The Woods Hole, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket Steamship Authority announced a modification to its summer ferry schedule in response to what it said were concerns over “crewing levels,” a move that could potentially affect passengers traveling to the islands with their vehicles.
Sean Discoll, communications director for the Steamship Authority, said the changes will result in a single-digit percentage reduction in car spaces available on ferries. Freight shippers, who booked in advance, will be prioritized, and efforts will be made to rebook passenger vehicles close to their original travel dates.
“We will work to find them a space that’s close to their travel dates, if possible, and certainly, they can travel without their vehicles and still get over there,” Driscoll said. “But I mean it is a reality that some of those passenger vehicles may be affected by this.”
Specific figures on affected vehicles are still being determined, he said.
On the Martha’s Vineyard route, the MV Woods Hole will run in place of the MV Governor, and the three trips typically operated by the MV Sankaty on this route will not operate Monday through Friday. For the Nantucket route, the MV Sankaty will run in place of the MV Woods Hole, and the MV Iyanough will run four trips opposed to the five originally scheduled.
The changes will be in place from June 17 through Sept. 5, throughout the summer peak season.
Not enough crew
Peter Jefferey, Steamship Authority Board member from Falmouth, said the Authority does not have enough crew to actually run the originally posted schedule.
“Part of it’s attrition, with retirements, and we’ve also had a very tough time recruiting new people,” he said. “Then it takes a while to bring people up through the pilot and captain ranks.”
Driscoll said two individuals are currently in the process of getting their captain’s license and six who are working on their pilotage certification.
“Those things take time,” Driscoll said. “The Coast Guard also has to certify those positions and there’s a lot of other people who want the Coast Guard to do the same thing, and that’s a process we just don’t have very much control over.”
Industry-wide issue
The issue of staffing shortages has been an industry-wide issue throughout the maritime sector, Driscoll said, not limited to the Steamship Authority alone.
“Google staffing in Washington state ferries or staffing in Alaska state ferries, or staffing at any ferry agency, and you will be seeing the same effects everywhere,” Driscoll said.
Though efforts have been underway to bolster recruitment to the Steamship ranks, Jeffrey said their strategies could use some improvements.
“That’s one thing that I am looking at, and other board members are as well,” he said. “Obviously, it’s not working well enough since we’re unable to meet our posted schedules.”
What does the schedule change accomplish?
The purpose of the schedule changes were to prioritize their primary aim of serving as a vital link between the mainland and the islands, Jeffery said, ensuring essential supplies such as freight, fuel, and food reach the Vineyard and Nantucket.
“I am cautiously optimistic that we will meet that standard,” Jeffery said. “But again, the focus really has been on making sure that we meet those lifeline obligations to the islands.”
Jeffrey said the tight labor market and the struggle to attract and keep workers presents a significant challenge, necessitating a reevaluation of recruitment and retention strategies, underscoring the need for better solutions to support the local workforce. He said the issue is compounded by the high housing costs, which affect all industries on the Cape and Islands.
“Part of it is both a reflection of the growth on the islands, be it good or bad, but the capacity hasn’t necessarily been met with planned growth,” he said. “If you consider the Steamship Authority the highway to the islands, we haven’t regionally planned well for what capacity is needed, or what level is sustainable.”
Walker Armstrong reports on all things Cape and Islands, primarily focusing on courts, transportation and the Joint Base Cape Cod military base. Contact him at WArmstrong@capecodonline.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jd__walker.
The Cape Cod Times is providing this coverage for free as a public service. Please take a moment to support local journalism by subscribing.
This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Steamship Authority has staff shortages, changes schedule. What now?
EMEA Tribune is not involved in this news article, it is taken from our partners and or from the News Agencies. Copyright and Credit go to the News Agencies, email news@emeatribune.com Follow our WhatsApp verified Channel
