When the MVC met the SSA

The Martha’s Vineyard Commission (MVC) hosted members of the Steamship Authority’s (SSA) administration Thursday night to discuss data and future plans for the Island’s ferry service, including how to encourage more travelers to leave their cars on the mainland.

The meeting came two days after the SSA held a meeting at the MVRHS Performing Arts Center.

Business is up, way up
MVC Executive Director Adam Turner gave a presentation on a collection of SSA data stretching back to 1990. The SSA has seen exponential growth in both annual and seasonal categories. Seasonal was defined as the months of June, July, August, and September.

“They do half of their business in those four months,” Turner said.

“We all do, Adam,” commissioner Josh Goldstein said.

Since 2005, the SSA has added 400,000 passengers annually and 200,000 seasonally, seasonal traffic making up 53 percent of the total passenger traffic. Turner said the data is consistent in its upward trajectory, without any real outliers.

The data also split vehicle traffic up into passenger vehicles and trucks. Since 2005, there has been an increase of 30,000 vehicles annually, with 17,000 of those being seasonal. Seasonal passenger vehicle traffic has been growing at a slightly faster rate than the annual traffic. Forty percent of all traffic is from residents of the Island who qualify for the excursion rate. To qualify for this rate, Island residents must book round-trips that depart and return to the Island within 30 days.

Turner said there has been significant growth in truck traffic. Since 2005, there have been 38,000 more trucks annually, with 13,000 of those during the seasonal months. The data also broke down trucks into the amount of spaces they take up on the ferry. Much of the growth has been in one-space trucks.

The SSA Vineyard representative Marc Hanover said the materials on many of the trucks include lumber, food, propane, and gasoline.

How the SSA budgets
The SSA looks back on the previous year’s traffic to establish the authority’s operating budget.

“As we prepare our operating budget, we do an analysis going forward for a five-year period so we can give the same level of service. We factor in what our payroll costs are going to be, assumptions on what we’re going to be using for fuel; we look at our depreciation schedule going forward for five years, and then we look at a general CPI index for other expenses,” SSA general manager Robert Davis said.

Davis said the average life expectancy of a vessel is approximately 50 years, but that can be extended with repairs, such as those the on 67-year-old Governor. The SSA had intended to scrap the Governor, but instead opted to spend the funds to repair it.

Commissioner Fred Hancock said a big concern is the number of vehicles on the Island, and asked what the SSA has seen in terms of vehicle capacity.

Davis said that the ferries have been running at a relatively steady 80 percent capacity for the past several years.

Who knew the SSA makes more money on passengers than cars?
Several commissioners also raised questions concerning parking in Falmouth lots. The commissioners and the SSA have been brainstorming ways to incentivize people to park their car off-Island and walk onto the boat as a way to curb vehicle traffic on the Island. Hanover said the SSA has been exploring options to offer a discounted rate for late-evening ferries, which could ease traffic in the morning.

Commissioner Linda Sibley asked if the SSA has ever considered building a garage structure for parking.

Davis said estimates for building a garage structure range from $15,000 to $25,000 per space.

“The Steamship Authority does not make money on cars or trucks; it’s a wash,” Hanover said. “The trucks pay more, the cars pay less. [The SSA] makes money on walk-on passengers … I’m assuming from everything I’ve been hearing recently is we want more walk-on passengers and less vehicles, so we’re going to be coming to that point. With [the MVC’s] help, it’d be interesting to see if we can come up with some ways of encouraging people to leave their cars … eventually we’re coming up to a bottleneck, and if the Island keeps growing, which it is, I don’t know how much more it can grow, but this is going to be an issue.”

Commissioner Richard Toole asked Davis to talk about fast ferries, which were used in March and April.

Davis said a fast ferry is not in the SSA’s capital budget, but they are looking at it as a potential service, and would have to examine the feasibility.

Do the MVC and SSA have clashing missions?
Commissioner Jim Vercruysse said that he frequently reads over the MVC legislation and, in preparation, did so and found an inherent “clash” between the two.

“You’re charged with providing the Island a service, bringing people, goods, and services here. We’re charged with protecting the Island, its natural resources and lifestyle,” Vercruysse said. “They’re at odds with each other. Have you wondered there might come a point where there’s going to be an arm-wrestling match between two legislations as to who should win? Can you continue to provide the service that you’re doing and the Island stay the way we’re meant to keep it?”

Hanover said he is aware of the MVC’s position, and wants to work together to see how fewer cars can be brought on-Island. “We’re not a zoning board either, we have to meet the demand. We can’t refuse service to anybody,” Hanover said. “I think in the end, we all want the same thing.”