Over a free hamburger and a drink Saturday afternoon, locals talked about the need to restore the Discovery Coast Ferry during an awareness campaign hosted by Cariboo GM in Williams Lake.
“The cancellation of the ferry will affect all of us,” said Anahim Lake resident Bill Van Es.
During the past 10 years, an average of 7,000 tourists per year travelled through Williams Lake to take the ferry, he said.
The replacement ferry, the Nimpkish, can only carry 16 vehicles.
A pamphlet created by Save the Discovery Coast Ferry Campaign at www.savethediscoverycoastferry.ca and distributed Saturday notes seven large German tour operators and Jonview Canada have expressed their disgust with the Nimpkish and the new Bella Coola-Port Hardy service and will no longer recommend the route to clients.
“This means international tourists, the bulk of those 7,000 tourists, will disappear from the Highway 20 corridor and Williams Lake,” the pamphlet stated.
“The collapse of the tourism industry dependent on the Discovery Coast ferry will have many adverse impacts on Williams Lake, as many businesses across the Chilcotin and into Bella Coola are pushed to the brink of closure.”