RutlandHerald.com - We Are Vermont

States hope to keep ferry open

Bridge traffic looking for alternatives

As the working week ended Friday, state officials were not sure if one of the ferries carrying commuters across Lake Champlain would reopen Monday.

Due to the closure of the Champlain Bridge, the ferry from Shoreham to Fort Ticonderoga, N.Y., has already stayed open past when it normally closes for the season. The ferry's Web site said they expected to close Sunday, though state officials hope to find a way to keep it open.

"We talk every day and we are making progress," Vermont Agency of Transportation spokesman John Zicconi said. "I'm very encouraged that, come Monday, he will still be open. Having said that, we don't have a deal inked yet."

Calls to the ferry's office were not returned Friday.

Zicconi said the ferry, which runs along an underwater cable, normally ends service for the season in October, and that owner Michael Matot has valid concerns about continuing to operate. He said moving parts in the equipment could have problems from the cold well before the lake freezes and that the ferry is not remotely equipped to break ice.

"We have to make sure he's outfitted for the winter and can recover those costs." Zicconi said. "We have to make sure he's comfortable and has what he needs."

Zicconi said he could not go into more detail about the negotiations.

Unless the winter is especially mild, Zicconi said the state expects the channel will close at some point, but wants to keep the ferry running as long as possible. Zicconi said usership at the ferry fluctuates around 750 to 800 cars a day and that with carpooling it could easily be carrying more than 1,000 people daily.

"If that disappears, all those people need to be rerouted," Addison County Chamber of Commerce spokeswoman Sue Hoxie said.

Hoxie said the chamber and area transportation organizations were scrambling to put together contingency plans.

"It will be (ready) by Monday," she said. "It's not ready now. There's a lot of issues with moving drivers around and equipment … . There are a lot of moving parts that are going to get put in place in the next two days."

Meanwhile, New York and Vermont officials are still looking at options for a temporary bridge. Officials already found a potential site at Chipman's Point unsuitable and announced Friday that conditions looked more favorable near the existing bridge than a site near the hamlet of Crown Point, N.Y.

The state is also looking to set up a temporary ferry near the existing bridge, and officials said the ferry would not conflict with a temporary bridge.

"This is just an exploration at this point, no 'can be' or 'will be,'" Zicconi said. "This is the art of the possible. We're already going to have vehicular access to the water at both points. We're already doing work that's going to involve permits at both points."

That, and features making the spot suitable for a ferry, could also make it suitable for a bridge, Zicconi said.

Once they find a spot, the states will still need to weigh factors like cost and time. Zicconi said starting work on a temporary bridge that would not be finished much before the new one might not make sense.

"Our first and foremost and quickest thing to get people across the lake is a new ferry service," Zicconi said.

gordon.dritschilo@rutland herald.com