Posted on October 22, 2017
The North Carolina Department of Transportation has awarded Bollinger Shipyards of Lockport, LA, a $9.7 million contract for construction of a new river class vehicle ferry for the N.C. Ferry Division.
Due to be delivered by March 1, 2019, the new ferry will be 183 feet long and have room for 38 regular-sized vehicles. It will serve as a replacement for the 22-year-old M/V Thomas A. Baum, a Hatteras-class ferry that carries 26 vehicles.
“This is a great first step in phasing out our smaller boats and replacing them with larger ones,” said Ferry Division Director Harold Thomas. “Eventually it will allow us to increase our capacity with the same number of scheduled trips.”
The project was funded by State Transportation Improvement Project (STIP) money awarded by the Albemarle Rural Planning Organization.
Once built, the new vessel will be the Ferry Division’s first new car ferry since the M/V Sea Level was christened in 2012.
Source: Marine Log
