Classifying vehicles for tolling on Golden Ears Bridge

On September 1, QuickPass Tolling began issuing invoices to its customers – including transponder users, QuickPass Registered Video Customers and “Pay-As-You-Go” Customers. More than 85,000 invoices were sent out for this billing cycle.

In light of a news item this week in which a customer claims that she was over-charged, we want to make sure our customers are informed as to how the billing and classification process works.

When a customer registers with Quickpass Tolling for a transponder, the customer is asked to choose one of four vehicle classifications:

Motorcycle
Car
Small truck
Large truck

A “car” may include a sport-utility vehicle, a van or a pickup truck, and the difference between those vehicles and a “small truck” lies in the intent of the vehicle – how it’s being used. If those vehicles have clearly been modified for commercial purposes (e.g. the deck has been widened or fitted with equipment such as a portable generator), they fall under the “small truck” category. A car pulling a trailer is also classified as a small truck.

While the classification listed on the account is based on the customer’s self-description, roadside equipment on the bridge is used to verify the classification on each crossing. It can detect, with 97 per cent accuracy, whether a vehicle fits the classification, based on a number of factors, including size. If there is a discrepancy, the transaction is submitted for manual review, where the photo taken as the vehicle crosses the bridge is examined. If it’s found that the vehicle has been misclassified, the account will be charged at the different rate.

If the review is inconclusive, the customer is automatically charged at the lower rate.

As for the customer who raised the concern with the media, her account showed 26 crossings during the invoice period, of which one was re-classified. A review of that reversed that decision and on September 2 – the day after the invoices were sent out – her account was credited with the difference between the “small truck” rate ($5.55) and the “car” rate ($2.75).

Customers may get more information on the vehicle classifications online at www.quickpasstolling.ca, or by calling the Quickpass office at 604-460-5050. They can also contact Quickpass if they have any questions regarding their invoice.

How not to walk through a train station

There's a deliciously apocryphal source of urban mythology called the Darwin Awards. In case you're unfamiliar with them, they purport to recognize those who have done the gene pool the greatest service by getting killed in egregiously stupid ways.


Unfortunately (or fortunately, I suppose), reliable fact-checkers such as Snopes have found that the majority of the Darwin Award citations are bogus. So there really was no person who attached a Jet-Assisted Take Off unit to a '62 Impala and tried it out in the Mojave desert and there really was no one who tried to gain unpaid entry to a concert at The Gorge in George, WA by scaling a 10' fence, only to find a 75' drop into Eternity on the other side.

And of the stories that are true, there's little to laugh at: someone's life ended because of something preventable, and they have families and friends left grieving.

Personally, I'm endlessly fascinated by what I would call the Unnatural Selection candidates -- the ones who demonstrate by the fact that they're still alive that the principle of Natural Selection is a non-starter. Like the fellow I saw on a bike, sans helmet, talking on a cell phone with a bag of groceries on the handlebars. And don't get me wrong: I've provided enough "Oh, blimey!" moments to others, I'm sure.

All this is by way of introducing this young woman to you. She's the one in the red tank top at Burrard Station, and I first became aware of her when I followed her through the doors coming out of Royal Centre and she did one of those hip-swivel things where you slip through the door as it's closing without holding it open for someone behind you. When I looked a little closer, I could see why she wasn't aware there was someone behind her. If you look at the photo very closely, you'll see something brown in her right hand. That's a cup of Tim Horton's coffee. In her left hand, which you can't see, there is an open book.


(I snapped this using my BlackBerry, and as so often happens, in the process of pulling it out of the holster, entering the "unlock" code on the keypad, selecting the "camera" function and actually taking the picture, I missed the "money" shot. NOTE TO SELF: do NOT rely on BlackBerry on trip to Loch Ness.)


The "money" shot, since you're dying to find out, was of her carrying the coffee, reading her book -- which was why she was too distracted to notice anyone going through the door behind her -- and WALKING DOWN THE MOVING ESCALATOR. She also walked down the stairs to the outbound platform and onto the waiting train without apparently taking her eyes off the book.





