Cat goin’ back?
Bay Ferries exploring the option of returning to Bar Harbor
Bay Ferries will give more consideration to the possibility of returning to Bar Harbor, Maine after a business plan prepared by the town included commercial marine and cruise ship opportunities.
Bay Ferries has been exploring a return for ferry service between Nova Scotia and Maine, and a vote in Bar Harbor this past week will likely cause the company to look even further into the possibility.
Residents in Bar Harbor voted 1,380 to 213 to have the town purchase the vacant terminal facility from the Department of Transportation for $3.5 million US. A business plan prepared for the Town of Bar Harbor speaks to several uses for the terminal, which has been vacant since 2010. The plan points to cruise ship opportunities, recreational and commercial marine uses, turning the facility into a transportation hub and using it as a satellite parking area.
The business plan also speaks to ferry service, stating, “BFL (Bay Ferries Ltd.) has expressed interest in operating a daily service between Bar Harbor and Nova Scotia, beginning as soon as 2019, and has developed a tentative operating plan specific to the ferry property. BFL has expressed both a willingness and a capacity to invest up to $3 million in the ferry property in exchange for access to the Bar Harbor market. BFL is funded in part by the provincial government of Nova Scotia, meaning funding is likely available consistent with the willingness and capacity expressed.”
But the priority for the facility is for it to be multi-use. The business plan also references goals outlined in a November 2017 report by the Bar Harbor Ferry Terminal Property Advisory Committee that states: “Explore whether Bay Ferries can be compatible with these uses and potentially financially beneficial. If the business plan or Bay Ferries’ needs preclude a multi-use marine facility with optional tender boat landings from cruise ships, the committee prioritizes marine uses, including a transportation hub at the property, over Bay Ferries.”
Asked why Bay Ferries would want to explore Bar Harbor as an option, Mark Macdonald, president and CEO of Bay Ferries, said the company is always trying to identify the best and most efficient way to undertake the service and so they would explore all options.
He says sailing to Portland gives closer proximity to the Boston market, but it is a longer transit than Bar Harbor ( 186 nautical miles compared to 106) so you have higher fuel consumption and a longer crew day. Aside from a shortened sailing time to Bar Harbor, this port opens up access to a market that sees 3.5 million visitors annually to Acadia National Park.
Macdonald said there is also an issue that will arise in the next few years in Portland that could see the terminal footprint size reduced due to redevelopment happening on the Portland waterfront. That could prove challenging for ferry operations, he said. So they want to see what other options may exist.
The vote by residents does not mean ferry service is returning to Bar Harbor.
The business plan presented to the Town of Bar Harbor says not to interfere with other uses for the terminal facility as proposed by the advisory committee, Bay Ferries has proposed in the past having a “slow turnaround” plan of approximately three hours at the terminal for getting passengers on and off the ferry.
That differs from the quicker turnaround when the ship arrives in Portland and starts loading new passengers and vehicles for departure as soon as vehicles and passengers arriving in Portland have disembarked.