Neebish Island Ferry continues to struggle with St Mary’s River ice conditions; temporary replacement ferry sought
April 10, 08 by TheFleetIf you're new here, you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
By JACK STOREY | Source: Soo Evening News
Barred from operating in the ice that currently chokes the West Neebish Channel, the [Neebish Island] ferry has not yet begun spring service.
When the ferry does begin crossings, [Eastern U.P. Transportation Authority (EUPTA) staff Director Chuck] Moser said it will make four crossings daily with a different schedule for weekdays and on weekends. He also reported that permanent hull repairs will be scheduled for the MCM Marine drydock as soon as possible once the ice is out of the St. Marys River.
Moser said the drydocking, inspection and repairs on the old ferry’s hull will require two to three weeks and possibly more, depending on the amount of hull work that is needed. He said EUPTA is currently attempting to find insurance or grant funding to cover the repairs.
Moser said MCM has agreed to take the Neebish Islander II as soon as the ferry is cleared to move upriver under Coast Guard restrictions.
The EUPTA director also indicated the authority is seeking a replacement vessel to take over Neebish Island service temporarily while the ferry is in the repair yard. Speaking of a so-called “bare boat charter,” Moser said, “A replacement vessel will not come cheap.”
… In his report, Moser also described EUPTA’s decision to retain the “winter” ferry schedule at Drummond Island through the month of April. A cost-saving measure, the “winter” schedule reduces daily ferry crossings by a number of passages each day, reducing the burdensome high cost of fuel.
Moser said he expects the schedule change will save EUPTA $80 to $100 per trip not made. He also confirmed that the EUPTA staff is looking more closely at the remainder of the Drummond Ferry schedule and the schedule at Sugar Island with the intention of possibly reducing low-volume ferry crossings.
“We have to look at the level of service compared to what we can afford to do,” he said.
Sasso appeared to be comfortable with service reductions on some runs at both crossings. Sasso suggested using EUPTA’s new ferry dock cameras to see across the DeTour-Drummond crossing to determine if vehicles are waiting before making an “empty run” simply to make the schedule.
Sasso also suggested returning to late night and early morning crossings on an “on request” basis as was once done on the Drummond crossing.
No action was requested on scheduling changes as Moser said the staff has not yet completed its review of the potential for reducing runs.
Much more to this story, read it all at the Soo Evening News >>
