Post by ferryfast admin on Dec 17, 2007 15:23:12 GMT -5
Much has yet to happen to get fast ferry running
By AMY PUGSLEY FRASER City Hall Reporter
Tue. Dec 11 - 5:46 AM
It could take nearly three years to get the Bedford fast ferry up and running, says a new city hall report.
But the timeline for the $20-million project could be shortened — or lengthened — depending on the provincial and federal funding necessary to get it afloat.
An information report, written for regional council’s meeting tonight at city hall, outlines that the entire project would take 30 months.
However, that is the actual time it would take to construct the facilities once the project gets underway.
So far, the project has been idling while it waits for funding necessary from the province and the feds. The city is looking for equal shares once it ponies up its own $6.7 million.
Mayor Peter Kelly says council already has some funding in place for the project, through the city’s strategic growth fund.
"We at HRM have already indicated our willingness to go but we do need the other stakeholders to come forward to help get us to where we need to go," he said in an interview Monday.
But getting the consensus of regional council could also be a hurdle.
Mr. Kelly’s new deputy said Monday that he’d be hesitant to approve the expenditure of millions of dollars for a fast ferry when parts of his district don’t even have bus service.
"Until the residents that I represent in the Sambro Loop area, and Harrietsfield-Williamswood, can get regular transit, I will not funnel any money toward a project that may keep those folks from getting service," Stephen Adams (Spryfield-Herring Cove) said Monday.
"Now, we’ve been told that it will not have an impact on any future funding possibilities but I just want to make sure that’s the case."
The project’s costs would include two 250-passenger ferries at $5.5 million apiece, Mill Cove and Halifax ferry terminals and docking facilities at $8 million, and other expenses totalling $1 million.
The report also outlines the possibility that the fast ferry system could be built using a public-private partnership.
The system would be effective in getting more people into the downtown area without clogging up the roads, the mayor said.
"Basically it comes down to a very cost-effective mode of transportation," Mr. Kelly said. "This 250-seat ferry could fit the same number of passengers as five or six buses."
It would also be a time-saver for commuters, he said.
But the mayor says the costs and the project’s timeline could be altered depending on whether the boat is bought or built locally.
"Things could be moving more expeditiously depending upon the final approach taken . . . but all these things are dependent on the funding.
"We’re just trying to plan for the future and be very cognizant of our current status financially and the need to get the province and the feds to evaluate and indicate their support levels and then we’re planning to move it forward."
He’s also quick to point out that the project is not just about servicing Bedford — it’s for many communities, like Purcells Cove, Rockingham, Eastern Passage and Dartmouth.
"With these movements, we’d be able to reduce congestions on the various routing of car movements into the downtown and certainly help provide some options."
( apugsley@herald.ca)