NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release 2008FOR0105-001040 July 7, 2008	Ministry of Forests and Range Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure
INCREASED FERRY SERVICE BENEFITS RESIDENTS, TRUCKERS

VICTORIA – Increased ferry service on the Upper Arrow Lake between Nakusp and Revelstoke will benefit local residents, truckers and tourists, Forests and Range Minister Pat Bell and Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Kevin Falcon announced today.

 

“The longer operating hours will benefit all ferry users as we head into the busier summer season,” said Falcon. “This means more options for the increasing number of chip trucks that rely on the ferry service and better access for tourists visiting the Kootenays.”

 

The Upper Arrow Lake Ferry is located 49 km south of Revelstoke on Highway 23 and sails between Shelter Bay and Galena Bay.

 

Effective July 9, 2008, the DEV Galena will do two extra round trips per day, expanding its service level to 20 hours a day from 18 hours. The ferry currently operates from 6 a.m. to 12 a.m.; under the new schedule, it will operate from 5 a.m. to 1 a.m., with the first sailing leaving Shelter Bay at 5 a.m. and the last sailing leaving Galena Bay at 12:30 a.m.

 

The MV Shelter Bay, which operates on the route during the summer season, will begin service an hour earlier each day, operating in shuttle mode from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., and will operate up to and including the Monday of the Thanksgiving Day weekend (Oct. 13). The vessel previously operated until the Labour Day weekend.

 

“Increased ferry service on Upper Arrow Lake was one of the action items identified through the 90-day regulatory review,” said Bell. “The increased ferry service recognizes the substantial increase in chip truck traffic from early 2007 to 2008.”

 

Due to current market conditions that have resulted in sawmill shutdowns and curtailments, Kootenay pulp mills that typically rely on locally-sourced sawmill residue are having to haul more chips from the Okanagan/Shuswap, which has resulted in increased traffic on roads and ferries.

 

Premier Gordon Campbell announced the 90-day forestry regulatory review in January to identify opportunities to streamline and reduce unnecessary red tape, cut processing time, and eliminate unnecessary cost burdens resulting from regulation. More than 56 companies, associations and individuals submitted proposals. A list of initial action items from the regulatory review was released in May. As more items are finalized, they will be publicly communicated.

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Media contact:	Jeff Knight Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure 250 356-7707	Sophia Proctor Public Affairs Officer Ministry of Forests and Range 250 387-4592
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