B.C. Ferries reported a four-sailing wait on its Tsawwassen to Swartz Bay route on Friday afternoon and evening, with someone at the back of the line at 3:15 p.m. having to wait until 8 p.m. to board.
The Swartz Bay to Tsawwassen trip showed a one-sailing wait for much of the day.
At Tsawwassen, the wait eased to two sailings by 5:30 p.m. and no sailing waits by 9 p.m.
The long wait at Tsawwassen terminal was likely due to a combination of factors, said B.C. Ferries spokeswoman Deborah Marshall. While many passengers were heading to the Island for Ryder Hesjedal’s Tour de Victoria cycling event today, she said travelling patterns were also part of the situation. “A lot of families either take the first two weeks of August or the last two weeks of August as vacation, so this is typically what we call the ‘changeover weekend.’ ”
Marshall said there were hourly sailings up to 10 p.m. to deal with the backlog and a midnight sailing was added.
Drivers with reservations are all making their scheduled ferry, she said.
Greater Victoria’s events calendar is packed this weekend and includes the Tour de Victoria bicycle race, the RCMP Musical Ride, Saanichton Family Festival, Vancouver Island Metal Festival, Pet-A-Palooza, Water Gun Wars at Fort Rodd Hill, and Langford Show and Shine.
Andy Chasin was among those waiting in the car lineup for Swartz Bay. At 4:30 p.m., he was expecting to catch the next ferry after not being able to board two sailings.
He had a book to read while he waited in his vehicle and was taking it all in stride. There was plenty of evidence that cyclists are part of the ferry crowd, he said. “A lot of bike racks for the ride this weekend,” he said.
“I wish I’d known about it,” he said, referring to the Tour de Victoria.
He said he was alone in his vehicle, since he and his wife had decided she and their two children would go ahead and walk on.
Chasin is visiting with his family from Washington, D.C., via Seattle.
The family was heading to the Island for a dinner engagement, he said.
