Bay Ferries
Encyclopedia
Bay Ferries Limited, referred to simply as Bay Ferries, is a ferry company operating in eastern Canada and the United States and is headquartered in Charlottetown
, Prince Edward Island
. It is a subsidiary of Northumberland Ferries Limited
(NFL) and a sister company to the defunct Bay Ferries Great Lakes Limited.
Bay Ferries began operations in 1997 upon being awarded the operating licenses for ferry routes in the Bay of Fundy
and Gulf of Maine
which were being discontinued by federal Crown corporation Marine Atlantic
as part of cost-cutting measures.
, and Digby, Nova Scotia
, using the vessel MV Princess of Acadia
.
This ferry service is a continuation of steamship service dating to the 19th century, expanded upon by the Dominion Atlantic Railway
in the early 20th century and subsequently the Canadian Pacific Railway
(CPR). The service originally operated from dockside rail facilities at Long Wharf in Saint John and the current public wharf in Digby.
The current terminals in Saint John and Digby were constructed in 1969 by the federal government under an agreement with Canadian Pacific (CP) and the provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. CP was to build a new ferry, the MV Princess of Acadia (built in 1971), the federal government would construct and own the new ferry terminals, and the provincial governments would construct new roads to link the terminals with the respective highway networks. If CP ever encountered an operating loss, it was agreed that the federal government would take over responsibility for the service.
The service became unprofitable for CP in 1974 and the federal government stepped in, providing an operating subsidy to maintain the service. In 1976, the service (and the vessel Princess of Acadia) were transferred to Canadian National Railway
and in 1977 was grouped under a separate subsidiary CN Marine
. In 1986 this subsidiary was made a separate Crown corporation Marine Atlantic
.
Bay Ferries has continued to operate the year-round service since 1997 using Princess of Acadia which, along with the ferry terminals, is owned by the Government of Canada. Crossing time is approximately 3 hours.
Although the federal government owns the ferry terminals and vessels, the operation of this inter-provincial ferry service is one of the few in Canada which is unsubsidized. On June 30, 2006; Bay Ferries announced plans to discontinue the Princess of Acadia service effective October 31, 2006 citing a 25% decrease in passenger totals since 1998. The announcement met with widespread opposition, with a group of local business owners, concerned citizens and ferry company employees organizing a "Save The Ferry" committee to help save the service. Over 130 jobs would be directly terminated as well as hundreds (possibly thousands) indirectly. The federal government, which still owns the vessel and terminals, as well as the provincial government of Nova Scotia and municipalities on both sides, looked at possible solutions. The Nova Scotia government and Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
offered a combined $6 million to subsidize the service, with additional funding expected from New Brunswick. On October 29, a deal between the federal government and Bay Ferries was reached that will keep the service in operation until at least 2008.
Bay Ferries operated ferry service across the Gulf of Maine from Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
, to Bar Harbor, Maine
, and from Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
, to Portland, Maine
, using a high speed catamaran ferry service using the marketing name "The Cat".
This ferry route was initiated in 1955 by the Government of Canada at the insistence of tourism operators and fish exporters in southwestern Nova Scotia
. Throughout the 19th century and early 20th century, steamship service from Yarmouth to New York City
, Boston
and Portland, Maine
, had been provided by various operators, lastly the Dominion Atlantic Railway
, subsequently Canadian Pacific Railway
. The resurrected service in 1955 saw new ferry terminals constructed in Yarmouth and Bar Harbor and used the newly commissioned ferry MV Bluenose, named after Nova Scotia's famous racing schooner Bluenose
.
The service was operated by Canadian National Railways (later Canadian National Railway) and in 1977 was included in the CN reorganization which created CN Marine
. In 1982 a newer vessel MV Stena Jutlandica was purchased and renamed MV Bluenose (replacing the previous vessel). In 1986 CN Marine became Marine Atlantic
which continued to operate the service, although it was scaled back to a seasonal May–October operation by the mid-1990s. Since the Gulf of Maine service operated to the United States, the vessel was not owned by the Government of Canada and was solely the responsibility of CN and later Marine Atlantic.
