Centennial of the Maple Beach jitney service

As we welcome back more and more Canadians to the Point, it’s timely to commemorate the centennial of bus service between Ladner and Maple Beach, which helped to make the Point a recreation destination for Canadians.

Canadians have come to Maple Beach for recreation since the 19th century, but getting here from Vancouver was not easy. The Delta Optimist complained about how hard it was to get to Boundary Bay on September 17, 1910: “Popular as the district is at present as a summer resort, its popularity would be greatly increased were the disadvantage of inaccessibility removed ... and Vancouver brought within two hours’ distance.”

Prior to the opening of the Deas Island tunnel in 1959, people had to cross the Fraser River at New Westminster, or take a ferry from Richmond to Ladner. Initial passenger ferries sailed twice a day year-round (with a third daily sailing in the summers) to Ladner from Steveston, and in 1913 a small car ferry was introduced, which sailed from Woodward’s Landing.

A larger 40-car ferry wasn’t introduced until the 1930s, which meant in the early years there were many passengers arriving on foot in Ladner who still needed a ride to Maple Beach. To serve this demand, in 1922 the White Star Motor Company began bus service between Ladner and Maple Beach. These 10-seat jitneys met each ferry in Ladner – the old ferry dock can still be seen at the Ferry Road boat ramp – and shuttled folks to Boundary Bay.

The ability for more and more Vancouverites to reach our warm beaches spurred the development of Maple Beach, and Point Roberts in general. Soon, locals were subdividing homesteads for cottage-sized lots, offering summer rentals and opening beachside businesses. Boundary Bay earned a reputation that the Vancouver World newspaper heralded as the “coming summer resort.”

A century later, Maple Beach remains a popular summer destination. Stop in Saturdays at the Point Roberts History Center on Gulf Road to see displays about the development of Maple Beach, driven in part by the jitney service which began 100 years ago.