Coast Mountain Bus Company Seabus

Locale	Metro Vancouver, British Columbia
Waterway	Burrard Inlet
Type	Passenger ferry
Termini	Waterfront Lonsdale Quay
Operations
Owner	TransLink (1999–present) BC Transit (1982–1999) Urban Transit Authority (1979–1982) BC Hydro Transit (1977–1979)
Operator	Coast Mountain Bus Company (1999–present) BC Transit (1982–1999) Metro Transit Operating Company (1979–1982) BC Hydro Transit (1977–1979)
Launched	June 17, 1977
Technical
System length	1.75-nautical-miles (3.24 km)
No. of lines	1
No. of vessels	3

SeaBus is a passenger ferry service operated by Coast Mountain Bus Company, a subsidiary of TransLink in Metro Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

History

The first recorded ferry service across Burrard Inlet was in 1866, with a hand-propelled boat. Formal ferry service across Burrard Inlet began in 1903 with the establishment of the North Vancouver Ferry and Power Company. The City of North Vancouver took over the service in 1908 to provide more reliable service between Downtown Vancouver and North Vancouver. After the Lions Gate Bridge was completed in 1938, demand decreased for ferry service. However, demand increased after the outbreak of World War II because of an increased amount of laborers travelling to North Vancouver to the shipbuilding yards.

Demand declined in the 1950s and service ceased after the last sailing on August 30, 1958. There were plans to build a tunnel underneath the Burrard Inlet as part of a freeway program. After the freeway plan was scrapped, funding went to establish a passenger ferry service and was proposed by the Provincial Government of British Columbia. In August 1974, the Bureau of Transit Services and the British Columbia Department of Municipal Affairs sought multiple proposals from naval architecture firms to design and build the ferries and terminals. To gain first-hand knowledge of operating a passenger ferry service, the government and members of the port authority studied operations in Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong as its conditions were similar to Burrard Inlet: a deep water harbour with a mix of heavy cargo traffic and passenger ferry service.

The service was launched on June 17, 1977, under the transit division of BC Hydro. Following the restructuring of transit operations in BC Hydro, the Urban Transit Authority and its operations subsidiary, Metro Transit Operating Company, took over in 1979 before being renamed to BC Transit in 1982. Finally, operations and ownership was passed over to TransLink/Coast Mountain Bus Company in 1999.

In 1989, there was a proposal to introduce marine transit service from Waterfront to Port Moody, with implementation as early as 1991. The study considered the use of fast ferries traveling at 30 to 40 knots, carrying up to 300 people with a crossing time of about 30 minutes. The plan was later abandoned following the introduction of West Coast Express services in 1995. There was also a plan to procure a third SeaBus vessel by 1994 as well as a potential marine connection from Waterfront Station to West Vancouver.

Due to a decrease in ridership and for financial reasons caused by COVID-19, peak hour service was reduced form every 10 minutes to 15 with further reductions to an all-day 30-minute sailing schedule on April 6, 2020. On April 22, daily evening service was cut with last sailings at 7:30pm from Lonsdale and 7:45 from Waterfront. On May 18, the regular hours of operation were restored but frequency remained at every 30 minutes. Peak hour frequency was adjusted to every 15 minutes on July 13.

Route Details

Connecting Waterfront Station in Vancouver and Lonsdale Quay in North Vancouver, the SeaBus crosses the Burrard Inlet in a 10-12 minute crossing.

The SeaBus connects Waterfront Station and Lonsdale Quay.

Service runs 7 days a week from early morning to late evening. There are three vessels in the fleet, with two in service and one as a spare. Cruising at approximately 11.5 knots (21.3 km/h) service operates on a 15 minute turn-around schedule, with 3-5 minutes allocated to loading and unloading at each terminal. There are approximately over 50 crossing per day.

The crossing offers panoramic scenery from multiple angles of Burrard Inlet, Downtown Vancouver, the North Vancouver and the North Shore mountains.

There are turnstiles located at each terminal that lock once capacity is reached for each sailing.

Safety Features

On board each SeaBus vessel, lifejackets are available under each seat with children's lifejackets in marked lockers and distributed by crew members in the event of an emergency. Each vessel has three muster stations, each containing a 150-persons life raft.