Following government-mandated service cutbacks to Marine Atlantic in the mid-1990s, Bay Ferries was formed as a subsidiary of NFL and successfully bid for the right to operate the Yarmouth-Bar Harbor route. Upon taking control of the operation in 1997, Bay Ferries continued to operate the MV Bluenose that year, after which it was sold.
Bay Ferries entered into a purchase agreement in late 1997 with Incat
in Hobart, Australia
, for the Incat 056
, a wave-piercing catamaran ferry operating on the Melbourne-Devonport service by TT-line
) under the brand name "Devil Cat." Upon acquisition of the vessel in 1998, Bay Ferries began using the term "The Cat" for its Yarmouth-Bar Harbor service in logos on the vessel and in Bay Ferries marketing material. "The Cat" is merely the marketing name for the ferry service operated by Bay Ferries, and not the name of the vessel, which remains HSC INCAT 046. The introduction of HSC INCAT 046 to the Gulf of Maine met with great publicity and interest among Canadian and American media as this was the first, and currently the fastest (41 knots), large-capacity high-speed ferry in North America, cutting the trip time between the two ports from six hours on a conventional vessel to less than three hours. In 2002, Incat 046 was sold and the current vessel HSC The Cat replaced it.
The high speed ferry can operate between the ports in 2 hours and 30 minutes, compared with a crossing time of over 6 hours using a conventional ferry vessel. The high-speed service is seasonal and does not operate during the late fall, winter and early spring when severe ocean storms could inhibit crossings, although the conventional vessels were year-round services for many years.
The Government of Canada maintains ownership of the ferry terminals in Yarmouth (through Transport Canada) and Bar Harbor (through Marine Atlantic Inc.) but has leased the management and operating rights to Bay Ferries.
In spring 2005 rival Gulf of Maine ferry operator Scotia Prince Cruises
announced that it was cancelling its Portland, Maine
-Yarmouth service offered by a conventional vessel, M/S Scotia Prince, as a result of toxic mould problems at its ferry terminal in Portland, the old Portland Marine Terminal. The city of Portland was in the process of constructing a replacement ferry terminal, but it assumed that financial difficulties would prevent Scotia Prince Cruises from returning to the Yarmouth service and entered into discussions with Bay Ferries about expanding its Gulf of Maine service to include Portland, in addition to Bar Harbor. An announcement was made in late summer that Bay Ferries would include "The Cat" service to both ports from Yarmouth beginning in 2006 using HSC INCAT 059.
Beginning with the 2006 and continuing into the 2007 operating seasons, the Government of Nova Scotia
provided an annual $1.5 million subsidy to Bay Ferries due to declining passenger revenue and increased fuel expenditures. The subsidy was increased by the provincial government for the 2008 operating season to $6.0 million to account for rising costs and further declines in revenue. It is unknown how much of a subsidy was provided for the 2009 operating season but it is believed to surpass the 2008 amount. The company has received subsidies totaling $18.9 million since the fall of 2007.
On December 18, 2009 Bay Ferries announced that it was ending its Gulf of Maine service from Yarmouth to Bar Harbor and Portland after the Government of Nova Scotia ended the subsidies, resulting in approximately 120 jobs being lost. Bay Ferries had been seeking approximately $6.0 million for the 2010 operating season but the provincial government declined, citing financial difficulty. The disposition of HSC INCAT 059 is unknown.
As of June, 2010, HSC INCAT 059 can often be seen docked at its former terminal in Bar Harbor.
. The Government of Trinidad and Tobago chartered the vessel and a Bay Ferries crew for six months to service the country's ferry route considered a 'sea bridge' between the islands of Trinidad and Tobago.
Under the terms of the charter, the government agreed to pay Bay Ferries US$23,800 per day to ferry persons, goods, and vehicles between the two islands. The HSC INCAT 059 (still using its service trademark "The Cat") was taken from its seasonal layup to the Caribbean before returning to the Gulf of Maine
for its regular six-month summer schedule. During the winter of 2003-2004 HSC INCAT 059 briefly tested a route between Florida
and the Bahamas.
The Government of Trinidad and Tobago has been in the process of trying to purchase a fast ferry to serve the inter-island route all year long. The other vessel used by Bay Ferries in Trinidad and Tobago service during May–October is the HSC INCAT 046, now known as the "Lynx" from New Zealand
and formerly used by Bay Ferries on the Gulf of Maine before the INCAT 059 (See above).
