No replacement yet for Souris-Magdalen Islands ferry heading to dry dock next spring

There are more questions than answers about what will happen when the ferry running between Souris, P.E.I., and Quebec’s Magdalen Islands is out of commission for several weeks this coming spring. 

According to Transport Canada, the 10-year-old MV Madeleine II will be in dry dock for an estimated six to eight weeks for routine maintenance and inspections.

That has the federal department exploring options — one of which is to redeploy another ferry the federal government owns, the MV Fundy Rose, that currently runs between Digby, N.S., and Saint John, N.B.

Transport Canada hasn’t said how moving that boat to Souris would affect the service between Digby and Saint John, and that has some users worried.

Brian Reynolds owns B. Reynolds Trucking in Port La Tour, N.S. He uses the Digby ferry to ship seafood through New Brunswick to New England, and said losing the service would increase his shipping costs.

“That would make a very difficult situation for us,” he said. “It would hurt us quite bad.”

Is Vacancier an option?

There is also a ferry currently docked in Georgetown, P.E.I. The Vacancier is owned by Coopérative de Transport Maritime et Aérien (CTMA), the company that operates the Souris-Magdalen Islands service, and it has been used to fill in on that route in the past.

When CBC News asked whether the 50-year-old Vacancier is a potential option for the spring of 2024, Transport Canada did not give an answer.

It’s also not clear what will happen if issues are discovered with the MV Madeleine II while it’s in dry dock, leading it to be out of commission for longer than expected.

A spokesperson for Transport Canada said in an email that the department understands any interruption to ferry services in the region leads to significant challenges for local communities.

“All impacts will be carefully considered before a decision is made,” the email said.

The federal government is paying to have a new boat built for the Souris-Magdalen Islands run.

It originally said the new ferry would be completed in 2026. Now, according to its website, that’s been delayed to 2029.