Be thankful the Fort Morgan Ferry across Mobile Bay to Dauphin Island is only $14. The same company that operates the Dauphin Island Ferry is asking for $30 to shuttle cars across the Bay of St. Louis in Mississippi.
Ferry prices shock some, others say it's just the Cost of convenience
Bay shuttle operation comes with a $30 tab per vehicleMany people see the ferry service across the Bay of St. Louis as an important piece of the recovery puzzle. Others have argued that it will be a waste of money.
The numbers are finally in on the project, and the price tag for the ferry operator breaks down to around $30 per car if the 22-car vessels operate at capacity.
"I think normally you would have a tough time justifying it, but it's just like those bridges costing so much," Southern District Transportation Commissioner Wayne Brown said. "At this time, in these circumstances, those bridges are going to cost more.
"It's just a matter of the circumstances we're caught in: It's going to cost more."
The Mississippi Department of Transportation chose a proposal that will cost about $5 million for the seven-month contract. It's had a maintenance crew working long hours getting the roads for the Henderson Point terminal in shape for a Nov. 1 start.
"They're working daylight to dark," MDOT engineer David Seyfarth said. "We want to make sure we meet that Nov. 1 deadline. I think we will. We'll be done."
MDOT awarded two contracts worth more than $2.3 million last week for dredging, pile driving and materials needed to build the terminals. MDOT crews will build the terminals and roads leading to them. They have been working to repair and clear more than a mile of Old U.S. 90, Third Avenue and other county roads on Henderson Point, and build an access road south of the seawall.
The tab will be completely picked up by the Federal Highway Administration, meaning riders pay nothing in fares. But even if it operates at capacity, the ferry's per-car cost is more than double the fare of the Mobile Bay Ferry, which runs between Fort Morgan and Dauphin Island.