Nanaimo-based Devon Transport to keep Bamfield ferry running

People in Bamfield, B.C., no longer have to wonder how they will get their mail, ship their garbage and receive tourists. 

The privately-run ferry service that performs all those tasks, and more, announced Aug. 9 that it would be shutting down at the end of the month. It said the COVID-19 pandemic and difficulty getting crew were to blame. 

But on Monday, when local officials gathered to try to come up with a solution, one landed in their lap: a business owner in the Alberni valley had agreed to buy Lady Rose Marine Services.

That buyer was revealed on Tuesday as Nanaimo-based Devon Transport, a car rental and storage company that said it would retain Lady Rose Marine's team so service would not be interrupted.

"My wife Pauline and myself could not be happier with the sale of the Lady Rose Marine," said Mike Surrell, current owner of the ferry service, who is being retained as a general manager to help with the transition.

"We fully understand the ramifications of this ship stopping service and the impact it would make in Port Alberni and the Barkley Sound."

The cargo and passenger ferry travels between Port Alberni on central Vancouver Island and Bamfield on the west coast.

It was the only ferry to do so in the relatively isolated region, and had been in operation since 1946.

"I can't tell you how relieved we all are," said area director Bob Beckett, with the Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District. "We rely so heavily on the marine services provided by the Lady Rose."

Devon Transport owner Greg Willmon said he recognizes the importance of the ferry for "remote" communities, and the deal will be finalized by the end of the month.

Willmon said he had deep roots in both communities. 

"I know from witnessing it just how important a service they provide to some West Coast communities and I just couldn't stand the thought of the service being discontinued at the end of the month," Willmon said. 

He said the crew has agreed to stay on so he doesn't foresee a labour shortage.

There is a road connecting the communities of Port Alberni and Bamfield, but it is an unpaved logging road that has at times proven dangerous.

In 2019, two students from the University of Victoria died when a bus rolled over on its way to the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre. 

The Huu-ay-aht First Nations are working with the province to improve safety on the road, but work is not expected to be completed for another two years.