On April 21, 2005 HSC INCAT 059 became an indispensable link between the two islands after a Tobago Express
aircraft had problems with its landing gear over the 'air bridge' route. The entire Tobago Express fleet was grounded for several days pending inspections to the fleet and citizens were left depending fully on the high speed ferry service.
During the 2004-2005 winter season HSC INCAT 059 ferried almost 175,000 passengers and a total of about 25,000 vehicles between the islands.
The Government of Trinidad and Tobago announced that HSC INCAT 059 would return to offer inter-island service in November 2005 until the following May.
The government has since purchased two new Incat fast ferries, the 91m Incat 046 and the 98m T&T Spirit (Incat 060) which are currently managed by Bay Ferries Management Limited
Charlottetown
Charlottetown is a Canadian city. It is both the largest city on and the provincial capital of Prince Edward Island, and the county seat of Queens County. Named after Queen Charlotte, the wife of George III, Charlottetown was first incorporated as a town in 1855 and designated as a city in 1885...
, Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island is a Canadian province consisting of an island of the same name, as well as other islands. The maritime province is the smallest in the nation in both land area and population...
. It is a subsidiary of Northumberland Ferries Limited
Northumberland Ferries Limited
Northumberland Ferries Limited is a ferry company operating in eastern Canada and headquartered in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island...
(NFL) and a sister company to the defunct Bay Ferries Great Lakes Limited.
Bay Ferries began operations in 1997 upon being awarded the operating licenses for ferry routes in the Bay of Fundy
Bay of Fundy
The Bay of Fundy is a bay on the Atlantic coast of North America, on the northeast end of the Gulf of Maine between the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, with a small portion touching the U.S. state of Maine...
and Gulf of Maine
Gulf of Maine
The Gulf of Maine is a large gulf of the Atlantic Ocean on the east coast of North America.It is delineated by Cape Cod at the eastern tip of Massachusetts in the southwest and Cape Sable at the southern tip of Nova Scotia in the northeast. It includes the entire coastlines of the U.S...
which were being discontinued by federal Crown corporation Marine Atlantic
Marine Atlantic
Marine Atlantic Inc. is an independent Canadian Crown corporation offering ferry services between the provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia.Marine Atlantic's corporate headquarters are in St...
as part of cost-cutting measures.
Bay of Fundy
Bay Ferries operates the ferry service across the Bay of Fundy between Saint John, New BrunswickSaint John, New Brunswick
City of Saint John , or commonly Saint John, is the largest city in the province of New Brunswick, and the first incorporated city in Canada. The city is situated along the north shore of the Bay of Fundy at the mouth of the Saint John River. In 2006 the city proper had a population of 74,043...
, and Digby, Nova Scotia
Digby, Nova Scotia
Digby is a Canadian town in western Nova Scotia. It is the shiretown and largest population centre in Digby County.The town is situated on the western shore of the Annapolis Basin near the entrance to the Digby Gut which connects the basin to the Bay of Fundy.Named after Admiral Robert Digby, RN,...
, using the vessel MV Princess of Acadia
MV Princess of Acadia (1971)
MV Princess of Acadia is a passenger and car ferry that travels between Digby, Nova Scotia and Saint John, New Brunswick, crossing the Bay of Fundy. The vessel holds 650 passengers and can take 165 cars....
.
This ferry service is a continuation of steamship service dating to the 19th century, expanded upon by the Dominion Atlantic Railway
Dominion Atlantic Railway
The Dominion Atlantic Railway was a historic Canadian railway which operated in the western part of Nova Scotia, primarily through an agricultural district known as the Annapolis Valley....
in the early 20th century and subsequently the Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
(CPR). The service originally operated from dockside rail facilities at Long Wharf in Saint John and the current public wharf in Digby.
The current terminals in Saint John and Digby were constructed in 1969 by the federal government under an agreement with Canadian Pacific (CP) and the provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. CP was to build a new ferry, the MV Princess of Acadia (built in 1971), the federal government would construct and own the new ferry terminals, and the provincial governments would construct new roads to link the terminals with the respective highway networks. If CP ever encountered an operating loss, it was agreed that the federal government would take over responsibility for the service.