We at the BC Electric Railway Company are concerned about your safety, and while we are not babysitters nor Elmer the Safety Elephant and we do credit you with a reasonable amount of intelligence, it does behoove us to point out that this is not a safe way to behave inside a SkyTrain station (or anywhere else, unless you're Frank Sinatra in the opening sequence of Guys and Dolls or Eddie Murphy in the "LA Freeway" scene in Bowfinger.) Indeed, our safety and security people would have a FIT if they saw anything like that.

Here's why:

• first, there's the general inadvisability of walking through any crowded place without all your faculties focused on navigating the area and your own personal surroundings. With that over-the-shoulder bag on one side, an ever-so-engrossing book on the other side and a loaded double-double in what should have been her free hand, she's a sitting duck for a rather violent purse-snatching. I can hear the exchange on the radio now:

HOST "Another SkyTrain crime! When are you going to going to put a police officer in every station?"

SELF "Well, Philip, it's important to note that people have to be personally responsible for their security and aware of their surroundings at all times ..."

HOST "There you go: blaming the victim again!"

SELF "Darn straight!"

• Then there's the simple escalator safety rule. Did you know that, while "convention" states "Walk on the left, Stand on the right", the only safe thing to do is to stand still and let the escalator take you where you're going? For one thing, escalator risers are slightly higher than regular stairs, so if your legs are "trained" to step a certain height, you can stumble. The fact that the staircase is moving increases the hazard, and if it should stop suddenly (which has been known to happen), you're now off-balance and in danger of being seriously hurt (or hurting someone else) -- more seriously than if you were standing still with feet planted.
• HANG ON TO THE HANDRAIL WHETHER STANDING OR WALKING!!!! It is called a HANDRAIL for a reason. And I wouldn’t worry about transmission of germs via hands: the alternative is falling and either hurting yourself badly or taking out any number of other people. You can wash your hands: few of us are adept at setting their own splint. (I was going to refer to emergency surgery, so I could add, "suture-self", but I'm learning my limitations in my advancing age.)
• Walking on a train platform without your faculties focused on the immediate surroundings is also hazardous. You're dealing with moving trains. Fast moving trains with an electrified rail for power. Need I say more?

Our friend in the photo may be an extreme example, but it's something worth keeping in mind -- especially for people getting used to commuter rail travel with the advent of the Canada Line: no matter how much you think you know the system and know your own capabilities, familiarity breeds contempt -- and that can be dangerous, both for yourself and others.

TVM 101

Much has been made in the media this week about the Ticket Vending Machines (TVMs) on the Canada Line. They've proven problematic -- not because they're faulty, but because the new technology requires a different technique for using the debit and credit card function. This is because these TVMs are of the "new generation", which are equipped to handle the new "chipped" bank cards that will be mandatory as of 2015 (I think it is).

I'm told we're going to be posting clear instruction signs shortly, but in the mean time, here's the Coles Notes version of How To Use The TVM:

If you're paying cash, the first thing you'll notice is that, unlike the Expo and Millennium Line TVMs, the Canada Line TVMs don't have a button indicating you want to pay cash. The on-screen instruction says, "Insert cash or press button for ....." and then the "DEBIT" and "CREDIT" card buttons are below. So at that point, just put in the cash and Bob, as they say, is your uncle.

(Actually, I don't have an uncle Bob, but somebody must, or else that expression wouldn't have left the starting gate.)

OK ... let's cut to the DEBIT / CREDIT function. It's actually quite simple, once you get the hang of it:

1. SELECT FARE AND NUMBER OF ZONES
2. TOUCH “DEBIT” OR “CREDIT”
3. INSERT CARD
4. WATCH FOR AMBER LIGHT
5. PULL OUT CARD QUICKLY AS SOON AS AMBER LIGHT COMES ON (don’t leave it in too long)
6. (FOR DEBIT CARD, ENTER PIN)
7. TAKE TICKET
8. HAVE A GOOD TRIP!

Ken Hardie, Judy Rudin and I went to Waterfront yesterday (Tuesday) along with Greg Tan from Cubic, the company that makes and installs the TVMS, to shoot an instructional video for YouTube on this, and I'll post the link as soon as it's ready. We were able to get the machine to "fail" ... and to work ... and with a fair bit of consistency.

