The Steamship Authority’s Oak Bluffs terminal is expected to open Wednesday for ferry service, roughly a month after it typically opens for the season.
Any remaining work is scheduled to be completed Monday, according to SSA spokesman Sean Driscoll. The discovery of unsafe pier conditions delayed the opening of the terminal, and stoked fury in some Oak Bluffs officials. Already reeling from a pandemic-suppressed spring, the town was keen to see the return of ferry service, and hopefully a resultant spark of life in its tourist-dependent local economy.
The repair work originally slated for the terminal’s pier called for the replacement of 35 pilings and 315 linear feet of piling caps. That work was judged too extensive to accomplish for a target date of June 22. A reduced project then got underway, whereby 13 pilings would be replaced and 24 feet of piling cap work would be done. The target completion date changed to June 15. In the course of executing that work, Coastal Marine Construction, the contractor for the project, had a piling accident that smashed a railing. No one was injured. Mark Amundsen, the ferry line’s director of marine operations, later noted that a subterranean obstacle stymied the driving of a particular pile to the desired depth, and it would be encased in concrete to compensate. That piling could be seen with a concrete jacket Monday morning.
The reduced work on the pier limits the types of vehicles that can use the terminal. Freight trucks will all be channeled through the Vineyard Haven. Nothing bigger than a pickup truck will be allowed to board or disembark in Oak Bluffs.
Asked why the terminal wasn’t opening Tuesday, Driscoll said Wednesday is when the next watch cycle starts. “Crews work on a three-day cycle, and Wednesday is the start of the cycle,” he said.
Oak Bluffs selectmen chairman Brian Packish said based on reports the town has received, “they’re on track and going to be ready to open.”
Packish, who has been a harsh critic of the Steamship Authority, added that he still remains a bit skeptical. “You have to take their word for it,” he said. “Taking the word of the Steamship Authority is challenging at best these days.”
SSA board chair Jim Malkin said he was pleased boats would run again in and out of Oak Bluffs.
“I’m pleased that things have worked out, and we can run the boats on the established schedule,” he said.