Dolphin sighting Orcas chase porpoises into Departure Bay. Page 21 Playoff push Regular season coming to an end for Nanaimo Clippers. Page B9 Driveway Columnist Zack Spencer test drives the new Honda Civic. Page 3
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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 2014
VOL. 25, NO. 89
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‘Wiggle room’ available in ferry cuts I TRansPoRTaTIon mInIsTRy sails ahead by reducing service to smaller routes. By Karl yu THE NEwS BULLETiN
CHRIS BUSH/THe NewS BUlleTIN
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Vancouver Island University staff and students are lead by piper Wade Calder, right, in a convocation procession into the Port Theatre Friday. Hundreds of students graduated from education, science, technology and business programs in two convocation ceremonies held last week, where Dr. Robert Thirsk, Canadian astronaut, was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws. For more, please see page 7.
Technology possible solution to parking problems By Tamara Cunningham THE NEwS BULLETiN
“Smart” technology that helps drivers find empty parkade spaces and sends alerts when meters are about to expire could be the future of parking in downtown Nanaimo. The City of Nanaimo is creating a new parking management strategy to help combat the community’s traffic congestion hot spots, from the hospital area to the downtown core. While the strategy and its recommendations are still in the early stages, it’s expected to outline options to better manage traffic, fill parkades and speed up turnover in popular areas like Commercial Street. Ideas range from resident-only parking to more meters on high-use streets and
“smart technology” in parkades. Rod Davidson, the city’s parking services manager, says his division is looking at LED signs in parkades that tell drivers how many stalls are available and blinking red and green lights that direct people toward empty spots. A new user-pay system and enforcement technology is also on the table, but Davidson said money wouldn’t be spent on upgrades to parkades until the city sees occupancy surge to 85 per cent. The city’s downtown parkades currently range from being 50 to 75 per cent full. “The aim for us is to make the parking experience as easy as we can for people visiting the downtown,” Davidson said. “We don’t want [them] to have to drive around the block six times wait-
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ing for people to leave.” The parking management plan is the latest shift since the city moved parking in-house last year, following an ambassadorial approach to the ticketing and dispute system. Davidson said the strategy will look at recommendations from a 2010 report, and suggestions from stakeholders like the Downtown Nanaimo Business Improvement Association. The biggest complaint seems to be that there is no parking downtown, he said, adding the issue is only perceived. “In reality there is adequate or abundant parking downtown, just not on the main street,” he said. “Our challenge is to try to direct people toward the parkades.” u See ‘PARKADE’ /12
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Early morning and late-night ferry sailings to and from Gabriola Island will likely not be eliminated. Ferry route reductions have been a worry of Gabriola residents ever since they were announced by B.C. Ferries and the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure last November, but in a conference call late yesterday morning, Transportation Minister Todd Stone said there would be wiggle room regarding which routes would be cut. Stone said service cuts would take effect on April 28 and prior to that, B.C. Ferries would meet with designated communities, such as Gabriola Island, to discuss which routes to reduce in order to lessen the impact to the community while achieving the ministry’s goal of saving $18.9 million over the next two years. “There are opportunities, on certain routes, to eliminate midday sailings in favour of keeping early-morning or late-evening sailings, which was a common theme we heard from many communities during the engagement [with affected communities in November and December],” Stone said. Final schedules will be made public by B.C. Ferries at the end of March. Gabriola Ferry Advisory Committee chairman John Hodgkins said island residents are still disappointed that there will be cuts and the advisory committee is looking ahead to other routes that can be reduced. u See ‘MIDDAY’ /4
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