Boat Line Proposes to Run Van from Wharf to Park-and-Ride

By JONATHAN BURKE

Tisbury selectmen next week will consider the Steamship
Authority's proposal to run a shuttle service between the town
park-and-ride lot and the Vineyard Haven ferry terminal.

Under terms of the proposal, from June 25 through the end of the
year, from 5:30 am to 9:00 pm, the SSA would "dedicate a van to
run continuously between the terminal and the lot."

"The basic idea," said Fred Raskin, the SSA's
chief operating officer, in a letter to the selectmen, "is to
offer a service which guarantees that passengers who park in the lot
will make the next scheduled vessel sailing, and that passengers
arriving from off-Island will have transportation waiting at the
terminal to take them back to the lot."

Not entirely satisfied with the Vineyard Transit Authority's
current service between the park-and-ride and the ferry terminal, the
town selectmen support the SSA's initiative.

"It seems to be not all the boats are caught in the summer
time. It sounds like a good idea," said Tom Pachico, selectmen.
"The [VTA's] buses don't just seem to be geared
absolutely around the boat."

Mr. Pachico said the SSA's proposal would need some
"tweaking."

Ray LaPorte, selectman, said "unreliability" in the
connection between the park-and-ride and departing boats was the
"number one complaint."

"A reliable transportation service to and from is essential to
the success of the use of the park-and-ride . . . My first impression
[of the SSA's proposal] is that it addresses the very problem
that's been prevalent and I think it will do so
successfully."

Tristan Israel, chairman, said "the lot costs us a lot of
money and is grossly underutilized." He said a necessary
improvement is to have a shuttle service that guarantees a bus to meet
every boat.

Ideally, said Mr. Israel, the SSA would operate a dedicated run to
the ferry and the VTA would continue to offer its more general bus
service.

Steve Sayers, SSA counsel, said the number of trips on the
SSA's run was a detail yet to be worked out.

During the summer, the VTA offers 40 daily trips, leaving the
park-and-ride in periods ranging from 10 to 55 minutes apart. During the
winter, the VTA's service is less regular. Angie Gompert,
administrator, said there is not always a bus for every boat during the
winter.

If accepted, the SSA's service would be free initially. After
that it would be funded through parking revenues, said Mr. Raskin.

"As the end of the trial period approaches, we will sit down
with the town and discuss whether we should continue the service during
2004 and, if so, how it should be structured," wrote Mr. Raskin.

Whether shuttles are operated by the VTA or the SSA, there is wide
support in Tisbury for more regular and frequent shuttle service than
currently exists.

Ted Saulnier, police chief, said a regular shuttle service between
the ferry terminal and the park-and-ride - like the VTA's
shuttle service in Edgartown - would relieve downtown congestion
and improve safety.

"I think the park-and-ride should be included in an overall
scheme of some sort - an overall townwide parking plan. And I also
think it should be serviced by some sort of shuttle bus to and from the
steamship and that should be on a regular basis," said Chief
Saulnier.

"Picture it," said Mr. Saulnier, explaining how it
currently works. "Somebody comes to shop in the downtown Main
Street area. They drive down Main Street and don't find a parking
spot. They do one of a few things."

Typically, Mr. Saulnier said, the driver will turn up or down one of
the side streets. A driver, he said, might turn down Union street, which
will feed the car onto Water street and then through the perpetually
busy Five Corners.

"That just creates more trips throughout all these roads that
that one car is making," he said.

The Tisbury Business Association and the Police Advisory Committee
also support a more frequent shuttle service.

Jeff Kristal, president of the business association, said a more
convenient shuttle service "would free up spots downtown for
people to use as they come into town to shop for an hour or two."

Mr. Kristal, also chairman of the Police Advisory Committee, said
the PAC supported a more regular shuttle service for, among other
reasons, to alleviate traffic downtown.

In Edgartown, during the summer, the VTA operates a free shuttle
between the triangle and downtown every 15-20 minutes from 6:50 am to
11:15 pm.

In a separate development, the VTA, according to Ms. Gompert, is
scheduled to begin using the recently constructed roundabout at the
Vineyard Haven terminal on June 16. The VTA currently uses the
SSA's drop off and pick-up lanes for its passengers.