Though the Louisiana shipyard building a new ferry says it will be more than five weeks late in delivering the vessel, Steamship Authority managers remain hopeful the ferry will be delivered earlier, general manager Wayne Lamson said this week.

The update on the hybrid ferry Woods Hole, under construction at the Conrad Shipyard in Morgan City, La., came at the monthly SSA meeting held in Falmouth Tuesday.

The ferry’s outer structure and two decks are substantially complete, boat line governors learned. And with the exception of the bridge console, all necessary parts and components are now on site.

“The yard continues to show a projected deliver date of June 6,” Mr. Lamson said.

He said he believes shipyard crews are doing everything possible to get the vessel finished. And SSA staff thinks time allowances for dock trials, sea trials and U.S. Coast Guard safety tests are conservative. Mr. Lamson expects sea trials to take four to five days. He also said the process of Coast Guard safety inspections can be shortened by sending inspectors preliminary information necessary for the testing.

“We remain optimistic that if progress continues at its current pace, that Conrad will be able to deliver the vessel much closer to the contract date of April 29,” Mr. Lamson said.

The ferry is scheduled to go into service on the Woods Hole to Oak Bluffs route before the summer season. The 235-foot vessel is designed to carry frieght, cars and passengers, with a capacity for 10 full-sized tractor trailer trucks or 55 cars, as well as 385 passengers.

Also at Tuesday’s meeting, Mr. Lamson said the staff continues to evaluate the feasibility of freight service from New Bedford to Martha’s Vineyard, with the aim of eliminating some heavy truck traffic on the Woods Hole Road.

He said the SSA is working to identify possible terminal sites in New Bedford, as well as alternative terminal sites on the Island. Management has also had preliminary discussions with private companies to see if they could establish freight service.

“My goal is to have the staff complete its cost analysis within the next two months,” Mr. Lamson said. “By the April meeting, we hope to have a draft.”

In other news, passenger and vehicle traffic between the Vineyard and Woods Hole increased significantly last year in all categories, according to the business report.

Passenger traffic was up 3.9 per cent in 2015. Vehicle traffic increased 3.8 per cent for the year, while small truck traffic was up 2.1 per cent, and larger freight truck traffic was up 3.6 per cent.

SSA ferries made a total of 22,437 trips last year on the Vineyard run, 221 more than the previous year.

A total of 83 trips were cancelled on the Vineyard routes because of mechanical issues, while 144 were canceled because of weather. A total of 631 unscheduled trips were added in 2015.