Here's why the TVMs sometimes appear to fail: with the "old school" TVMs, you're supposed to slide the card in and zip it out quickly. That's what a lot of people were doing, and with the new generation machines, you have to wait for that amber light to come on. That light indicates that the machine has "recognized" that there's a valid card in the slot. Then, once that light comes on, you have to zip the card out quickly.

If you leave it in too long, though, the machine has another function. It decides that the card is invalid (because it hasn't been zipped out again) and cancels the transaction.

Unfortunately, the message on the screen in both cases tells you your card is invalid. For those of us who consider such messages to be a personal affront, that increases the frustration level.

When the amber light comes on, by the way, there's an audible "click", and you can also feel a slight vibration in the card.

If you continue to run into problems, one of our green-jacketed Canada Line Attendants is usually nearby to help you, and yesterday, while shooting a story with CTV's St John Alexander, a Transit Police officer and I were also pressed into service (particularly when that BC Hydro power outage knocked out the TVMs at Vancouver Centre Station).

Don't forget, though, that the absolutely hassle-free and more economical payment method is to buy a monthly FareCard and breeze onto the train or bus like so many others do. They're tax-deductible, too. Any FareDealer will sell them, or pop 'round to the FareDealer head office in the breezeway between Metrotower I and Metrotower II in Burnaby.

A SkyTrain Witness rides on to Zone 4

How do you take a person who was so complex and boil her down to a single, terse headline? "SkyTrain Witness" might be catchy and true to an extent, but it doesn't come anywhere close to describing my friend Candy.

Candy died this morning. She'd been battling brain cancer for about a year; went into hospital about six weeks ago and was transferred to hospice about 2 weeks ago. When word came last night that she was on the final lap, a group of us showed up in her room for a final sendoff party. She was still breathing, but already gone: just turning out the lights.

I met Candy about 3 years ago, when I started going to Westpointe Christian Centre. She was loud, joyful, almost child-like -- despite being in her early 50s -- and one of my first and more memorable "experiences" at that church.

I'll be posting something about Candy on my personal blog (http://revdowntown.blogspot.com), but there's a SkyTrain connection here that may interest you. Candy was a relatively new Christian: she came to the Lord after a lifetime of drugs -- her testimony is that she was virtually "raised" from the age of 11 by bikers in Montreal. One night, some hoods crashed into her apartment, put a gun to her head and demanded she tell them the whereabouts of a certain dealer. She couldn't tell him because she didn't know the guy they were looking for. They continued threatening her, but she wouldn't talk. Not to them, anyway. "Jesus," she says she said at that point, "if You get me out of this, I'll give my life to You."

The hood pulled the trigger. The gun jammed. He tried again. It jammed again. The hoods ran off.

Candy ran -- despite the lateness of the hour -- to the home of Westpointe's co-pastor, who, with his wife, had been ministering to her, and she turned away from the street-and-drug life, then and there -- and forever.

(A few months ago, Candy gave that testimony to Gospel Mission, where I'm assistant pastor. It was a tremendous breakthrough for her, because she had determined she would never set foot in the Downtown East Side again. I believe it touched a lot of people.)

Now here's where SkyTrain comes in. Candy was on disability due to hepatitis-C, and she would often spend her days riding SkyTrain and talking to anyone she could find about Jesus and her new life. Sometimes, she'd ride out to Surrey and go to some of the parks and talk to people. Sometimes, she'd just ride and occasionally say (sometimes sotto and sometimes notso), "thank you, Jesus".

Often, too, she'd pray for people on SkyTrain. It turns out that, as the Bible says, His Word does not return void. People would seek out this somewhat kooky, joyful, totally fearless woman and ask her to pray for them. I'm told some would even call Westpointe, looking for her.

Are you one of those people? When we had the "party" last night at St Michael's Hospice, we got to thinking about Candy's SkyTrain Witnessing and the people who had been touched by her. Who knows what seeds she planted in those chance encounters? If you did meet her, post a comment here. Those of us whose lives were lit up by her presence would love to know about it.

Scenes from a christening

Here are links to some video clips from the christening of TransLink's new SeaBus, MV Burrard Pacific Breeze.



Maureen Hayes christening the SeaBus.

Maureen talks about what it meant to her and husband Stephen to do the honours.

