Ferries to Washington State remain ready to return

​Ferry service between Greater Victoria and destinations in Washington State are hoping for a return to service as soon as it's safe to travel. The Canadian government has extended the closure of the US border until March 21.

Black Ball Ferry Lines, which operates the Coho ferry, and Clipper Navigation suspended operations when the border was closed almost a year ago. Both companies say they will be ready to resume sailing as soon as they're permitted to do so.

“I think there’s lot of pent up demand, but we really don’t know the circumstances of what an opening will be," Black Ball's president Ryan Burles told the Times Colonist. “We know it has to be safe to travel, and not just kind of safe. I know that about 90% of B.C. people don’t want the border to be open until it’s safe.”