Trans-Talk

Unloading containers from the George Washington Bridge at Vancouver’s Centerm (Max Burley photo)

Port Metro Vancouver, created in the 2008 amalgamation of the port authorities of Vancouver, North Fraser and Fraser River, has been working on reducing container dwell time to three days since late-2008. (Dwell time is how long the container sits on the dock after being unloaded from a ship.) Despite anecdotal evidence of a 20% improvement, currently only about half the inbound containers make it onto railcars in three days. This year, almost a quarter sat for six days or more.

The Globe and Mail, 2010-08-07, “Vancouver port vows to unplug bottleneck“ recounts the Port’s efforts and challenges. It also includes the tracking record of a particular container shipped from Guangdong, China to Toronto and a chart ranking Canada’s seaports by tonnage handled (for more on the relative size of Canada’s ports see “Review of Canada’s international port traffic 2009“).

Port Metro Vancouver Stats 2010, Jan-Jun

On July 30th, the port released its half-year cargo handling statistics. Highlights:

• Breakbulk is up 24 per cent overall, with value-added forest products the key driver behind the growth, due to increased foreign and domestic demand.
• Bulk is up 22 per cent resulting from growth in Asian economies and strong demand for Canadian commodities like coal and potash.
• Containers are up 12 per cent as a direct result of consumer spending, with demand for consumer goods increasing as the economic recovery begins to take hold.
• Auto volumes are up 6 percent, returning close to 2008 levels.
• Cruise voyage numbers experienced an anticipated decrease this year from 105 voyages in 2009, to 70 voyages to date in 2010 as cruise lines redeployed vessels in response to a difficult business climate globally and specific challenges to the economics of cruise business in Alaska.

Download “S-024a - Cargo Statistics Report 2 pager- v.1.15” (68 Kb, pdf) and/or read the accompanying press release from Port Metro Vancouver’s website.

This week’s Business in Vancouver (BIV) features three local transportation stories:

1. On January 28, 2010, USA President Obama announced the first recipients selected to receive grant funding under the High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail (HSIPR) Program. The highly tentative plans include two high-speed rail networks linking major U.S. westcoast cities.
   

   Vancouver (BC) is one proposed northern terminus for a leg running south to Eugene, OR. Vancouver mayor Gregor Robertson spoke with Curt Cherewayko about the chances (slim) and the challenges of getting Canadian customs cooperation for the soon-to-expire trial run of a second daily Amtrak train between Seattle and Vancouver.

2. Mike Shannon of English Bay Launch talks about the prospects for his Bowen Island passenger ferry business, which currently operates three daily round-trips between Bowen-Coal Harbour and Bowen-Granville Island. Although Shannon admits “It’s an uphill battle to go against a highly subsidized [BC Ferries],” he’s confident he will succeed where others have failed. (BC Ferries lost $1.2 million on its Bowen Island-Horseshoe Bay passenger car route despite $6.5 million in government subsidies, according to BIV.)
3. Versacold CEO Brent Sugden talks to the BIV’s Andrew Petrozzi about Eimskip’s now-failed purchase and consolidation of Versacold and Atlas Cold Storage. New owner Yucaipa Companies’ plan to merge Versacold and Yucaipa-owned Americold RealtyTrust, the USA’s largest public refrigerated warehouse operator, “is in a holding pattern for now.”

The same BIV issue contains the newspaper’s Top 100 Private Companies in BC list, wherein Versacold is ranked 10th by annual revenue ($1.3 billion). Other non-pipeline, transportation-related companies on the list include:

• CHC Helicopter (12)
• Kal Tire (14)
• BC Ferries (22)
• Washington Marine Group (27)
• Vancouver Airport Authority (YVR) (37)
• Kelowna Flightcraft Group (49)
• et al

(Source: BIV, Issue 1077, June 15-21, 2010 - “Cascadian mayors flirt with romance of high-speed rail”, “Subsidies sinking ferry options in B.C.”, “Refrigeration magnate stays out in the cold”)

British Columbia Ferry Services Inc. (BC Ferries) on June 10th released its financial results for the year ended March 31, 2010.

