New fast foot-passenger ferries servicing Nanaimo and Vancouver are expected to set sail in mid August.
In a press release, Vancouver Island Ferry Company said its pair of Hullo ferries 鈥� Sthuqi鈥� (pronounced sta-key) and Spuh茅ls (spah-els) 鈥� will begin service Aug. 14, with reservations beginning early next week.
The vessels will leave the terminal in Nanaimo at 6 a.m., 10 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. and the Vancouver terminal at 8 a.m., 12 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. initially, with more sailings to be added later, noted the press release. Sailings from Nanaimo at 8:30 p.m. and from Vancouver at 10:30 p.m. will occur for events and special occasions.
At a media event on Thursday, July 20, Alastair Caddick, Hullo CEO, said the company is anticipating the official launch. With 354 seats, the first price level of the ferry will offer comfort seating for $39.99, while the upper level offers premium ($49.99) and business ($59.99) seating.
鈥淲e think the demand will be very high,鈥� said Caddick. 鈥淲e think people are going to like [that it鈥檚] 100 per cent reservable 鈥� You鈥檒l be able to select a seat the same way when you鈥檙e going on a flight or to a concert and you鈥檙e like, 鈥業 want to sit next to my friend and I want to in this seat.鈥� So that鈥檚 to be expected now of modern travel.鈥�
Regional District of Nanaimo Transit is working on shuttle bus service, with an estimated start in January, and Caddick said Hullo is also working on its own service, which he hopes will be in place for Aug. 14, but not guaranteed.
鈥淲e will have a brand new parking lot that will have 300-plus spots and so certainly people can park here and that鈥檒l help their connectivity,鈥� said Caddick. 鈥淲e will put in place a shuttle bus that will take people from the port, into downtown, and then we鈥檙e working with buses, the rideshares. We鈥檙e working with all of these different providers to ensure that we build greater connectivity over time.鈥�
So far, 70 employees have been hired and Caddick estimated crews would be in the range of 10 people.
鈥淚t will depend on the number of passengers that we have, and the service that we want to provide, but quite frankly, it鈥檚 probably in the range of six to 10,鈥� said Caddick. 鈥淲e鈥檝e got some flexibility based on how many passengers are on board and the service we鈥檙e going to provide.鈥�
Sam Chaudhuri, Hullo operations manager, said the engine is fueled by a blended fuel comprised of biofuel and diesel, which is more environmentally friendly.
鈥淭he propulsion system for this catamaran is water jet propulsion and we have four MTU engines for that,鈥� said Chaudhuri. 鈥淓ach engine is capable of delivering 1,440 kilowatts, so that makes it 5,760 kilowatts for the entire propulsion system. Apart from that, we have two Caterpillar generators for supplying electricity and hotel load.鈥�
Tickets can be booked from Aug. 14 onwards, said the press release, but earlier sailing dates may come online after July 28.
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