Passenger and Car Fares Stay the Same But Commuters, Truckers,
Schools All Can Expect Sharp Increases

HYANNIS - Vineyard residents will shoulder the bulk of next
year's rate increases, which were unanimously approved by
Steamship Authority governors at their monthly meeting in Hyannis on
Wednesday.

The Steamship Authority continued to make money last year, though not as much as boat line managers anticipated.

Unaudited numbers show that the SSA, beset by rising fuel costs and falling passenger traffic, brought in $1,491,957 in operating income in 2005 - a decrease of about $1.3 million from the prior year, and about $2.6 million below budget projections.

Rising world oil prices have blown a million dollar hole in the budget of the Steamship Authority and forced the boat line to refigure its budget for a second time.

However, governors balked at management’s advice that they should immediately consider fare increases to cover the extra projected cost, opting instead to put off any revenue decisions until January.

If the price of oil remains high, governors will consider measures that include a fuel surcharge.

The Steamship Authority is on track to finish a difficult year in reasonably good financial shape, the last board meeting of 2009 was told last week.

As of the end of October, the boat line’s net operating income was almost $12 million, some $2.8 million better than forecast.

The monthly business summary continued the good-in-parts trend of recent months: revenues were sharply down, but so were costs.