Page 38: of Marine News Magazine (January 2018)

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BOATBUILDING

A ‘Ferry’ Good Year

New Routes, New Challenges and Plenty of Newbuilding as 2017 gives way to the New Year.

By Joe Hudspeth

A year ago, the maritime industry could be found cling- routes. Kitsap Transit’s new ferry ? eet is shaping up to be ing to the edge of their seats to see what the coming year one of the most diverse. Their construction program in- had in store. 2017 was set to be a telling year and indeed cludes two ultra-low-wake ferries for their wake sensitive it was. With the elections ? nalized, the political impact, if Rich Passage run, a diesel-electric hybrid ferry for the short any, was sure to be seen. While fuel prices have remained commutes to Port Orchard and Annapolis, and three new low and continuing to hamper the offshore workboat mar- Tier IV-powered high speed 250-passenger subchapter ket, consumer con? dence has held high and new vessel K ferries for voyages from Southworth and Kingston to construction is strong – particularly in the ferry segment. downtown Seattle.

The need and recent demand for new ferries goes be- Separately, the National Park Service is also in the hunt yond in-kind vessel replacement. That’s because the trend for a new ferry operator to run their new ferry service from is for expanded routes, more frequent service, larger ves- Pensacola to Fort Pickens and Pensacola Beach. Early in sels, and in some cases the establishment of a startup ser- 2017, All American Marine delivered two new 72’ alumi- vice with a new service provider. Coupled to each of these num catamaran 149-passenger ferries that are currently in requirements is often an aggressive timeline and tight bud- dry storage while NPS selects a concessionaire to operate get – both of which have been the case for the startup of the service and the necessary shore side infrastructure is the NYC Ferry service on the East River in Manhattan. put into place.

N R : H C A C C WEW OUTES ORSES FOR OURSES OURSE THROUGH HOPPY ATERS

The scope of the project was vast, but it appears that 2017 has been a year of development and growth, but it

San Francisco based Hornblower Cruises and Events was was not smooth sailing for all on the ferry front as various indeed able to ? ll the role of ‘Ferry Godfather’ and pull vessels experienced a few rocky runs. Nevertheless, mem- off this Cinderella story at the eleventh hour. While the bers of the Passenger Vessel Association (PVA) can claim overall service has proven to be popular, the NYC Ferry has one of the best track records for maritime and transporta- experienced some shoe-? tting challenges along the way – tion related casualties.

including the need for additional vessels. Like their fellow Human factors are most often to blame which raises

New Yorkers, Hornblower has remained resilient in chart- some eyebrows as to whether a safer vessel can be built and ing a course for success for this new service. additional training can be garnered to help avert potential

Elsewhere, Potomac Riverboat Company in Alexandria, incidents. Organizations such as PVA, Interferry, and the

Virginia also took on a brand new ferry route, servicing Worldwide Ferry Safety Association (WFSA) are all cen- the recently opened Washington, D.C. Wharf harborside tered on the premise of safe ferry operations. Industry con- development. In order to address the challenge of transit- ferences bring vessel operators, government regulators, and ing low-clearance bridges along the route, the ? eet of four supply chain stakeholders together to present new ideas 88’ aluminum catamarans built by Metal Shark all feature and vet lessons learned – moving the industry forward. folding rails on the upper passenger deck. This year will be no different.

Kitsap Transit in Washington’s Puget Sound also kicked During last year’s Ferry Safety and Technology Confer- off a new ferry service from Bremerton to Seattle last year ence, organized by WFSA, several presentations advance and is in the midst of constructing and procuring six new the goal of safer navigation and landings. Dr. Martha vessels to grow their ? eet and incorporate two additional Grabowski of Le Moyne College, for example, gave an in-

January 2018

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