British Columbia's minister responsible for transportation, Blair Lekstrom, said he thinks the public will understand the need for a fuel surcharge BC Ferries announced today but added he's concerned about rising fares and thinks the ferry service model may need to be reassessed.

"I don't think anybody's going to jump for joy, but I do think people understand that the high cost of fuel that it was going to play a part in what ferries was going to have to ask for at this point," Lekstrom said. "Eighteen percent of their costs are fuel. When fuel goes up it affects all of us from airlines to ferries to our individual cars."

As of June 1, there will be a five percent fuel surcharge on most of the minor routes and a 2.5 percent surcharge on the three major routes between Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland. The only routes that won't see an increase are between Horseshoe Bay and Langdale, Port Hardy and Prince Rupert, and Prince Rupert and Haida Gwai.

"We've got skyrocketing fares," said New Democratic Party ferry critic Gary Coons. "We've seen fare increases for the last eight years."

In 2003 the provincial government re-orgainzed BC Ferries from a Crown corporation to a publicly owned private company.

The provincial government should freeze fare increases until it has had a close look at BC Ferries, its finances and the impact on coastal communities, Coons said. "We're seeing the cost of privatization and the impact on tourism and businesses, and coastal communities are feeling the brunt of that," he said.

The BC Ferry Commissioner is in the middle of a price cap review that will govern what fares BC Ferries may charge between 2012 and 2016 and is seeking public comment.

Lekstrom said he'll let the commissioner do his work. "I think it's fair to say we've heard loud and clear there's significant concern from the traveling public," he said. While there is general satisfaction with the service, people are concerned about rising costs that are unsustainable for families, he said.

"We've asked BC Ferries to do a job," he said. "I think they're doing that job. There is something to be said about 'is this a sustainable model for the people of British Columbia,' and I think that's a question that needs to be answered and a solution found to that."

Andrew MacLeod is The Tyee’s Legislative Bureau Chief in Victoria. Reach him here.