Remember that the Chappy Ferry service will rely on just one ferryboat beginning Sunday October 17. It’s the shorter of the two ferries, so plan on spending extra time in the line.

You can check the ferry webcams to avoid the busy times of day. There are periods of the day when the ferries carry one car at a time. Evening is the quietest time at the ferry as well as at Stop & Shop.

If you own a small car and are in line on the Chappy side behind a long vehicle, watch carefully to see if there is enough room for you onboard as the third vehicle and the ferry captain waves you around. We wave cars around on the Chappy side only, never on the Edgartown side. Daggett street is too narrow and it’s not worth getting your car scraped up just to save a few minutes.

During the time that the longer ferry is out of service for maintenance and Coast Guard inspection, use of the vehicle cut line will be curtailed. The school bus, emergency vehicles and a few medical-related vehicles will still make use of the cut line. Fuel, FedEx, USPS, UPS, public utilities and concrete mixers will all be in the regular line.

Removing your trailer hitch, rear end bike carrier or front bumper baskets will make your vehicle shorter, making more space on the ferry and making it much more likely that your neighbor behind you will get on as the third vehicle.

I have heard people say that they don’t care if another car fits behind them. All that matters is that they themselves are now on the ferry.

Keep in mind that the folks ahead of you who made room for a third car on board have moved the entire line ahead and that you might be one or two boat trips ahead because of their goodwill.

Sunday Oct. 17 is also the day that the ferry service switches to the winter schedule. Weather permitting, the ferry runs constantly from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. and then from 11 to 11:15 p.m.

Over time, the winter service hours have increased. Fifteen years ago, the ferry ran from 7 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., 9 to 10 p.m. and then 11 to 11:15 p.m. The extra half hour in the morning was added without any hubbub and the evening hours filled in gradually to accommodate extracurricular school activities.