Cancellations and diversions, elusive reservations, crew shortages and the slow progress toward a new Steamship Authority website were among the top concerns expressed by some three dozen Islanders who spoke during the two-hour public forum.
Ferry travel between the Islands and Cape Cod will cost more for nearly everyone next year, after the Steamship Authority board of governors voted 3-1 Tuesday morning to approve the 2025 operating budget.
The steam engine from the old Martha’s Vineyard ferry Nobska is now on display at its permanent home, the New England Wireless and Steam Museum in East Greenwich, R.I.
To relieve congestion at the Woods Hole and Vineyard Haven terminals, Steamship Authority management this week recommended extending the boat line’s reservations-only policy to year-round — effectively ending stand-by travel for motorists visiting Martha’s Vineyard.
The M/V Barnstable, a former oil vessel that has been converted into a freight ferry, left the shipyard in Alabama Thursday for what is expected to be an eight-day voyage to the boat line’s maintenance facility in Fairhaven.
Islanders brought complaints and recommendations to the Steamship Authority finance officials who were on the Vineyard last week to talk about the proposed budget and potential rate increases.
The Steamship Authority has dropped a potential $3.50 to $5 rate increase for excursion fares from the Vineyard and cut a proposed passenger rate hike from $1 to 50 cents, according to a revised draft of the preliminary 2025 operating budget.
The Steamship Authority is facing a $5 million gap between its projected revenues and expenses next year due to an unprecedented $15 million rise in costs, paired with a decline in revenues.
The last two Steamship Authority captains from Martha’s Vineyard have officially retired, leaving only off Island-based officers to run the Woods Hole route.