Sheri Plewes, TransLink VP Capital Planning & Management



Stan Sierpina, VP Customer Service, Coast Mountain Bus Co.

Malcolm Barker, VP & GM, Victoria Shipyards

Andrew Saxton, MP

Darrell Mussatto, Mayor of North Vancouver



Video production by Cezary Kolsut, Colsut Pictures, Victoria.

Bike Like Me

Maybe it’s one of those now-that-we’re-married things, but not long after we got married (this past January), my wife made good on her threat to get me on a bicycle again. The “again” part is that I hadn’t really ridden a bike since the summer of 1984, at the time of Victoria’s Great Bus Strike. I had a car, but parking was at a premium downtown, so I took to riding in to work. Until someone vandalized my bike.

So my bike-riding desire did a fast fade for the ensuing 24.5 years, until The New Missus brought out her hybrid bike and one her mother had bought while visiting here a couple of years ago, and off we went – first around Stanley Park, then extending the trip to Third Beach and eventually around False Creek to Granville Island. We live in the West End, which is pretty near perfect for cycling. We ride to church in Kits every Sunday, and I’ve taken to using that combination of bike and SkyTrain to get to work. Why not? With the weather we’ve had lately and the fact that we’re in a magnificent region with a magnificent climate, cycling is one of those things that, if you can do it – go for it.

And I love it: I'm feeling fitter, getting more exercise, finding neat new routes to get places and see things I hadn't seen before ... and experiencing a different kind of traffic hazard like this one in Stanley Park (and yes, they did decide to cross at a time when I was running late) -- NOTE TO SELF AND ALL: Do NOT make hissing noises to try to get them to move. They move, alright, but usually faster than you can accelerate on a bike.

Besides, we at the BC Electric Railway Company have a mandate to promote cycling. Our job is to make the movement of goods and people around the region as efficient as possible, and anything that encourages people not to use private vehicles helps that a lot. (There are times, of course, when a private vehicle is a necessity – like those days when your neighbor has to haul that 25lb bag of steer manure home from Foonman’s Nursery and since they don’t have a car you can come to the rescue: as with anything in cycling, balance is key. That’s a little bike humour, there.)

Getting me on a bike was mainly a case of the shoe being put on the other foot. My wife had had a few years of hearing me rail at cyclists, and now, it was up to me to make sure I observed the rules of the road. Heck: back in ’84, helmets weren’t mandatory, and I shudder to think of all the dumb moves I made while riding – like barreling down 26th Street hill in West Vancouver en route home from high school – without the melon firmly encased in jet-age plastic.

The two-wheeled experience is making me a more considerate motorist, too. I’ve never sounded my car horn at a cyclist, having been almost knocked off my bike when a “funny” friend honked at me when I was a teenager (and later phoned to apologize at the behest of the other friend who was driving), but I’m also sensitive to the fact that cyclists need space, particularly when going uphill on a narrow road, and I’m extra careful when cutting across a bike lane to get to a right-turn lane and when getting out of my car when parked at the side of the road.

I notice that, for the most part, motorists are pretty good at respecting the bike lanes that have been retrofitted onto existing roads – although some taxi and limo drivers could use a lesson that THOSE BICYCLE ICONS ARE NOT PAVEMENT DECORATIONS!

But that’s not what this entry is about. Let’s face it, gang: it ain’t that hard to observe the rules of the road while on a bike. Stop at red lights. Observe the 4-way stop procedure at 4-way stops and traffic circles. Don’t ride in crosswalks and do NOT ride on sidewalks. (I swear: it’s only a matter of time before a pedestrian takes matters into their own hands and clotheslines a cyclist.) Don’t try to wedge yourself between lanes of traffic. And if you approach a slower-moving cyclist or pedestrians on a shared path from the rear, SAY SOMETHING! USE YOUR BELL! LET THEM KNOW YOU’RE THERE!

It’s really hard to say whether law-breaking by cyclists is widespread, or just a small minority is responsible. It’s a big enough problem, though, that a fair bit of backlash is growing against cyclists, along with a general desire to see police crack down on the law-breaking. We -- and I'm speaking as a motorist and a cyclist -- have to share the road, and the only way to do that is to remember that the rules apply to all and they're there for the good of all -- not to oppress one group of people or annoy another.

