The new berth for the Providence/ Newport High-Speed Ferry isn’t far from the old one – just over a quarter-mile down Allens Avenue, at Conley’s Wharf at Providence Piers. But moving that short distance has made the ferry ride a little shorter and a lot safer, officials say.
The move allows the ferry captains to avoid going through the Fox Point Hurricane Barrier, a narrow passage tricky to navigate during shifting tides, said Keith Marshall, a spokesman for the R.I. Public Transit Authority, which runs the ferry.
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The 24-foot-wide catamaran has made it through safely thousands of times, but not always. In fact, three years ago, the ferry hit the barrier with about 20 people onboard.
No one was injured, but several windows were smashed.
Not wanting to risk the passage anymore, RIPTA began looking for a new Providence port of call, Marshall said, and Providence Piers offered “the best location available just beyond the hurricane barrier.”
The dock came with two more benefits, Marshall added: The trip is now 10 minutes shorter, for a total of about 50 minutes in either direction, and the site has more than 200 free parking spaces, making it easier to find a spot.
Marshall said that although the previous location at the Point Street dock had free parking, there were not always enough spaces to accommodate every rider. RIPTA has also extended the route of its gold line trolley to serve the dock when the ferry is in service.
“The trolley will be there waiting for people once they get off the ferry,” Marshall said.
But will the change affect ridership? In exchange for the new benefits, the move will reduce the ferry’s visibility in Providence, at least to some extent.
RIPTA has fine-tuned the service over the years to minimize the number of trips with few passengers: The original year-round schedule was cut back to six months in 2001, and last year it was cut back to five months, from May 16 to Oct. 16. The impact on the passenger total was relatively small – it dropped from 42,740 to 38,571.
Marshall said it’s too early to tell how the relocation will affect ridership, but he said efforts to redevelop the pier could eventually lead to an increase.
“It was mutually beneficial for them to relocate to our pier,” said Paul Campbell, project coordinator for R.I. State Pier Properties LLC, the entity responsible for a $300 million mixed-use development on 15 acres surrounding the pier.
Campbell said the gold line extension benefits the developer because it will give future residents access to the city, and make it easier to get from downtown to the pier.
Once completed, the development will include 240 residential units, including artist studios scheduled to open next month, he said. There is talk of a floating restaurant in addition to retail stores and a hotel.
All that extra activity is “going to help,” Marshall said. “There’s no way it could possibly hurt.”
David DePetrillo, director of the R.I. Tourism Division, said his department is working with the developer to get American Cruise Lines to add Providence as an embarkation point for its East Coast cruises, which could generate more exposure for the ferry and the pier.
It could increase tourism dollars spent in Rhode Island because people taking the cruise might spend a few nights at hotels in the city before taking off on their cruise, he said.
The 146-capacity ferry operates seven days per week, including holidays. It makes five round trips per day from Sunday through Thursday and six round trips each on Friday and Saturday.
From August to September last year, RIPTA conducted a survey of about 275 people, Marshall said, and about 99 percent said they would ride the ferry again. About 65 percent rated the overall ferry service as excellent and 53 percent rated the ferry schedule as excellent, while 47 percent rated the ferry ticket value as excellent. Cost is $8 each way for adults.
The ferry is operated by New England Fast Ferry and cruises at 30 knots. Originally launched to reduce traffic congestion on Rhode Island roads, RIPTA estimates that just last year, the ferry kept 18,000 vehicles off the roads and saved about 73,000 gallons of gasoline.
RIPTA paid a total of $573,000 to operate the ferry last year, said Karen Mensel, RIPTA’s director of communications. About $420,000 went to New England Fast Ferry and the remaining $153,000 went toward advertising and marketing.
The money comes from a $675,000 federal grant, for which the state provides no matching funds, she said. Any money left over from one year is used for operating costs the next year.
“The subsidy comes nowhere near the cost of operating the ferry,” said Michael Glasfeld, president of New England Fast Ferry, based in Boston.
Even when combined with proceeds from the ticket sales, Glasfeld said the revenue coming in does not cover all operating costs, which include labor, maintenance, gasoline and debt incurred from building the vessel.
“We hope that one day it will,” he said of revenue covering the operating costs. “Sometimes you’ve got to do it for five or six years to get on the map. We’re doing OK.”
