Martha's Vineyard Commission Probes Flaws in New Bedford Fast
Ferry Link

By JULIA WELLS
Gazette Senior Writer

No market study.

No clear market.

The wisdom - or folly - of considering year-round
service and the range of possible impacts on the Vineyard.

These were the central themes last week when members of the
Martha's Vineyard Commission dug into a Steamship Authority
proposal for fast ferry service between the Vineyard and New Bedford, in
the first of two Island meetings on the subject organized by Vineyard
boat line governor Kathryn Roessel.

The second meeting, seeking public opinion and comment, will be held
Sunday at the Katharine Cornell Theatre in Vineyard Haven, from 2 to 5
p.m.

Ms. Roessel told MVC members to keep in mind that the reason the
boat line is considering proposals for a fast ferry "is that the
Steamship Authority has been under a lot of political pressure to help
move some traffic off the Cape. We are also under a lot of pressure from
New Bedford to help them develop their waterfront."

But MVC executive director Mark London said: "You say the
purpose is to take traffic away from Woods Hole and move it to New
Bedford, but how do we know it's not just the opposite? The
question of increasing accessibility to New Bedford with a fast ferry,
does it pull the Island an hour closer to Boston? Presumably the trip
will be faster, but what is the impact of this on the Vineyard?"

"The main thing is that you don't have adequate market
research, and it seems to me very strange to undertake something like
this without market research," said commission member Linda
Sibley.

"The answer to your questions is that nobody really
knows," replied Ms. Roessel.

The comments came during a one-hour meeting of the MVC planning and
economic development subcommittee last Thursday.

Last month SSA senior managers recommended that the boat line give a
long-term license to New England Fast Ferry LLC to operate year-round,
high-speed passenger service between New Bedford and the Vineyard.

New England Fast Ferry, a newly formed consortium based in Falmouth,
is one of two companies that responded to a request for proposals (RFP)
two months ago.

The ferry company is requesting a 12-year license.

Boston Harbor Cruises also submitted a proposal.

The boat line board is not expected to vote on the recommendation
until at least May.

Ms. Roessel described four options now facing the boat line when it
comes to New Bedford ferry service:

* Add no new service.

* Grant a license to New England Fast Ferry to run high-speed
ferries to the Vineyard all year long.

* Grant a license to Boston Harbor Cruises to run one
high-speed passenger ferry to the Vineyard in the summer months.

* Run summer-only SSA high-speed passenger service between New
Bedford and the Vineyard.

Ms. Roessel said in any event the boat line plans to continue
operating the conventional passenger ferry Schamonchi between New
Bedford and the Vineyard.

She described the pros and cons of each option, calling the New
England Fast Ferry and SSA-run service the two best options.

She also said: "Management feels that New England Fast Ferry
could move move 15,000 car equivalents [from Woods Hole to New Bedford],
although nobody knows for sure. And one thing to keep our eye on is how
we know if it's working."

Ms. Roessel admitted that developing a new ferry service has the
potential to bring more tourists to the Vineyard, and also to open up
the day labor market between New Bedford and the Vineyard.

"Is that a pro or a con? Different people say different
things," she said.

Commission members and executive director Mark London questioned the
project closely.

Mr. London said in order to evaluate the impact of the service on
the Vineyard, it is important to know how many people will use it. He
asked for a better explanation of 15,000 "car equivalents."

Ms. Roessel said repeatedly that there are few clear answers.

"Management is projecting that this would remove 15,000 car
equivalents from Woods Hole, but do we actually know that this would
happen? No, we do not actually know," she said.

"How many passengers a year?" Mr. London pressed. Ms.
Roessel thumbed through the management staff summary for the answer:
"150,000 - maybe more, maybe less," she said.

Mrs. Sibley zeroed in on the plan for a long-term license against
the glaring absence of a market study.

"Since there isn't any market research, I am baffled
about why the Steamship Authority is pressing for long-term service.
Given that we don't know what impact it's going to have on
us, let alone the Cape, then you either do adequate research or you do a
short-term experiment, which is really just an expensive kind of market
study," she said.

Ms. Roessel said if the license is approved it will be for less than
12 years, although she did not say how much the term would be shortened.

Mrs. Sibley then quoted from the SSA management analysis which
raised blunt questions about the market potential of the route. She also
questioned the horse sense of running a new service and continuing to
run the Schamonchi.

"You are still running the Schamonchi, which you are already
losing money on; so now you're splitting the market in two. I am
disturbed by the suggestion that there would need to be increased
marketing, but what I read [in the staff summary] is real clear: You are
going to have to market the Schamonchi to attract more passengers and
the other service is going to have to be marketed to attract people. It
simply suggests that the market isn't there and that we are
creating a market. I think you should be looking at the need - and
we don't really know what our capacity is to absorb this. Maybe it
will be fine, but we don't really know," she said.

Ms. Roessel had a question for Mrs. Sibley: "If you were in my
shoes, how would you go about this, what would you do?"

"You might ask the Martha's Vineyard Commission to study
it," the longtime commission member replied.

Ms. Roessel cited the central mission of the boat line, outlined in
its enabling legislation - to provide dependable year-round ferry
service to the two Islands. Mrs. Sibley picked up the theme. She said:
"The enabling legislation says to serve the needs, it
doesn't say to create a need. I think you could use a good market
study," she concluded.

Commission member Linda DeWitt questioned the wisdom of year-round
service. "It doesn't seem like it would be profitable in any
way," she said.

To which Ms. Roessel replied that in a contract with a private
company that may not be of concern: "Why do we care if it
doesn't make any money? It's not our money."

In the end, commission member Deborah Moore urged Ms. Roessel to
develop the plan more fully before she asks the Vineyard community to
take a position.

"You are asking for people's opinion, but unless you are
very clear about what the options are you are going to end up misleading
people," she said.