By
Rebecca Gibson |
Canadian ferry operator BC Ferries has taken ownership of its new cable ferry, Baynes Sound Connector, from Seaspan’s Vancouver Shipyards.
The vessel joined the fleet following various trials and tests conducted by Seaspan in conjunction with BC Ferries, during which she met or exceeded all contract ans speed specifications. She also achieved lower fuel consumption compared to the Quinitsa, the vessel currently in service on this route.
“All speeds have been achieved on the designed one engine operation, and the second engine is there for complete redundancy,” said Mark Wilson, BC Ferries’ vice president of Engineering. “The horsepower of one engine is approximately 490, compared to the Quinitsa, which has four engines at 475 horsepower each. The trials indicated significantly lower fuel consumption than the current vessel.”
Tension-measuring devices on the cables also indicated that that cables are functioning as planned, and the loads are within the predicted results. In addition, the weight of the cables has not impacted the vessel’s speed.
BC Ferries will train crew and carry out familiarisation exercises both onboard the vessel and at the terminals over the next eight weeks before the ferry begins full operational service in early February 2016. For example, they will carry out daytime and nighttime cable change-outs trials and emergency recovery procedures and make final adjustments to the floating pontoons at both terminals. The company will also work to achieve Transport Canada certification.
Once in service, Baynes Sound Connector will be able to accommodate 50 vehicles and 150 passengers and crew. It will use one drive cable and two guide cables to travel a distance of 1,900 metres between Denman Island and Buckley Bay at a speed of up to 8.5 knots. This will make Baynes Sound Connector one of the longest cable ferries in the world.
The new ferry is expected to provide BC Ferries with projected cost savings of more than CAD$80 million over her 40-year lifespan compared to the current service. This will amount to savings of CAD$2 million per year, which will help with fare affordability across the coastal ferry system.
Passengers will continue to be served by Quinitsa until the Baynes Sound
Connector goes into service.
“BC Ferries maintains its commitment to the residents of Denman and Hornby Islands that the cable ferry will provide the same level of reliable service as the Quinitsa,” said Mike Corrigan, BC Ferries’ president and CEO. “We are pleased to deliver our customers a quality product that operates to our very high safety and reliability standards.”