see what happens."

Hahn said the provincial government could reduce the fare hikes by increasing its subsidy to the company, but Bond wouldn't say if the government will boost the subsidy, which currently sits at $150 million a year.

NDP ferries critic Gary Coons called the fare hikes "business as usual for the million-dollar man at the helm," a reference to Hahn's annual pay.

Coons said fares have rocketed out of control since the B.C. Liberals privatized the ferries in 2003 and repeated the NDP's call for a moratorium on fare hikes until a review of the privatization is conducted.