The service became unprofitable for CP in 1974 and the federal government stepped in, providing an operating subsidy to maintain the service. In 1976, the service (and the vessel Princess of Acadia) were transferred to Canadian National Railway
Canadian National Railway
The Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....
and in 1977 was grouped under a separate subsidiary CN Marine
CN Marine
CN Marine was a Canadian ferry company headquartered in Moncton, New Brunswick.-History:CN Marine was created by parent Canadian National Railway in 1977 as a means to group the company's ferry operations in eastern Canada into a separate operating division...
. In 1986 this subsidiary was made a separate Crown corporation Marine Atlantic
Marine Atlantic
Marine Atlantic Inc. is an independent Canadian Crown corporation offering ferry services between the provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia.Marine Atlantic's corporate headquarters are in St...
.
Bay Ferries has continued to operate the year-round service since 1997 using Princess of Acadia which, along with the ferry terminals, is owned by the Government of Canada. Crossing time is approximately 3 hours.
Although the federal government owns the ferry terminals and vessels, the operation of this inter-provincial ferry service is one of the few in Canada which is unsubsidized. On June 30, 2006; Bay Ferries announced plans to discontinue the Princess of Acadia service effective October 31, 2006 citing a 25% decrease in passenger totals since 1998. The announcement met with widespread opposition, with a group of local business owners, concerned citizens and ferry company employees organizing a "Save The Ferry" committee to help save the service. Over 130 jobs would be directly terminated as well as hundreds (possibly thousands) indirectly. The federal government, which still owns the vessel and terminals, as well as the provincial government of Nova Scotia and municipalities on both sides, looked at possible solutions. The Nova Scotia government and Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
The Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency is the Canadian federal government agency responsible for helping to build economic capacity in the Atlantic Provinces by working with the people of the region – in their communities, through their institutions and with their local and provincial governments...
offered a combined $6 million to subsidize the service, with additional funding expected from New Brunswick. On October 29, a deal between the federal government and Bay Ferries was reached that will keep the service in operation until at least 2008.
Gulf of Maine
Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
Yarmouth is a town and fishing port located on the Gulf of Maine in rural southwestern Nova Scotia, Canada. It is the shire town of Yarmouth County. The town is located in the heart of the world's largest lobster fishing grounds and has Canada's highest lobster catch.- History :The townsite may...
, to Bar Harbor, Maine
Bar Harbor, Maine
Bar Harbor is a town on Mount Desert Island in Hancock County, Maine, United States. As of the 2010 census, its population is 5,235. Bar Harbor is a famous summer colony in the Down East region of Maine. It is home to the College of the Atlantic, Jackson Laboratory and Mount Desert Island...
, and from Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
Yarmouth is a town and fishing port located on the Gulf of Maine in rural southwestern Nova Scotia, Canada. It is the shire town of Yarmouth County. The town is located in the heart of the world's largest lobster fishing grounds and has Canada's highest lobster catch.- History :The townsite may...
, to Portland, Maine
Portland, Maine
Portland is the largest city in Maine and is the county seat of Cumberland County. The 2010 city population was 66,194, growing 3 percent since the census of 2000...
, using a high speed catamaran ferry service using the marketing name "The Cat".
This ferry route was initiated in 1955 by the Government of Canada at the insistence of tourism operators and fish exporters in southwestern Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
. Throughout the 19th century and early 20th century, steamship service from Yarmouth to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
and Portland, Maine
Portland, Maine
Portland is the largest city in Maine and is the county seat of Cumberland County. The 2010 city population was 66,194, growing 3 percent since the census of 2000...
, had been provided by various operators, lastly the Dominion Atlantic Railway
Dominion Atlantic Railway
The Dominion Atlantic Railway was a historic Canadian railway which operated in the western part of Nova Scotia, primarily through an agricultural district known as the Annapolis Valley....
, subsequently Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
. The resurrected service in 1955 saw new ferry terminals constructed in Yarmouth and Bar Harbor and used the newly commissioned ferry MV Bluenose, named after Nova Scotia's famous racing schooner Bluenose
Bluenose
Bluenose was a Canadian fishing and racing schooner from Nova Scotia built in 1921. She was later commemorated by a replica Bluenose II built in 1963. A celebrated racing ship and hard-working fishing vessel, Bluenose became a provincial icon for Nova Scotia as well as important Canadian symbol in...