When I say the rules of the road are for the good of all, cyclists need to take that to heart. One may feel like one's in control, zipping through traffic, weaving around idling cars and going the wrong way down a street, but if a cyclist gets hit, it's not just the cyclist that pays for it. In a confrontation between a car and a bike, you know who's going to lose, but the driver will wear that for the rest of his or her life. The family of the cyclist will wear it, as well ... and our health-care system will have to deal with the ones who suffer permanent injury. And all of that is sadly preventable.

That's why you just might see police taking particular notice of cyclists. Some might say that the police have better things to do than ticket cyclists, but do they really? Isn't this a question of public safety, peace and order – which is part of the police mandate?

TransLink’s website has maps of cycling networks around Metro Vancouver, as well as links to other resources, including the major cycling organizations in town.

And for those cyclists totally turned off by the Critical Mass demonstrations, you might be interested in Critical Manners, a “counter-revolutionary” ride being planned for Friday, Aug. 14. You can find out more about it on the organizer’s blog.

You might find The New Missus and self among that number.

The newest member of the family!

One of the coolest -- and, I daresay, emotional -- events of this wild TransLink summer took place in Victoria last week. Just as a question of what our tax dollars are getting us, it's significant, but the christening of the new SeaBus at Victoria Shipyards in Esquimalt on Friday (July 24) was quite a bit more than that.

(Find links to more videos of the christening here.)

For one thing, some people ask about what happens to the gas taxes they've been paying. The federal government's gas tax fund put $5 million into the $25 million project; the $5 million from the province came from, among other sources, gas revenue, and TransLink's $15 million share also includes revenue from fuel sales.


I'll paste the news release and backgrounder below, but here are a few photos of the occasion.


Here's what the Burrard Pacific Breeze looks like from afar, although you'll have to imagine that it's in the water and you really can't see the pontoons. Notice that the wheelhouse is located in the centre of the top deck as opposed to slightly off-centre on the Burrard Otter and Burrard Beaver. The design and technology are new -- or rather, updated -- so it will take until December for all the crewmembers to be trained and certified on the ferry.









Here's what she looks like on the inside now. Needless to say, there's JUST a bit more work to be done. When it's finished, a key part of the crew training is to get the crewmembers to find their way around in the dark: something you'll be happy to know they can do if there's a power outage or -- God forbid -- a fire, with lots of smoke.











This is my favourite photo. Charlotte Boychuk from Coast Mountain Bus Company (which operates SeaBus) took these pics, and like any photographer, I'm sure she'd love to claim credit for great skill, but she would probably say that it was luck. Anyway, this is Maureen Hayes, christening the new vessel. Take a close look at the picture: it's the very instant that the bottle is just about to break against the hull, and it's concaved, not quite broken.














(It reminds me of Herb Scharfman's famous photo of Rocky Marciano hitting Jersey Joe Walcott in their 1952 heavyweight title fight. But I digress.)

Maureen (as the news release below mentions) is the longest-serving woman employee at SeaBus. She's a Marine Attendant, and joined up in 1983. Her husband, Stephen, was one of the first (if not THE first) SeaBus employees, and sailed the two original vessels over from Victoria back in 1977. His dad, the late Capt. "Skinny" Hayes, was on the design team for those two boats. And Stephen had a role to play, too: part of the christening procedure is for the name of the vessel to be unveiled prior to the breaking of the bottle. Stephen performed that task, then came up the steps to hold the microphone for his wife when she declaimed, "God bless her, and all who sail in her!" Yeah, I'd say it was emotional.






As well as the emotions of that part, it was also a day for the shipyard workers. About 100 of them came out, and for them, I'm sure it's a little like birthing a baby ... OK -- I'm a guy, and statistics say that about half of you reading this would be reacting, "what would YOU know about it?" ... maybe more like sending your kid off on the first day of school (and that's something I do know about). The job is done, the brightly painted, brand-new ship is ready to go in the water, and there must be a sense of wistfulness about that.






There were, by the way, no fewer than five workers who also helped build the first SeaBuses. More emotion.



