Heavy traffic on BC Ferries with more than 350K passengers expected over long weekend

Heavy traffic volumes are being reported on BC Ferries as British Columbians head into the Family Day long weekend.

The ferry company has added 26 sailings on the key route between Swartz Bay in Victoria and Tsawwassen in the Lower Mainland.

However there were still significant delays on the Vancouver Island side early Friday afternoon, with a five-sailing wait.

2:13 BC Ferries launches plan to avoid cancelled sailings

The situation was better going the opposite way, with fewer delays reported between Tsawwassen and Duke Point in Nanaimo.

BC Ferries said it expects more than 350,000 passengers and 150,000 vehicles to board its vessels between Thursday and Tuesday.

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Friday afternoon, Saturday morning and Monday afternoon are anticipated to be the most popular travel times, and reservations are highly recommended.

“A reservation just makes life so much easier than stressing about whether you’ve got to be there at a certain time or whether you are going to miss a boat or two,” passenger Maty Schoos, who was headed to Victoria for the weekend, told Global News.

Travellers are also advised to check the status of their sailing on the BC Ferries website before heading to the terminal.