.
The service was operated by Canadian National Railways (later Canadian National Railway) and in 1977 was included in the CN reorganization which created CN Marine
CN Marine
CN Marine was a Canadian ferry company headquartered in Moncton, New Brunswick.-History:CN Marine was created by parent Canadian National Railway in 1977 as a means to group the company's ferry operations in eastern Canada into a separate operating division...
. In 1982 a newer vessel MV Stena Jutlandica was purchased and renamed MV Bluenose (replacing the previous vessel). In 1986 CN Marine became Marine Atlantic
Marine Atlantic
Marine Atlantic Inc. is an independent Canadian Crown corporation offering ferry services between the provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia.Marine Atlantic's corporate headquarters are in St...
which continued to operate the service, although it was scaled back to a seasonal May–October operation by the mid-1990s. Since the Gulf of Maine service operated to the United States, the vessel was not owned by the Government of Canada and was solely the responsibility of CN and later Marine Atlantic.
Following government-mandated service cutbacks to Marine Atlantic in the mid-1990s, Bay Ferries was formed as a subsidiary of NFL and successfully bid for the right to operate the Yarmouth-Bar Harbor route. Upon taking control of the operation in 1997, Bay Ferries continued to operate the MV Bluenose that year, after which it was sold.
Bay Ferries entered into a purchase agreement in late 1997 with Incat
INCAT
INCAT is a part of Tata Technologies Limited, a company in the Tata Group and operates in the field of Automotive Industry providing Engineering and Design solutions. The company took over a much larger player in the field namely INCAT, a Europe based company, in 2005...
in Hobart, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, for the Incat 056
HSC INCAT 046
HSC INCAT 046 is a wave-piercing catamaran passenger-vehicle ferry. It has operated under various marketing names, including Devil Cat, The Cat, The Lynx, and now T&T Express.-Vessel characteristics:...
, a wave-piercing catamaran ferry operating on the Melbourne-Devonport service by TT-line
TT-Line (Australia)
TT-Line Company Pty. Ltd. is a company operating ferries from Tasmania to the mainland of Australia since 1985. The company was separated from the department of Transport Tasmania in 1993, becoming a government business enterprise wholly owned by the Government of Tasmania.- 1985-1992 :TT-Line was...
) under the brand name "Devil Cat." Upon acquisition of the vessel in 1998, Bay Ferries began using the term "The Cat" for its Yarmouth-Bar Harbor service in logos on the vessel and in Bay Ferries marketing material. "The Cat" is merely the marketing name for the ferry service operated by Bay Ferries, and not the name of the vessel, which remains HSC INCAT 046. The introduction of HSC INCAT 046 to the Gulf of Maine met with great publicity and interest among Canadian and American media as this was the first, and currently the fastest (41 knots), large-capacity high-speed ferry in North America, cutting the trip time between the two ports from six hours on a conventional vessel to less than three hours. In 2002, Incat 046 was sold and the current vessel HSC The Cat replaced it.
The high speed ferry can operate between the ports in 2 hours and 30 minutes, compared with a crossing time of over 6 hours using a conventional ferry vessel. The high-speed service is seasonal and does not operate during the late fall, winter and early spring when severe ocean storms could inhibit crossings, although the conventional vessels were year-round services for many years.
The Government of Canada maintains ownership of the ferry terminals in Yarmouth (through Transport Canada) and Bar Harbor (through Marine Atlantic Inc.) but has leased the management and operating rights to Bay Ferries.
In spring 2005 rival Gulf of Maine ferry operator Scotia Prince Cruises
Scotia Prince Cruises
Scotia Prince Cruises was a cruise ferry operator based in Maine which owned and operated the M/S Scotia Prince. This ferry operated across the Gulf of Maine between Portland, Maine, and Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, until the end of the 2004 sailing season....
announced that it was cancelling its Portland, Maine
Portland, Maine
Portland is the largest city in Maine and is the county seat of Cumberland County. The 2010 city population was 66,194, growing 3 percent since the census of 2000...
