The Steamship Authority’s much-anticipated freight vessels will soon be up north, with the first of the three expected to be in Massachusetts waters by the end of the week.
The Barnstable, the freight ferry that will serve on the Nantucket route, is currently on its way. Mark Amundsen, Steamship director of marine operations, said the Barnstable is expected to arrive in Fairhaven by Saturday, Nov. 9, slowed by a day due to weather conditions. It departed from Alabama Shipyard on Oct. 31.
“She’s currently just pulled into Fort Lauderdale for fueling,” Amundsen said during the Tuesday morning Port Council meeting.
The ferry line’s crew members will need to undergo training once the vessel arrives in Fairhaven, with hopes that the vessel can start sailing during the winter schedule.
The freight ferry that will serve the Vineyard route, the Aquinnah, is expected to depart for its journey north next month.
The third sister freight vessel, the Monomoy, is undergoing refurbishment in Alabama. It’s expected to undergo sea trials in June 2025.
The vessels will replace the Steamship’s current freight ferries. Two of them, the Gay Head and the Katama, are already on the market.
The ferry line has budgeted a total of $80.99 million, including $12.7 million for contingency spending, on the three refurbished freight ferries. The ferry line estimates that the projects will cost a total of $77 million.
In other Steamship news, the Port Council approved the $150.8 million operational budget for 2025, and the rate increases proposed by the ferry line’s staff, excluding the excursion fare increase that would have impacted Vineyarders’ vehicle reservations. Port Council chair and Falmouth representative Robert Munier abstained from voting on the budget, and voted against the rate increases.
The operational budget and the rate increases still need to be approved by the Steamship Authority board during its meeting on Nov. 19.
Meanwhile, the bidding process for the ferry line’s new reservation system will see a slight delay. A request for proposal will be issued by the end of November, rather than the middle of the month.
