B.C. Ferries says the Coastal Renaissance, which typically carries passengers between Swartz Bay and Tsawwassen, won’t be back on the job until early March.
By the time it’s carrying passengers again, the Renaissance, one of the system’s largest vessels, will have been out of service for close to half a year.
The vessel has not been in operation since Aug. 17, when its number two drive motor failed. At the time, B.C. Ferries said the vessel would likely be out of service for at least five weeks.
It was later expected to be back on the route by mid-December, but in late November, the return date was pushed back because motor repairs at an authorized repair facility in Indiana were taking longer than expected.
A short circuit during the final testing held up the work and required more testing.
The early March return date was announced Friday.
B.C. Ferries said it’s confident the vessel will be back in service in March.
“While the equipment supplier is still investigating the issue that caused the recent delay in repairs, we’ve been assured by the shipyard that they are confident the refit process will be complete in time for the Renaissance to return to service in March,” a company email said Friday.
B.C. Ferries said it expects to hold a media briefing on its broader retrofit plans early in the new year.
Now that the Coastal Renaissance’s return date has been confirmed, B.C. Ferries said it has lined up sailing schedules through June 2024, with no change to the number of passengers or vehicles it can transport during that time.
The Coastal Inspiration will sail on the Swartz Bay and Tsawwassen run from Jan. 3 through March.
B.C. Ferries said it’s taking a flexible approach to the deployment of its vessels across routes and expects to be able to maintain the same capacity levels as originally planned.
“Retrofits and repairs are a normal part of the business and we’re committed to keeping customers moving by adjusting schedules with different vessels on different routes.”
