Passengers and motorists aboard the Steamship Authority ferry Martha’s Vineyard for Wednesday night’s 9:45 trip from Woods Hole had to disembark without traveling after an alarm on the vessel’s steering system went off, communications director Sean Driscoll said.

While the Martha’s Vineyard remained berthed in the only Woods Hole slip that was in operation Wednesday, the ferry Island Home, already underway from Vineyard Haven on its 9:30 p.m. trip, had to return to the Island for the night.

“Accommodations were provided in Falmouth and on the Island for those individuals whom we were able to contact and who needed lodging assistance,” Mr. Driscoll said an email.

A failed power supply module for the ferry’s backup steering system was found to have triggered the alarm and was replaced, but the vessel was not legally permitted back in service until after a Coast Guard inspection, so Thursday’s 5:30 a.m. and 6 a.m. trips from Vineyard Haven and the 6 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. trips from Woods Hole were canceled.

The Coast Guard took the repaired Martha’s Vineyard out of its slip for sea trials starting around 7 a.m., enabling the Island Home to make its 7 a.m. departure from Vineyard Haven.

The Coast Guard cleared the Martha’s Vineyard for service in time for it to make its scheduled 8:15 a.m. departure from Vineyard Haven, with all other Thursday trips on schedule, according to Mr. Driscoll.

“The (construction) barge in slip No. 3 is expected to be moved this morning, which will give us two operational slips in Woods Hole again,” he wrote.