MV Confederation expected back on N.S.-P.E.I. ferry run as early as Dec. 2
Northumberland Ferries GM says repairs on only vessel are running ahead of schedule
After nearly three months out of service, MV Confederation could begin operating between P.E.I. and Nova Scotia again as early as Dec. 2, as long as final steps go according to plan.
At the monthly Belfast council meeting Wednesday night, Northumberland Ferries Ltd. general manager Jeff Joyce provided an update on repairs to the vessel's bow visor, a type of raiseable door. While MV Confederation is still under repair, Joyce said workers are running ahead of the completion schedule.
He said he can't provide a specific date for the ship's return to service because of the final repairs, tests and inspections that still need to be completed. However, Joyce said he is "quite confident" that the vessel will return to service by Dec. 2.
Joyce also elaborated on an earlier statement that Confederation's Sept. 15 damaging collision with the wharf in Wood Islands, P.E.I., was caused by human error and not a mechanical error as first reported.
He said multiple errors were made at various levels, including his.
"There's a bunch of things all of us could have done better, and certainly that's something that we're learning [from] as much as we can."
Ferry will make 4 round trips a day
Joyce said once the Confederation is back in service, it will do four round trips daily, an increase from the usual three round trips it takes during the month of December.
He said he received permission from Transport Canada to add a trip as a small way to make it up to the community for the "disappointing" ferry season. There have been no crossings at all since September, when the second ship on the route, MV Saaremaa, went down for engine repairs that lasted past its contracted lease time from the Quebec provincial ferry service.
"To all our customers and stakeholders, we do not take this lightly and we're doing our very best to rebuild the trust that NFL has enjoyed for decades and has withered away a little bit over the last couple of seasons here," Joyce said.
Trish Carter, a Belfast councillor who owns a gift shop and runs the local post office in Wood Islands, said she was happy that Joyce offered transparency and accountability during Wednesday's meeting, adding that it's "fantastic news" that there will be four daily round trips once crossings resume.
"It's going to really help with the businesses that rely on trucking and leaving the Island and getting supplies. Having that other ferry run is definitely going to help increase the amount of loads that they can do before winter comes."
While Joyce said there would be no extension to this year's ferry season due to insurance challenges, the company is considering starting the 2025 season earlier. Carter said she is happy about that.
"Our voices are being heard, and that's such a fantastic feeling," she said. "They're actually hearing us, and they're trying to improve the service, including doing later runs."
Fanafjord set to arrive in January
Joyce also updated councillors on the status of MV Fanafjord, which Transport Canada purchased for the Northumberland Strait route earlier this year. It is currently undergoing modernization and sea trials in Norway.
"I will tell you the vessel is looking fantastic," he said. "I think our customers will be very impressed with what [they're] getting."
Joyce said the vessel should leave Norway sometime during the first half of December. The 35-day trip will see it arriving in the Maritimes by roughly the end of January.
Because the Fanafjord has a deeper draft than the Confederation, Wood Islands Harbour will need dredging to let it operate in more types of conditions, which Joyce said won't begin until fall 2025.
As a result, he said there might be restrictions on the number of commercial trucks allowed on the Fanafjord when tides are lower so that the ship can make it in and out of the harbour without running aground.
Carter said she is "frustrated" with that information, as she said it's Transport Canada's responsibility to dredge the area. She said Belfast council will contact Transport Canada to ask them to move up the dredging start date.
With files from Island Morning