The Steamship Authority’s newest ferry has set sail and could be in Massachusetts by next week. 

The M/V Barnstable, a former oil vessel that has been converted into a freight ferry, left the shipyard in Alabama Thursday for what is expected to be an eight-day voyage to the boat line’s maintenance facility in Fairhaven. Its target arrival date there is Nov. 9. 

Once in Fairhaven, the ferry will have to undergo some more work, as well as local Coast Guard inspections before it is put into service. 

“There’s still quite a bit of work to do in Fairhaven,” Steamship spokesperson Sean Driscoll said Friday. 

The Steamship Authority did not have a timeframe for when the ferry would start plying the region’s waters, Mr. Driscoll said. 

The boat is one of three identical former offshore oil vessels purchased by the Steamship Authority to bolster its aging ferry fleet. The new boats are expected to increase capacity while streamlining training and maintenance. 

The Barnstable has been undergoing work for more than a year at the Alabama Shipyard in Mobile after its life working in the Gulf Coast. The ferry is larger than the Katama or Gay Head ferries, a pair of freight boats that are being retired. 

The M/V Barnstable will largely run on the Nantucket route. Its sibling, the still under construction M/V Aquinnah, is expected to sail between Woods Hole and the Vineyard. 

Mr. Driscoll said the boat line is excited to have the new ferry on its way.

“It’s nice to actually see the Marine Tracker dot in the ocean, rather than at the shipyard,” he said.