Amid a growing crisis of confidence among Islanders and summer travelers, the Steamship Authority this week saw a website crash and the announcement that Marc Hanover is stepping down.
Amid rising turmoil, Vineyard SSA governor Marc Hanover said Wednesday that he will not seek reappointment after all, and will step down next month when his term is up.
Steamship Authority governors voted Thursday to issue up to $26 million in bonds to fund ongoing waterside construction at the Woods Hole terminal and repay $5.66 million in bonds issued in 2009 that will mature over the next few years.
Groundhog Day came early for Steamship Authority customers seeking summer reservations for automobiles. The boat line website crashed at 5 a.m. Tuesday.
Updates on the Woods Hole terminal reconstruction project and ongoing internal management improvements are on the agenda when SSA governors meet in Falmouth this morning.
A contest appears to be shaping up for who will represent Martha’s Vineyard on the Steamship Authority board of governors for the next three years. Vineyard governor Marc Hanover will apply.
The Steamship Authority freight ferry Gay Head had a minor scrape with a construction barge at the Woods Hole terminal over the weekend. Windy conditions were a factor in the incident.
Thousands of ferry cancellations between Woods Hole and Martha’s Vineyard over the past two years have had Islanders questioning the reliability of their lifeline.
Carl Walker, the longtime director of engineering and maintenance at the Steamship Authority, has had his position eliminated due to restructuring, the SSA said.
A settlement between the federal government and Volkswagen will send $1 million in grants to the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School and the Steamship Authority to buy electric buses.
Part of $7.5 million in grants announced by the Baker administration just before Christmas, the two grants will provide $500,000 for the SSA to build a charging station and buy two electric shuttle buses servicing their Falmouth route. The high school grant of $500,000 will be used to buy two electric school buses.
