The Steamship Authority unveiled an updated set of policies for automobile reservations at a virtual public forum Wednesday, after drivers from both Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket challenged the previous plan.
Joined by other top Steamship brass and project manager Thomas Innis of Gibbous LLC, SSA general manager Alex Kryska explained how the new reservation system will work once it goes online next winter.
“There’s a lot of parts of this new system that are not changing or [are] being improved,” he said.
The excursion program, open only to year-round Island residents will continue, but with a new name — still under discussion — and minus the current requirement to book round-trip, Mr. Kryska said.
The preferred program, for full-time Island residents and qualified part-time Island residents, is also continuing, along with the practice of holding some reservations open for members, he said.
“We will still have … spaces that will become available in 30 days, seven days and one day [before] the sailing,” Mr. Kryska said.
“We’re still going to have a standby program. We’re still going to have the head start program where Island residents get to pick their reservations before the general public does again,” he said.
The waiting list and standby policies are changing in a way that will allow motorists to combine the two when they seek to travel on a date when no bookings are open.
Instead of making a reservation a day or more after their preferred sailing and then joining an unlimited number of waiting lists in the hope of departing sooner, drivers will be able to purchase a standby ticket for the sold-out boat and then join up to five waiting lists for trips before and after the chosen departure.
Any cancellations on those boats will automatically be filled by customers on the waiting lists, in the order they joined, Mr. Kryska said.
Emergency medical trips will always take precedence, he added.
The new head start policy drew some criticism because it requires any transfers to take place at the time of purchase.
Mr. Innis said the current policy allowing a certain number of transfers later in the year has led to a black market in reservations.
Steamship customer Kate Barry said this won’t work for homeowners who provide reservations to their summer tenants, who may not yet have signed leases by the time head start sales take place.
Other members of the public urged the Steamship Authority to have its terminal staffers cross-check reservations with the vehicles presenting them, to make sure they match up.
Audience members had plenty of questions, although the SSA team wasn’t able to answer every one definitively.
Cathy Brennan asked if it was true, as rumored, that the current website shows more available trips when users don’t log in with a profile number.
“It is not an urban legend,” Mr. Kryska said, acknowledging the problem.
Alison Fletcher, the Steamship’s director of shoreside operations, said a flaw in either the reservations system or the website is causing the discrepancies.
“We’re still working on getting that resolved,” she said.
Open tickets, which result when a driver cancels a trip, will not be a feature of the new system. Users will need to cancel their reservation and have it refunded, rather than holding on to a paid-for ticket and using it later.
“We’re trying to get away from having lots of pending and open tickets,” said Mr. Innis.
Also, he said, the new reservations system is not equipped for open tickets, which are not standard in the ferry industry.
Cancellation fees, which were floated in a presentation to the Steamship Authority board of governors and port council last month, are on hold for now, Mr. Kryska said.
The Steamship Authority will hold a second session, with the same presentation and question-and-answer format, on Thursday from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The meeting link and presentation slides are posted at steamshipauthority.com/truenorth.
Mr. Amundsen said two representatives from the provider for the new reservations system, Italian company E-Dea, would attend Thursday’s virtual public forum.
“It’ll be midnight their time, but they’ll be available,” he said.
This article appears in February 13, 2026.
Joined at 6:30 on Thursday – as said it would run 5:30 – 7:30 and they ended the meeting at 6:30.
So much the meeting time.
This still sounds like eliminating traditional standby, which is a losing idea every time.
The article noted a stand by program would still be available. Not noting any details. My guess it will be the blue line that they have now.
We need the steamship authority can always be made better. One thing I’ve noticed are the large trucks. Staging around the island almost all in scenic view parking areas. Three food delivery trucks parked at the landing in Vineyard Haven More trucks parked at the lookout by the bridge or in Oak Bluffs just before Hart Haven these are all beautiful views interrupted by these trucks. So the steamship authority has outgrown the vineyard Haven terminal area. It seems kind of a waste that these trucks who deliver food to the island have to send three. Four and five trucks every day. Our little island is overrun by large trucks we put up with the large trucks, delivering gas and propane and lumber and food and other building materials and material for cement and asphalt. I know the people in Woods Hole are-sick of these trucks. And we should be too.
In the early 90’s I used to show up right when s.s.a opened and jump in stand bye line. It was a fun gamble..it would either be a couple boats time or a few hours. I would hang out and enjoy the views……now both are gone!!!!!!!
As islanders, we truly rely on the ferry system. Not just for planned trips made months in advance, but for the unexpected travel that inevitably comes up throughout the year.
If I need to leave on 8/17 and only find out a couple of weeks beforehand, booking in January is simply not an option and 30 day preferred isn’t an option. When the only remaining reservation is a 9:45 PM departure, yet I need to travel earlier in the day, the current five-boat waitlist limit effectively blocks any meaningful chance of securing an earlier crossing.
The system then requires constant calling and monitoring to try to catch an opening, especially during peak season, an effort that often fails despite significant time and energy. Additionally, logging in online at the 30-, 7-, or 1-day mark does not consistently reflect all available boats, which adds to the frustration and uncertainty.
This process is stressful, time consuming, frustrating and burdens island residents who depend on reliable access to the mainland for work, medical appointments, family obligations, and more.
I respectfully ask that the ferry system consider greater flexibility for islanders regarding same-day or short-notice waitlists, whether through expanded waitlist limits, or a designated islander priority adjustment system.
We deeply value the ferry service and simply hope for a system that better reflects the realities of year-round island life.
Tough on island residents not being able to hold reservations for their potential renters. For us, very unhelpful.