• Consolidated net earnings were $3.4 million for the year, compared to net earnings of $9.0 million the previous year.
• Revenues for the year increased from $681.8 million to $732.3 million, while operating expenses increased from $624.2 million to $660.0 million. The increase in expenses includes $22.1 million in amortization costs, $8.4 million in maintenance costs, and $6.3 million in wage rate increases from an average 3 per cent increase in accordance with the collective agreement. In addition, interest expense increased by $17.5 million over the previous fiscal year.
• Capital expenditures for the year totalled $81.4 million. As part of the federal government’s “Infrastructure Stimulus Fund” program, BC Ferries will qualify for partial reimbursements of eligible costs for eleven terminal upgrades including eight sewage pump-ashore and waste water treatment projects. The net funding expected to be received is $7.5 million.
• In fiscal 2010, BC Ferries experienced an increase of 1.5 per cent in both passenger and vehicle traffic as economic conditions began to improve and fuel prices declined compared to the previous year. BCF carried 21 million passengers and 8.3 million vehicles during the fiscal year ended March 31, 2010.
• BC Ferries serves 25 routes, currently supported by 36 vessels and 47 terminals, and also manages other remote routes through contracts with independent operators. During the last fiscal year, the new Northern Expedition entered service on the Inside Passage between Port Hardy and Prince Rupert and the Queen of Vancouver and the Queen of Prince Rupert were decommissioned. The Queen of Vancouver and the previously decommissioned Queen of Saanich were sold during the year, while the Queen of Prince Rupert remains available for sale.

BC FERRIES INCOME STATEMENT

BC Ferries’ full financial statements, including notes and Management’s Discussion and Analysis are now available on SEDAR. (Source: BC Ferries press release)

The World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) participates in the Handle with Care coalition campaign to end the long distance transport of live animals.

WSPA will release a report later this week that looks at animal transport in Canada, based on inspection reports filed by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) between Oct. 9, 2008, and Jan. 9, 2009.

KEY FINDINGS OF THE REPORT

1. Unacceptable numbers of animals, particularly chickens, die during transport.

* This most often happens when the birds are moved over long distances and in inclement weather.
* 2 to 3 million: The number of animals that arrive dead every year at Canadian slaughterhouses.

2. Animals are transported in overcrowded conditions.

* Transporters pack between seven and 16 chickens into crates that are a half-metre square, and cows have arrived at processing plants with sores on their backs from brushing against the roof of the truck.
* 6% to 89%: The increase in number of animals covered with salmonella after being kept in crowded conditions for 40 minutes, according to a Texas Tech University study.

3. Severely injured and sick animals are transported in contravention of federal regulations.

* Animals are arriving at slaughterhouses and auctions emaciated, weak, crippled and with severe injuries.
* 2: The number of sheep a farmer brought to be slaughtered at Princeton Meat Packers in Woodstock, Ont., that had injuries so severe, they should never have been transported.

4. Severely compromised animals are transported and left to suffer for prolonged periods, sometimes days.

* The World Society for the Protection of Animals says many incidents may be in violation of federal or provincial animal cruelty laws.
* 58: The length of time, in hours, one crippled cow was left alive on top of a pile of dead animals in Lethbridge, Alta.

5. A shortage of trained animal welfare inspectors, particularly veterinarians, puts animal health and welfare at risk.

* Canadian Food Inspection Agency inspectors are not authorized to euthanize animals or relieve their suffering for humane reasons, and few animal inspectors are veterinarians or trained to address animal welfare problems during transport.
* 329: The number of animal inspectors employed by the CFIA across Canada to supervise 772 facilities that slaughter 700 million animals annually. There are also 980 meat inspectors.

6. CFIA’s reporting and enforcement are often weak and inconsistent.

* Animals are transported in clear violation of regulations (for example, goats transported in feed bags, rabbits transported in the trunk of a car, animals tied up and under covers without air holes) and inspectors respond by giving warnings or educational pamphlets.
* $221,800: The total amount of individual fines, ranging from $500 to $2,000, levied in 2006 across the country for violations of the health of animal regulations.

