The Steamship Authority governors Tuesday voted to go forward with designs for a new freight ferry with a capacity for 384 people.
For almost a year, the SSA has been looking at plans for fleet replacement, beginning with replacing the freight ferry Governor. In August, the board opted in favor of a 235-foot freight vessel similar in size to the ferry Martha’s Vineyard, but asked for price comparisons between a boat with a 384-person capacity and a 512-person capacity.
Meeting in Woods Hole Tuesday, the governors agreed with a management recommendation to opt for the smaller of two potential ferry designs.
The Elliott Bay Design Group, which is designing the new vessel for the Steamship Authority, said the higher capacity ferry would cost about $2 million more than a smaller vessel, and would cost an additional $200,000 a year to operate.
“With the difference in price it’s just not worth it,” Barnstable governor and board chairman Robert O’Brien said.
The recommended ferry would have a maximum capacity of 384 people, passengers and crew combined.
SSA general manager Wayne Lamson said 92 per cent of 2013 large vessel trips on the Vineyard route carried fewer than 400 passengers, and boat line management felt that the 384-person ferry would be adequate. He also noted that the ferry could be modified in the future if it proved insufficient.
Right now, the freight ferry Sankaty has the highest passenger capacity of any current freight boat, with the ability to carry 290 passengers.
Mr. Lamson later told the Gazette that the new freight vessel will be used as a supplement to other vessels, doing mostly freight trips during the week, freeing up space on the other vessels. Mr. Lamson said there will be a “domino effect by having a slightly larger truck-carrying capacity.”
He said the new ferry will have the flexibility to run any time of year on either route, though it will run primarily on the Vineyard route. “It’ll be nice just to have the extra vessel, to be able to swap in and give other vessels more time in repair,” Mr. Lamson said. He said the new vessel will be able to make more trips in the spring and the fall.
Mr. Lamson said a preliminary design for the ferry will be completed by the end of March, and full design specifications are expected by October. A construction contract is expected to be awarded by January 2015, and the new ferry should be making trips by May 2016.
The final cost of the ferry hasn’t been nailed down, but Mr. Lamson said the preliminary estimate is $35 million. The ferry will be a drive-through boat, he said, so cars won’t have turn around, and will likely be open in the middle to allow for more vehicles, with four truck lanes and five car lanes.
The cost and the design will be refined through the process, Mr. Lamson said.
Once the new ferry is in operation, Mr. Lamson said, the freight ferry Governor will be scrapped or sold.
In other business, treasurer Robert B. Davis said January passenger traffic was down just over three per cent compared to January 2013, and car traffic was down 1.8 per cent. Truck traffic was down about 0.3 per cent.
Mr. Lamson said passenger traffic was up in December, with the number of passengers up nine per cent, car trips up 6.6 per cent, and truck trips up 6.3 per cent. He said the increase could be attributed to better weather and fewer trip cancellations compared to the weather in December 2012.
Overall ferry traffic was up slightly in 2013, with passenger trips up 1.6 per cent over the last year, car trips up about .5 per cent, and truck trips up 5.5 per cent. Vessels made 22,050 trips, and the net operating income for the year was $304,705 lower than budget projections.
Comments
Hopefully, the design of the
the hull truthHopefully, the design of the new vessel will take into account the wake size of the vessel. Right now if you are in any vessel operating within the wake of Steamship Authority vessels the Governor, which is being retired, has the least amount of wake. The Sankaty, which has the largest passenger capacity, has the most pronounced wake. What relationship to fuel consumption this has would be something to consider.
I still think they should at
Dan ChilmarkI still think they should at least look at a feasibility study of a used vessel. $35 Million is A LOT of money, and building a brand new ferry is just not as cost effective as buying a fairly new, used one. Think about the reality with your car. It's not exactly the same amount of decline, but the labor costs 10 years ago versus tidal to build a ship are substantial.
They'll likely just keep the gravy-train moving though, and name the boat after one themselves, in honor of this great decision.
Not that I'm offended that I, and everyone else using the ferry to go off-island, will be paying the difference in the two costs. No, not I.
Dan - go count the snowplows
Olympic Guy Cape CodDan - go count the snowplows
Has the Steamship Authority
J Welch West TisburyHas the Steamship Authority shared with the public a cost benefit analysis of a new boat vs buying used? Of course not, the Steamship Authority prides itself on spending/wasting money. Has the issue of staffing of a new boat come up? Of course not! Why not pre-negotiate lower staffing on this new boat with the union? Can't we all agree that labor is one of their largest inefficiencies? Airlines have to negotiate with their various unions whenever a new type of airplane joins their fleet. Let's encourage management to try and save money instead of just spending....
Absolutely the wake of a new
CJ, Oak BluffsAbsolutely the wake of a new vessel should be taken into consideration, and not just for fuel consumption! Most of the SSA vessels (especially the freight ones) create significant wakes and waves which crash onto the beaches in VH outer harbor, eroding them. The beaches along the northeastern end of the island at East Chop don't need any further erosion, and they do crash there, too, en route to OB. Before a contract is awarded, I hope the SSA will have the same open forum meetings that occurred before the Island Home was built allowing input, concerns, and suggestions.
Excellent idea all around.
Bob TomsonExcellent idea all around. Folks in woods hole won't be able to get out of the harbor much less their driveway. It will save some money for the parking garage too.
The problem with trying to do
Mr. B. ChilmarkThe problem with trying to do "cost benefit analysis" on new/used is that there is no ready and steady market in not-so-used ferry boats to make the comparisons with. Maybe you'll have better luck on line with "used ferry boat." Try it on line. Why, after all, are the owners being done with them? It's not as if you have them "off lease" every two-three years or that there are companies/public authorities who like to "buy new" every five years. And they are going to sell it to you "as is" if they do sell, so you can factor in and up the refurbishing costs on every level.
The governor was a gift. Why
Ken EdgartownThe governor was a gift. Why are we looking at new? There are many used ferries for sale out there. There is a few in Canada. Its a luxury to be able to buy new, I didnt know the steamship authority was so flushed with money that new was even a consideration, especially after buying two new ships in the last 10 years.
Has the Steamship Authority
J Welch West TisburyHas the Steamship Authority made the case that replacing the governor is worth spending 35 Million dollars? In my estimate, they could spend 1 million per year on maintenance keeping the old one running instead of buying new. How much have they spent on the Governor for the past ten years and what do they anticipate the future maintenance expenses to be? Let's have the steamship authority make a case of why they need to spend so much money. Since many people question the management and board, why not put the question to a island wide vote at the next election?
WAit a minute..what is a
Rich h TisburyWAit a minute..what is a drive through boat? A Nantucket or a Governor? Can't the SSA find engineering out there that duplicates a double ender (see Seattle) and doesn't require 50 years of turning around 12 times a day (how 'bout them fuel wasted calculations?)?
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