Fares

Main article: TransLink Fares

The SeaBus is a 2-zone journey and zones are in effect on weekdays until 6:30pm. Discount periods, where the crossing is only a 1-zone fare, are all day Saturdays, Sundays/Holidays and weekdays after 6:30pm.

All fares must be valid while on a TransLink vehicle – those without a proper fare are subject to a $173 infraction.

Fleet

There are currently 3 vessels in fleet. The fleet is maintained directly west of the Lonsdale Quay terminal in North Vancouver. The vessels are catamarans constructed out of aluminum, which was considered rare at the time of the launch in 1977 of the original vessels. As the vessels are double-ended, there is no need to turn around when departing the terminals and vessels can travel in any direction. There are four diesel engines on board each vessel, one for each propeller.

Service reliability is over 99.9% and rarely any sailings are cancelled.

All vessels are in the current TransLink charcoal livery. The Burrard Otter carried the "sweep" livery into retirement in 2016.

Active

Name	Thumbnail	Year	Port of Registry	Manufacturer	Notes
Burrard Beaver		1976	Victoria, BC	Yarrows Shipbuilders Ltd. Victoria, BC
Burrard Pacific Breeze		2009	Victoria, BC	Victoria Shipyards Victoria, BC	Started three boat ownership for CMBC
Burrard Otter II		2014	Vancouver, BC	Damen Shipyards Group Singapore	Entered service on December 1st, 2014

Retired

Name	Thumbnail	Year	Port of Registry	Manufacturer	Notes
Burrard Otter		1976	Victoria, BC	Burrard Dry Dock Ltd. Vancouver	First to be retired Scrapped in 2018

On Order

Name	Thumbnail	Year	Manufacturer	Notes
Burrard Chinook		2019	Damen Shipyards Group Gorinchem, Netherlands	Equipped with USB charging ports Shipped back to the Netherlands for modifications to be suitable for service in Metro Vancouver

Service Information

Service on the SeaBus runs 7 days a week.

Service Frequency

Effective April 22, 2020, sailings are every 30 minutes daily and effective July 13, peak hour sailings are every 15 minutes.

Departing Waterfront

Day	Time	Frequency
Monday to Friday	6:16 a.m. to 9:16 p.m.	15 mins.
	9:16 p.m. to 12:46 a.m.	30 mins.
Saturday	6:16 a.m. to 7:16 a.m.	30 mins.
	7:16 a.m. to 9:16 p.m.	15 mins.
	9:16 p.m. to 12:46 a.m.	30 mins.
Sunday/Holiday	8:16 a.m. to 9:16 p.m.	15 mins.
	9:16 p.m. to 11:16 p.m.	30 mins.

Departing Lonsdale Quay

Day	Time	Frequency
Monday to Friday	6:02 a.m. to 9:02 p.m.	15 mins.
	9:02 p.m. to 12:32 a.m.	30 mins.
Saturday	6:02 a.m. to 7:02 a.m.	30 mins.
	7:02 a.m. to 9:02 p.m.	15 mins.
	9:02 p.m. to 12:32 a.m.	30 mins.
Sunday/Holiday	8:02 a.m. to 9:02 p.m.	15 mins.
	9:02 p.m. to 11:02 p.m.	30 mins.

First/Last Sailings

Departing Waterfront

Day	First SeaBus	Last SeaBus
Monday to Friday	6:16 a.m.	1:22 a.m.
Saturday	6:16 a.m.	1:22 a.m.
Sunday/Holiday	8:16 a.m.	11:16 p.m.

Departing Lonsdale Quay

Day	First SeaBus	Last SeaBus
Monday to Friday	6:02 a.m.	1:00 a.m.
Saturday	6:02 a.m.	1:00 a.m.
Sunday/Holiday	8:02 a.m.	11:02 p.m.

