Responses to the question of whether people would use the thrust-cushion vehicle (TCV) fast ferry if it were deployed on the Squamish-to-Vancouver route were mostly affirmative, with qualifiers ranging from "if it didn't cost too much" to "if it didn't endanger Howe Sound marine life."
Then, of course, there are practicalities surrounding access at either end of the line, how frequently the boat would run, speed limits in high-traffic zones (the current maximum in Vancouver's Coal Harbour is 5 knots, according to the Port of Vancouver's Small Craft Guide) and - according to at least one skeptical commenter on The Chief's Facebook page - the question of whether B.C. Ferries would operate the service. According to the commenter, that alone would be reason enough not to use it.
The biggest "if," though, remains whether the craft being developed by Powell River-based Slipstream would actually operate as advertized by company owner Bill Cocksedge at a recent presentation organized by knowledge-based industry group Inside Edge. Hey, a B.C.-based solution to challenges presented by our diverse geography is an attractive prospect, and if it works, how long might it be before others come knocking at Slipstream's door to build boats for use in Norway, Indonesia, New Zealand and Japan? Maybe Powell River could become to fast ferries what Seattle is to commercial aircraft?
However, given the unanswered questions we'd be inclined to bet oh, $100 or more (this writer isn't a big gambler) that the thing will never (quite literally) fly. Don't know about you, but a previous fast ferry fiasco has us feeling just a wee bit skittish about this sort of thing.
Oh, sure, we wish Mr. Cocksedge success and hope the promise of a vehicle that can ride on top of the water at 120 km/h with little or no wake, provide both speed and comfort to passengers, be reliable and not too pricey to maintain and pose minimal risk to marine life or the atmosphere is, in the end, realized. And this writer hopes that if all those things come to pass, Slipstream will return to Squamish as one of the TCV's first ports of call.
It would be a huge mistake, though, for Squamish to touch the brakes on its effort to secure more conventional transit options because of something that may never get off the drawing board.
- David Burke
