It's costing more to take the ferry as of Monday (July 25), after the BC Ferry Commissioner approved a fuel surcharge to be added to ferry fares.
The surcharge is being applied on all routes, but the smaller routes are taking a bigger hit (6-percent) than the major routes (4-percent). For people traveling between Skidegate and Prince Rupert, the surcharge works out to an extra $1.25 per passenger and an extra $4.75 for an underheight vehicle. Overheight vehicles are an extra $12.50.
On the Kwuna, the surcharge works out to an additional 30 cents per passenger, 80 cents per underheight vehicle, and $1.60 per overheight vehicle.
The surcharge is supposed to end on March 31, 2008.
In its report, the BC Ferry Commission said it received more than 100 letters and phone calls on the issue between June 10 and July 18, most of them opposed to the surcharge. Among the reasons: the ferries are part of the highway system and should be free or subsidized, BC Ferries reported $40-million profit last year, and fuel conservation should be improved.