Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal
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Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal
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Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal from the air.
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| Coordinates | 49°00′31″N 123°07′44″W / 49.0086567°N 123.1289291°W |
| Owned by | BC Ferries |
| Operated by | BC Ferries |
| Line(s) |
Route 1–Swartz Bay Route 9–Long Harbour Route 30–Duke Point |
| Connections | |
| Construction | |
| Disabled access | Yes |
| History | |
| Opened | June 15, 1960 |
The Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal is a 22.3 ha (55 acres) major transportation facility in Delta, British Columbia. It is located at the end of an approx 2 km (1 mi) man-made causeway off the mainland at Tsawwassen and is less than 500 m (550 yd) from the 49th parallel, the Canada–United States border. The terminal is part of the BC Ferry system, as well as part of Highway 17.
The search for a mainland ferry terminal in the late 1950s that would connect British Columbia's Lower Mainland with the Victoria area on Vancouver Island involved an extensive scouting of locations from Steveston to White Rock. Despite criticism of rough seas and bad weather, the favoured site soon became the area offshore from the Tsawwassen First Nation Reserve.
Construction of the terminal began in 1959, after provincial transportation Minister Phil Gaglardi, on divided engineering advice, selected the site. Construction of an artificial island began, and the causeway was built from the island back towards the mainland. This endeavour used an estimated 2.3 million cubic metres (3.0 million cubic yards) of boulder, rock, and gravel fill.
To connect Highway 99 to the new terminal, an 11 km (7 mi) long freeway was constructed from near the southern end of the Deas Tunnel through the edge of Ladner. This became a portion of Highway 17.
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