You Learn Something New Every Day Dep't. According to Malcolm Barker, Victoria Shipyards' vice-president and general manager, the tradition of christening a ship dates back to Old Testament days, when an ox would be sacrificed and its blood sprinkled over the hull to bless the ship. Somewhere along the line, the ox was replaced by a champagne bottle. Pity: we could have had a great barbecue afterwards.



At any rate, below are the text of the news release we sent out, followed by a Backgrounder on All Sorts Of Things You May Not Have Known About SeaBus. We'll have some videos of the day posted soon.
==================================




Newest SeaBus officially christened

July 24, 2009 -- In a ceremony with links to maritime traditions and the earliest days of SeaBus, the MV Burrard Pacific Breeze was officially christened today at Victoria Shipyards in Esquimalt, BC.

Maureen Hayes, the longest-serving female employee of SeaBus, performed the honours. She was joined by North Vancouver MP Andrew Saxton, the Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board and Sheri Plewes, TransLink vice-president, Capital Management and Engineering. Also on hand were North Vancouver City Mayor Darrell Mussatto, Stan Sierpina, Vice-President, Customer Service, Coast Mountain Bus Co., and Malcolm Barker, Vice-President and General Manager of Victoria Shipyards.

Not only does Ms Hayes’ SeaBus service date back to 1983, but her husband, Stephen Hayes, was one of the original SeaBus employees, and rode the vessel to Vancouver from Victoria prior to its beginning service in 1977.

“It is an honour to be celebrating this event, which is so important in the life of any ship,” says Ms Hayes. “This is for all my hard-working colleagues at SeaBus and the people at Victoria Shipyards who have made this happen.”

“The people of Metro Vancouver can be justifiably proud of the way their tax dollars are being invested here,” says Ms Plewes. “SeaBus has become not only a vital commuter link in its 32-year history, but it’s generally the only transit mode where ridership actually increases in the summertime because tourists and locals alike love that trip. It’s definitely one of the keys to the livability of the region.”

“Through the Gas Tax Fund, we are providing real financial support to British Columbia for projects like transit, green energy, and water treatment,” says MP Saxton. “This new SeaBus will cut commute times, ease traffic congestion and result in cleaner air, improving the quality of life for residents of Vancouver and North Vancouver.”

The Government of Canada contributed $5 million of the project’s $25 million cost through the Gas Tax Fund. The federal Gas Tax Fund is a tripartite agreement between Canada, British Columbia and the Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) delivering infrastructure funding to local governments for capital projects that lead to cleaner air, cleaner water or reduced greenhouse gas emissions.




“This is yet another example of our government’s commitment to improving public transportation in Metro Vancouver,” says Shirley Bond, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure. The provincial government also contributed $5 million to the project cost as part of the $14 billion Provincial Transportation Plan announced in January 2008. “The introduction of the MV Burrard Pacific Breeze SeaBus will help meet the needs of growing North Shore communities, while supporting the Provincial Transit Plan to double transit ridership provincewide and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.”




"Building vessels on the southern tip of Vancouver Island has a long history and this is the 41st vessel built at Victoria Shipyards,” said Malcolm Barker. “We have an excellent working relationship with the TransLink and the Coast Mountain Bus Project Teams and continue to work together to construct the best vessel possible. Most important of all, I would like to thank all the engineers, purchasers, production, project and support staff, and last but not least, the workforce. Without everyone working together, we would not be here today."

At 33.5 metres long and almost 12 metres wide, the MV Burrard Pacific Breeze will carry up to 400 passengers and will go into service in time for the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. The Burrard Pacific Breeze will go into service in December 2009, to allow time to train the crew on the new technology and configuration of the wheelhouse.

After the Games, the other two vessels – the Burrard Otter and Burrard Beaver – will take turns going into drydock for re-fits, to be brought into line with the MV Burrard Pacific Breeze’s technology. In 2011, it is expected that all three will be available for service during peak periods, thereby increasing capacity by 50 per cent.




Victoria Shipyards is part of the Washington Marine Group and a subsidiary of Seaspan International. Using the Esquimalt Graving Dock, owned and operated by Public Works and Government Services of Canada, Victoria Shipyards can drydock and repair vessels up to 100,000 DWT. VicShip’s work includes construction, conversion, maintenance and repair; recent new construction projects include an eight vessel series of Orca class training vessels for the Canadian Navy, and 24 – 47’ Motor Life Boats for the Canadian Coast Guard.
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Media Backgrounder
The MV Burrard Pacific Breeze – the newest member of the family!