7. Animals suffer as a result of poor driver training.

* Drivers appear to be unaware of regulations, including their right, indeed, their responsibility, to refuse to transport an injured animal. Some drivers didn’t even know how many animals they had aboard their truck.
* 20 hours: In one case, the number of hours a severely injured horse spent in transit.

(Source: Globe and Mail, Canadian standards for farm animal transport dangerously lax report says)

Links:

• Seaborne livestock carriage becomes highly specialized
• CFIA (Canadian Food Inspection Agency) Animal Welfare / Transportation of Animals web page contains fact sheets, brochures and links to regulatory resources.
  

  The Canadian Food Inspection Agency plays an important role in providing protection for animals used in food production. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s responsibility for farm animal welfare is science-based, seeks to reflect contemporary societal attitudes, and relates to two distinct areas of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency mandate: transportation and slaughter.

In a press release today, Transport Canada (TC) outlined proposed amendments to the Railway Safety Act to:

- crack down on rule breakers with tough new monetary penalties and increased judicial penalties;
- strengthen safety requirements for railway companies;
- create whistleblower protection for employees who raise safety concerns; and
- require each railway to have an executive legally responsible for safety.

The Railway Safety Act (1989) assigns oversight of rail safety to Transport Canada, which is slated to receive $44 million over five years to enable more detailed inspections, safety management system audits and enforcement action in cases of non-compliance.

The Railway Safety Act was last amended in 1999. In February 2007, the Minister of Transport launched an independent advisory panel to review the operation and efficiency of the Railway Safety Act. It “concluded that Canadian railways are safe but should be safer.”¹ The final report of March 2008 included 56 recommendations for improving rail safety.

The (House of Commons) Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities also studied rail safety and issued its own report in May 2008. It includes 14 additional recommendations, many building on the recommendations from the Railway Safety Act review.

The Government is implementing the recommendations by amending the Railway Safety Act and charging TC with addressing those recommendations that do not involve legislative amendments. The TC framework includes the Advisory Council on Railway Safety, and the Transport Canada-industry-union steering committee and working groups, which have developed action plans to implement the recommendations. (Source: Transport Canada; ¹Stronger Ties: A Shared Commitment to Railway Safety - Report of the Advisory Panel (1.6 MB pdf); REPORT OF THE STANDING COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORT, INFRASTRUCTURE AND COMMUNITIES ON RAIL SAFETY IN CANADA (May 2008, 133 KB pdf))

BC Rail scandal dates from police raid on Legislature in December 2003

The B.C. Supreme Court trial of former ministerial aides Bob Virk and David Basi, and former government employee Aneal Basi, opens today in Vancouver. They face charges of fraud, money laundering and breach of trust connected with the sale of the then crown corporation BC Rail to CN (Canadian National Railway). The unprecedented RCMP raid on the provincial legislature led to speculation of favoritism, if not outright corruption, at the highest levels of British Columbia’s Liberal government, which remains in power, and the cancelled sale of the last remaining small piece of what was once the third-largest railway in Canada. (The remaining short piece of BC Rail track serves as an interchange between national and/or regional rail lines and Westshore’s Roberts Bank coal port and the Deltaport Container Terminal. Various news media have questioned the generous remuneration paid to executives at BC Rail, which is now a small operation with few employees.)

The three defendents in the corruption trial have sat through six-and-a-half years of legal wrangling over access to and publication of government and ministerial communications and records. Their defence rests largely on the claim that they were simply following orders from their political masters. In February of this year, all three defendents successfully requested a change from being heard before a judge only in favour of a trial before judge and jury.

Trial Details

• REGINA V. VIRK, BASI & BASI
• Reference - VA 23299
• Vancouver Supreme Court (Robson/Smythe) COURTROOM 54
• 9:15 am, Monday, May 17, 2010
• ASSOCIATE CHIEF JUSTICE MACKENZIE presiding

For more background, check this site using the search terms “Basi” and “Virk”, or try Google. (Source: Globe and Mail, page A3, “Trial to start for trading insider information in 2003 sale of BC Rail”)

On May 13th Vancouver Airport Authority (VAA) named Mary Jordan, a former airline executive and director of the Airport Authority since 2004, as chair of its board of directors, effective June 10. She replaces Graham Clarke who has been chair since 1997 and who will remain on the Airport Authority’s board.

