Portland may regain high-speed ferry

PORTLAND – Ferry service between Portland and Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, could resume as early as next spring under a proposal that is being negotiated by city officials and operators of a high-speed ferry service.

If a deal can be worked out, the catamaran ferry known as The Cat could run three days a week beginning in June.

The City Council is expected to discuss the plan at a workshop session on Monday, said Larry Mead, an assistant city manager. If negotiations are successful, a lease agreement for the International Marine Terminal could come before councilors at their Oct. 3 session.

The Australian-built Cat, which is 320 feet long and holds 900 passengers, currently makes twice-daily crossings between Bar Harbor and Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, from mid-May to mid-October. It cruises up to 55 mph and can go from Portland to Yarmouth in roughly five hours.

The Cat would fill a void left by the Scotia Prince, an ocean ferry that for 35 years provided ferry service from Portland to Nova Scotia before abandoning the route last spring and putting the ship up for sale or charter. The Scotia Prince took 11 hours to make the trip.

Tourism and government officials in Maine and Nova Scotia have spent the past six months trying to restore ferry service between the state’s largest city and a key gateway to Atlantic Canada.

The Cat’s owners have repeatedly expressed interest in extending service to Portland. But record prices for diesel fuel and the lateness in trying to market the service for this season halted that effort.

Mark MacDonald, president of Bay Ferries, declined to discuss ongoing negotiations or make predictions about service.

“We’ve been overly optimistic in the past,” he said.

Jeff Monroe, Portland’s transportation director, said it makes sense for Bay Ferries to step back and work out the details. He said he understood the Portland schedule will likely be focused on weekends.

The proposal to begin service three days a week reflects a schedule that would shuttle the Cat between Portland, Yarmouth and Bar Harbor. Sailing between Portland and Yarmouth more than three days a week would require a second ship.

The Cat’s sailing season from Bar Harbor to Yarmouth ends in mid-October. Monroe said the ship is likely to sail in the Caribbean over the winter, and he hopes it can call on Portland on its way south.

“We’d love to have them stop in so everyone could see it,” he said.