The passenger house and cross-structure joining the two hulls of the catamaran were built by ABD of North Vancouver.




These were then taken by barge to the Esquimalt Graving Dock, where Victoria Shipyards built the wheelhouse and HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) compartment, installed the engines and performed the final assembly.




Size:
o LENGTH 33.54 m (109’)
o WIDTH 11.89 m (38’ 8”)
o DEPTH 3.53 m (11’ 6”)
o TONNAGE 161 T (net) 438 T (gross)




Engine:
o 4 – 6-cyl. Detroit Diesel Series 60. These engines are similar to the diesel engines used on our buses, and the engine overhauls are done by the Coast Mountain Bus Co. fleet overhaul facility.
o Each engine develops 400 horsepower (300 kilowatts).
o The engines and the generators that provide the electrical power are equipped with diesel oxidation catalysts for lessened environmental impact. This feature goes beyond marine regulations.




The MV Burrard Pacific Breeze incorporates all-new technology, including the TechSol Max II computer system, which controls almost every aspect of the mechanical and electrical systems.




All of the crewmembers must be trained and certified competent on the new vessel, which is why the ferry will not go into service until late fall, possibly December. As part of the training, they have to be able to find their way around the vessel in the dark, in case they have to deal with emergencies involving fire, smoke or a power outage at night.




Passenger capacity: 400
Project cost, 2009: $25 million
TransLink - $15 million
Federal Gas Tax Revenue Fund - $5 million
Provincial Transportation Plan - $5 million




The new SeaBus is painted in the distinctive TransLink livery of grey, medium blue and yellow, indicating it has been built or purchased with funding from the Federal Gas Tax Fund.

SEABUS BY THE NUMBERS
Average daily ridership: 18,500
Number of passengers carried in 2008: 5.54 million – a record, beating the previous high of 5.49 million in 1986 (Expo)
Number of service hours lost due to both ferries being out of action at the same time: 1.5 (in 32 years)
SeaBus officially went into service June 17, 1977.
Distance per trip: 3.24 km (1.75 naut. mi.)
· Total distance covered by the SeaBus, 32 years later: 4,806,532.6 km
· Lunar equivalent (number of trips to the moon and back): 6.2
Ordinal number of passenger Charlene Cox, 8:16 a.m., April 12, 2002 – 90 years to the day since RMS Titanic’s maiden voyage: 100,000,000
Number of times SeaBus has struck an iceberg: 0

HISTORY
Ferries have transported people and vehicles from Vancouver to the North Shore for over a century. One of the ferries was called The Senator, which docked at the foot of Lonsdale in North Vancouver in the 1890s.
The first ferry to West Vancouver was provided by “Navvy Jack” Thomas, a Welshman who had deserted from the Royal Navy. He began transporting people by rowboat between Vancouver and West Van in 1903.
Ferry service operated in one form or another until 1958, when the drop in demand due to the Lions Gate Bridge made it uneconomical to run.
Increasing demand at the Lions Gate Bridge less than 20 years later led to the return of ferry service.
Over the years, the SeaBus has had some interesting experiences:
o Nov. 2000: used one of its rescue boats to pick up 14 passengers and crew after a float plane crashed in Vancouver harbor
o Summer 2006: diverted from its course to stand by when a private pleasure craft caught fire
o May 21, 1995: Joan Parranto boarded the SeaBus at Waterfront, but was Joan Smith by the time she got to Lonsdale Quay. During the 12-minute crossing, she married Allan Daniel Smith, signing the register in the wheelhouse. The couple and the wedding party then returned to Waterfront.
o 1994: Scenes from Intersection, with Richard Gere and Sharon Stone, were shot on-board
o 1976: SeaBus helped make transportation history and preserve it at the same time. Waterfront Station – the former western terminus of the CPR in the heyday of passenger rail – was slated for demolition until it was chosen as the site of the SeaBus dock. Now, it’s been magnificently restored and, when Canada Line opens next month, will be a transportation hub serving five different modes.