-Yarmouth service offered by a conventional vessel, M/S Scotia Prince, as a result of toxic mould problems at its ferry terminal in Portland, the old Portland Marine Terminal. The city of Portland was in the process of constructing a replacement ferry terminal, but it assumed that financial difficulties would prevent Scotia Prince Cruises from returning to the Yarmouth service and entered into discussions with Bay Ferries about expanding its Gulf of Maine service to include Portland, in addition to Bar Harbor. An announcement was made in late summer that Bay Ferries would include "The Cat" service to both ports from Yarmouth beginning in 2006 using HSC INCAT 059.
Beginning with the 2006 and continuing into the 2007 operating seasons, the Government of Nova Scotia
Government of Nova Scotia
The Government of Nova Scotia refers to the provincial government of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. Its powers and structure are set out in the Constitution Act, 1867....
provided an annual $1.5 million subsidy to Bay Ferries due to declining passenger revenue and increased fuel expenditures. The subsidy was increased by the provincial government for the 2008 operating season to $6.0 million to account for rising costs and further declines in revenue. It is unknown how much of a subsidy was provided for the 2009 operating season but it is believed to surpass the 2008 amount. The company has received subsidies totaling $18.9 million since the fall of 2007.
On December 18, 2009 Bay Ferries announced that it was ending its Gulf of Maine service from Yarmouth to Bar Harbor and Portland after the Government of Nova Scotia ended the subsidies, resulting in approximately 120 jobs being lost. Bay Ferries had been seeking approximately $6.0 million for the 2010 operating season but the provincial government declined, citing financial difficulty. The disposition of HSC INCAT 059 is unknown.
As of June, 2010, HSC INCAT 059 can often be seen docked at its former terminal in Bar Harbor.
Trinidad and Tobago
Beginning on January 10, 2005, Bay Ferries started operating HSC INCAT 059 under a wet charter to provide a ferry service in the Republic of Trinidad and TobagoTrinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...
. The Government of Trinidad and Tobago chartered the vessel and a Bay Ferries crew for six months to service the country's ferry route considered a 'sea bridge' between the islands of Trinidad and Tobago.
Under the terms of the charter, the government agreed to pay Bay Ferries US$23,800 per day to ferry persons, goods, and vehicles between the two islands. The HSC INCAT 059 (still using its service trademark "The Cat") was taken from its seasonal layup to the Caribbean before returning to the Gulf of Maine
Gulf of Maine
The Gulf of Maine is a large gulf of the Atlantic Ocean on the east coast of North America.It is delineated by Cape Cod at the eastern tip of Massachusetts in the southwest and Cape Sable at the southern tip of Nova Scotia in the northeast. It includes the entire coastlines of the U.S...
for its regular six-month summer schedule. During the winter of 2003-2004 HSC INCAT 059 briefly tested a route between Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
and the Bahamas.
The Government of Trinidad and Tobago has been in the process of trying to purchase a fast ferry to serve the inter-island route all year long. The other vessel used by Bay Ferries in Trinidad and Tobago service during May–October is the HSC INCAT 046, now known as the "Lynx" from New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
and formerly used by Bay Ferries on the Gulf of Maine before the INCAT 059 (See above).
On April 21, 2005 HSC INCAT 059 became an indispensable link between the two islands after a Tobago Express
Tobago Express
Tobago Express was a scheduled passenger airline based in Trinidad and Tobago. It operated as a sister airline of Caribbean Airlines. Caribbean Airlines is now the main airline which operates the essential "air-bridge" between the Crown Point International Airport located in Tobago and Piarco...
aircraft had problems with its landing gear over the 'air bridge' route. The entire Tobago Express fleet was grounded for several days pending inspections to the fleet and citizens were left depending fully on the high speed ferry service.
During the 2004-2005 winter season HSC INCAT 059 ferried almost 175,000 passengers and a total of about 25,000 vehicles between the islands.
The Government of Trinidad and Tobago announced that HSC INCAT 059 would return to offer inter-island service in November 2005 until the following May.
The government has since purchased two new Incat fast ferries, the 91m Incat 046 and the 98m T&T Spirit (Incat 060) which are currently managed by Bay Ferries Management Limited