The 50-year-old ferry Queen of Burnaby will be back on the
Comox-Powell River route beginning Jan. 27, according to transport service
provider BC Ferries, following repairs to the propeller hub.
The vessel was removed from service on Jan. 6 due to the
mechanical issues.
With the Queen of Burnaby back in service,
the ferry Island Sky will return to the Earls Cove-Saltery Bay route and North
Island Princess will return to the Powell River-Texada Island route, according
to BC Ferries, with regular schedules for all three routes back in effect Jan
27.
“Although the schedule changes and disruption in service
were not ideal, we are pleased the ship could get back to regular service in
just a few weeks,” BC Ferries’ Vice President of Customer Services Corrine
Storey said in a statement.
Queen of Burnaby is now 50-plus years old and is expected to be
retired later in 2016. A new $84 million vessel, Salish Orca, is currently
under construction and should replace Queen of Burnaby by the end of this
year, according to BC Ferries.
BC Ferries, under contract to the Province of British
Columbia, is the service provider responsible for the delivery of safe,
efficient and dependable ferry service along coastal BC.
In recent years, the company has invested $30 million to
upgrade and rebuild the berths at Little River and Powell River, and over $2
million in upgrades at Saltery Bay and Earls Cove terminals.