Clarke made the announcement at YVR’s (YVR is the airport’s ICAO identification code) annual public meeting.

Jordan has more than 20 years experience in the airline industry, holding executive positions with American Airlines, Canadian Airlines and Air Canada. She has also served as the executive director of the BC Centre for Disease Control and, most recently, was executive vice president of human resources for Laidlaw International. She is a former director of The Vancouver Board of Trade and is a director of Coast Capital Savings.

YVR’s 10-member Board of Directors is variously appointed by a number of stakeholders.

The not-for-profit VAA managed a $39 million surplus of revenue over expenditures for 2009, down 43% from 2008. Passenger traffic fell 1.7% from the previous year; revenue was off 14.7% while expenditures increased by 20.4%. YVR’s 2009 Annual Report and financial statements are now available here. (Source: YVR press release)

Toronto-based Skyservice suddenly ceased operations yesterday, after being petitioned into bankruptcy by Thomas Cook Canada, which is owed $8.6 million.

The airline’s 860 employees were paid before the company went into receivership and fewer passengers were stranded than has been the case in other recent airline bankruptcies.

Skyservice, started in 1986, had operated a fleet of 17 leased Airbus A320s, A330s and Boeing 757s to carry passengers for holiday companies such as Sunwing and defunct Conquest Vacations.

The Globe’s Brent Jang writes that the airline fell victim to:

• high operating costs for its aging fleet of planes;
• increasingly vertical integration of Canada’s vacation operators using in-house airlines;
• consolidation of tour operators.

(Sources: Globe and Mail, page B1, “Evolution in the Air: Skyservice falls prey to shift in travel business”; Skyservice press release)
Note: Skyservice Business Aviation, which operates air ambulances, business charters and air support services out of Toronto is not affiliated with Skyservice Airlines and remains in business.

The European Union (EU) today updated its blacklist of airlines that are banned from landing in EU countries. All airlines operating out of the Sudan and the Philippines are now blacklisted.

Philippine Airlines (PA) runs daily flights between Vancouver - Manila and Vancouver - Las Vegas. A second Philippine carrier with international service, Cebu Pacific Air, flies shorter routes between Manila and various Southeast Asian cities. No Sudanese carriers service Canada to the best of this reporter’s knowledge.

Although the International Air Transport Association (IATA) okayed operational safety audits for Philippine Airlines in 2008, and for Sudan Airways in February 2010, the European Commission (EC) cites safety deficiencies reported by the FAA ((U.S.) Federal Aviation Authority) and ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) in its decision to bar airlines from those countries.

The Philippines civil aviation authority has announced plans to hire additional safety inspectors amongst other projects, to address concerns by international regulators. The EU implies that the Philippine airlines will be reinstated after the initiatives are completed.

The EU blacklist dates from 2006. See the box below for blacklist details. (Sources: Europa press release; NY Times, “E.U. Expands Airline ‘Blacklist’“)

2009 year end results were recently published by Canada’s four major seaports that handle international shipments.

They are ranked by total tonnage, with container traffic measured in Twenty-Foot-Equivalent units (TEUs), and change from 2008 shown in brackets:

1. Vancouver - 93.1 million tonnes (YTD Nov-09, -12.7%); 2.15 million TEUs (YTD Dec-09, -14%);
2. Montreal - 24.5 million tonnes (-12%); 1.25 million TEUs (-15.4%);
3. Prince Rupert - 12.2 million tonnes (+15%); 265,259 TEUs (+46%);
4. Halifax - 9.6 million tonnes (-6.2%); 344,811 TEUs (-11%).

MOL car carrier departing Annacis Island, Port Metro Vancouver - Max Burley photo

Cruise Ships