NORTH KINGSTOWN – Rhode Island Fast Ferry Inc. can continue offerings its passenger service from Quonset Point to Block Island, an R.I. Superior Court judge ruled, potentially ending a decadelong dispute.
The ruling, decided by Judge Sarah Taft-Carter on April 11, upheld several previous court decisions, which had been challenged by the town of New Shoreham and Interstate Navigation Co. ferry service.
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Rhode Island Fast Ferry initially filed the petition to operate the seasonal service in July 2013 but was met with opposition from New Shoreham, which claimed that the ferry company did not have the capability to construct a dock in the town’s Old Harbor in the near future.
Fast Ferry said it had already partnered with another company, Bluewater LLC, which would construct the dock for them.
Opponents of the service also said that the existing Interstate ferry service, which provides transportation from Point Judith in Narragansett to Block Island, already provided adequate access to Block Island, and that the additional ferry service would overload the community with tourists. A rival ferry service would also place financial strain on Interstate and force rate increases, layoffs and reduced services, the petitioners argued.
In her decision, court documents show, Taft-Carter ruled that Fast Ferry CEO Charles A. Donadio had demonstrated a sufficient docking plan for the service, and that Interstate did not meet requirements for the right to intervene in the project.
Taft-Carter also agreed with the R.I. Division of Public Utilities and Carriers’ assessment that the Fast Ferry’s impact on Interstate services should not prohibit the additional service.
“The Division did not ignore the probable impact to Interstate’s existing services; it simply did not agree with the extent and severity of the impact as argued by Interstate,” Taft-Carter wrote in her decision. “The Court will not disturb the Division’s determinations as to weight and credibility on this topic.”
New Shoreham and Interstate still have the option to appeal the decision.
James M. Callaghan, an attorney representing New Shoreham, said the Town Council “is in the process of reviewing the decision and weighing its options going forward.”
Donadio could not be reached for comment on Friday.
(Update: Adds comment from attorney James M. Callaghan in the 10th paragraph.)
Jacquelyn Voghel is a PBN staff writer. You may reach her at Voghel@PBN.com.
More competition leads to higher prices?
Do they really think we’re that stupid?
Start the Fast Ferry Service ASAP!