There is a lack of leadership in the upper management of the Steamship Authority, and it was on full display this week after a series of unfortunate events.
After a number of cancellations — and on the heels of a crew shortage late last month — a long line of travelers were forced to wait in line, at least once in the pouring rain, with little to no communication from the SSA.
If the Vineyard wants to rely on a commuting workforce, which has become more and more common, significant improvements need to be made as soon as possible to the main mode of transportation to the Island.
The troubles surfaced early this week on Monday afternoon, when the Steamship’s largest passenger ferry, the Island Home, suffered a mechanical issue, leaving the vessel out of service. Steamship officials were vague about what went wrong, but they say the issue came down to a pressure relief valve.
Around 5 o’clock on Monday, with the workday done, commuters and other travelers began lining up outside the Steamship Vineyard Haven terminal, waiting for a ferry to get them to the mainland. To make matters worse, it was raining and quite cold, and there was no protection from the elements. With the Island Home out, the 5 o’clock ferry was canceled, and the now snaking line of passengers waited for the next scheduled ferry, a freight boat with limited passenger capacity. As the freight boat started loading passengers, a seeming mob made its way to the front of the line, hoping to get aboard. The boat filled up rather quickly, and a good portion — even though they had waited in the rain, some as long as 45 minutes — didn’t get on board.
The troubles continued Tuesday morning, again during commuter hours, when the 8:15 am ferry to the Island was canceled, with the Island Home still out for a mechanical issue. Again, customers waited outside in the elements, and again many were turned away, with the freight ferry reaching its capacity.
On Tuesday afternoon, two days into the mess, the Steamship brought in a freight boat to take over the larger Island Home routes. Passengers lined up for the freight boat, with many again turned away to wait for the next ferry.
Wednesday morning, the issue persisted, but the Steamship was seemingly saved by the bad weather. Mainland commuters either gave up, or knew they would not get home with high winds expected that afternoon, and the Woods Hole terminal was mostly empty Wednesday morning.
Unfortunately, some of the frustrations of passengers were voiced directly at Steamship staff over the two days. Our reporters noted one instance where a pickup-truck driver debarking at the terminal ramp on Tuesday evening swore at Steamship staff, blaming them for having to wait what he said was six hours to get to the Island. We doubt it was the only instance over the past few days where Steamship staff were sworn at, and the vitriol continues a trend of nastiness against public transportation workers on a national scale.
This frustration is misguided. The marine trades are already having difficulty hiring, and this will only add to the difficulty.
Instead, there is a sense that the Steamship is running without a leader. The current general manager, Bob Davis, announced that he will resign, though he’ll stay on while the Steamship looks for a new general manager; and then he’ll stay on for another year in an advisory capacity.
To make matters worse, another high-up official, Chief Operations Officer Mark Higgins, announced that he will be leaving his post as well.
Something needs to be done, and leadership needs to act now to serve the community.
To be fair, mechanical failures are a part of the beast of operating a ferry service over saltwater.
But we are hopeful that the Steamship board will find some solutions when looking for a new manager. First, let’s look for ways to improve communication with traveling passengers. Rather than forcing everyone to wait outside in freezing rain, there should be a better indication of who will get a ride on the next boat, and who won’t. That could discourage disorder when the passenger ramp opens, and not make Steamship staff take the brunt of frustration.
Or better yet — and there is hope that the new freight vessels on their way to the fleet might help with this — let’s provide boats that will work, and will have seats available.
The traveling public and commuters to the Island deserve better.
