Steamship Authority responds to concerns over vehicle ‘no-shows’

The ferry's changes are in addition to the resident-only standby revamp announced in June.

A Steamship Authority ferry arrives at Vineyard Haven on Martha's Vineyard coming from Woods Hole in June, 2021. David L. Ryan/Globe Staff

By Kristi Palma

July 25, 2023

The Steamship Authority announced operational changes on Monday due to concerns over “large numbers of no-shows” creating last-minute open but unused vehicle space on its Martha’s Vineyard route.

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“We are developing a better visual representation in our booking system of open vehicle space to help our reservation and terminal staff, and we’re reviewing the space allocations daily and adjusting as needed,” officials posted on social media.

The changes are in addition to a revamp of the ferry’s resident-only standby line, also called the blue line, which were announced in June.

The blue line once allowed a maximum of 15 cars per day on both sides of the Vineyard route before the Authority changed the policy on June 28 to allow a rolling 12 vehicles at any time so that more cars could be accommodated daily. The new policy applies on reservation-only sailing days.

The number of cars on the ferry’s Vineyard route hit historic highs in recent years, according to the Vineyard Gazette, with more than half a million cars carried between Martha’s Vineyard and Woods Hole in both 2021 and 2022.

This year, the ferry carried 48,751 more passengers on its Vineyard route between January and May than it did in 2022 — a 7.3% increase, the paper noted.