References

v·d·e Transit Centres Burnaby – Hamilton – Port Coquitlam – Richmond – Surrey – Vancouver Closed Transit Centres North Vancouver – Oakridge Under Contract First Transit – West Vancouver Transit Former Contractors Bonny's Taxi Ltd. – Bowen Island Community Transit – DW Services Ltd. – Metro Shuttle Service Ltd. – First Canada Current Fleet 2101–2199, 2201–2289 2501–2540 2541–2574 3309–3358 7375–7399, 7401–7429 7430–7446 7447–7499, 7501–7504 8102–8117 8118–8156 9277–9285 9401–9499, 9501–9542 9543–9581, 9583–9590 9605–9699, 9701–9725 9726–9791 9797–9799 12001–12025 14001–14045 15001–15021 16001–16051 16101–16130, 16137 16201–16226 18001–18063 18101–18206 18301–18404 18451–18473 19001–19047 19101–19147 19301–19302 19303–19304 19401–19432 21001–21025 21401–21425 22001–22015 23001–23015 23201–23215 Community Shuttle Fleet 16501–16562 17506–17564 18510–18527 19503–19535, 19538–19549 19550–19554 21501–21562 23601–23606 23651–23665 Retired Fleet 1158–1192 1205–1223 1209–1210 2701–2947 3001–3021 3101–3210 3211–3257 3258–3282 3283–3299, 3301–3308 4101–4115 4116–4143 4144–4192 4193–4199, 4201–4278 5501–5508 5509–5521 6601–6630 7101–7150 7151–7197, 7199–7243 7244–7246 7247–7297 7298 7301–7374 8001–8021 8022–8047 8048–8099, 8101 9101–9115 9116–9127 9201–9276 Retired Community Shuttle Fleet S001 S002 (1st) S002 (2nd) S003–S004 S006–S012 S013–S016 S017 S018–S056 S057–S059 S060–S061 S062–S102 S200–S236 S237–S257 S258–S301 S302–S356 S357–S380 S381 S382–S393 S410–S434 S435–S464 S465–S471 S501–S544 S1301–S1320 S1321 S1322–S1325 Paint Schemes Other List of Current TransLink Ad-Wraps – List of Former TransLink Ad-Wraps – RapidBus – TransLink Operations During the COVID-19 Pandemic – TransLink Vancouver 2010 Olympic Operations – Trolleybuses in Vancouver SeaBus Current Fleet Burrard Beaver – Burrard Pacific Breeze – Burrard Otter II – Burrard Chinook Retired Fleet Burrard Otter Terminals Lonsdale Quay – Waterfront Station Bus Loops and Exchanges Vancouver 29th Avenue Station – Blanca Loop – Boundary Loop – Burrard Station – Commercial–Broadway Station – Dunbar Loop – Joyce Station – Knight Street–Marine Drive – Kootenay Loop – Main Street Station – Marine Drive Station – Marpole Loop – Nanaimo Station – Stanley Park Loop – UBC Exchange – Waterfront Station Burnaby & New West 22nd Street Station – Braid Station – Brentwood Station – Edmonds Station – Lougheed Station – New Westminster Station – Production Way Station – Metrotown Station – SFU Exchange – Sperling Station Tri-Cities Burquitlam Station – Coquitlam Central Station – Moody Centre Station – Port Coquitlam Station Richmond Bridgeport Station – Richmond–Brighouse Station – Steveston Exchange North Shore Capilano University – Lonsdale Quay – Lynn Valley Centre – Park Royal – Phibbs Exchange Pitt Meadows & Maple Ridge Haney Place – Maple Meadows Station – Pitt Meadows Station South of Fraser Carvolth Exchange – Guildford Exchange – Ladner Exchange – Langley Centre – Newton Exchange – Scott Road Station – Scottsdale Exchange – South Delta Exchange – South Surrey Park and Ride – Surrey Central Station – White Rock Centre Former Exchanges Airport Station – Brentwood Mall – Coquitlam Station – Coquitlam Recreation Centre – Coquitlam Town Centre – East Guildford Park and Ride – Lougheed Mall – Lougheed Park and Ride – Matthews Exchange – Meadow Ridge Centre – Pitt Meadows Park and Ride – Port Moody Station – PNE Park and Ride – Port Coquitlam Centre – Renfrew Loop – Richmond Centre – Richmond Exchange – Sexsmith Park and Ride – South Richmond Park and Ride – Upper Zoo Loop – Walnut Grove Park and Ride Routes R1 R2 R3 R4 R5 R6 Conventional 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 14 15 16 17 19 20 22 25 26 27 28 29 32 33 41 44 49 50 80 84 99 100 101 104 106 110 112 116 119 123 128 129 130 133 134 136 143 144 145 150 151 152 153 155 156 159 160 179 183 188 191 209 210 211 212 222 228 229 230 231 232 236 240 241 245 246 247 249 250 253 254 255 257 301 310 311 312 314 316 319 320 321 323 324 325 326 329 335 337 340 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