The Steamship Authority had a net operating income of $9.5 million in 2025, falling $1.1 million short of its budget goals, according to preliminary year-end numbers.
Most of the shortfall was due to accounting and budgeting practices that deferred some of the revenue into the 2026 books, said Steamship comptroller/treasurer Mark Rozum at the board of governors meeting in Hyannis Tuesday.
The year-end figures are still being reviewed for accuracy, he said.
“We are currently undergoing our annual audit… so these numbers aren’t finalized,” Mr. Rozum said.
Two state grants for terminal and ferry repairs, totaling about $2.4 million and budgeted as 2025 revenue, were deferred to this year because the projects were delayed, Mr. Rozum said.
The Steamship Authority also adjusted the way it accounts for multi-ride ticket books, resulting in a one-time loss on paper at the end of the year, he said.
The change was necessary to mesh passenger revenue data with the new reservation and ticketing system that’s expected to roll out next winter, Mr. Rozum said.
“The systems handle the books a little bit differently, so we made a deferment of about $1.1 million,” he said.
Ridership for the ferry line in 2026 has gotten off to a slow start. A storm-tossed January contributed to a 7.6 per cent drop in passengers on the Martha’s Vineyard route, with 8,932 fewer people riding the boats than in the first month of 2025.
Vehicle traffic also was down by 5.5 per cent, with 1,786 fewer automobiles and trucks on the Vineyard run than in last January.
“We lost a couple full weekends with storms and pending storms,” said Mr. Rozum, adding that he expects the Steamship Authority will make up the difference in the months to come.
“This is such a small amount for the whole year,” he said.
Advance vehicle bookings for the summer season are similar to last year’s, Mr. Rozum said.
Among other Steamship Authority board of governors business Tuesday, general manager Alex Kryska reported on last week’s virtual forums on the new reservation system.
“The first one, we had over 100 people attending online and last about two hours. The second day, I think it was over 50 people [who] participated,” Mr. Kryska said.
“[There were] lots of great questions, lots of great suggestions. We’ve taken those all in and we’ll be adopting as much as we can,” he said.
There will be more public forums, both online and in person on the Vineyard, as the Steamship Authority and reservation system vendor E-Dea close in on the final product, Mr. Kryska said.
“It’s going to take a lot of training, a lot of communication to get people up to speed [and] make sure they’re comfortable with the system,” he said.
Volunteers from the traveling community will be beta-testing the reservation system over the summer to make sure it meets their needs, Mr. Kryska said.
“We’re expecting an initial launch in late fall this year… for winter bookings, and then a full rollout next year,” he said.
Also Tuesday, the board of governors approved a new policy for filming on Steamship Authority vessels and property.
Communications director Sean Driscoll got the port council’s green light earlier this month for the policy, which spells out the conditions and costs for filmmakers.
The overriding rule, Mr. Driscoll said, is that producers must work around Steamship Authority operations — a stipulation that he said generally precludes any filming during the busy season.
“Our operations do not work around them,” he said. “I have never held a boat for a film shot, and would never do so.”
Mr. Driscoll said he formerly handled filming requests on a case-by-case basis, but that they have increased to the point that a policy — with a fee structure — is warranted.
“All of these activities have to be done under escort by myself or a member of my department,” he said.
The new policy applies a $100 per hour charge for each Steamship Authority employee monitoring the shoot, and does not include ferry tickets for the film crew.
In other business, chief operating officer Mark Amundsen reported that the utility building at the Woods Hole terminal is expected to be ready for employees by early March, while work continues on the main ticket building over the summer.
Board chair Peter Jeffrey, who represents Falmouth, said some Woods Hole residents have lodged complaints about light pollution at the terminal, including an appeal to the town board of health.
Falmouth resident Nat Trumbull voiced his concern during public comments at the end of Tuesday’s meeting.
“Surely those lights could be shielded and still serve their … purpose,” Mr. Trumbull said.
The next meeting of the Steamship Authority board of governors is scheduled for March 17, at 10 a.m. in the meeting room of the administrative offices in Falmouth.
This article appears in February 20, 2026.