MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
FOR THE CREATION OF THE MASSACHUSETTS FERRY
TRANSPORTATION COMPACT
WHEREAS, the transportation of people, goods and vehicles by water
via ferries within the Commonwealth is a matter of critical importance to the
Commonwealth’s residents, visitors, and businesses; and
WHEREAS, the Commonwealth’s various ferry transportation systems
are an important part of our statewide transportation system; and
WHEREAS, ferry transportation helps support the tourism industry which
is a major component of the Commonwealth’s economy; and
WHEREAS, ferry transportation service provides the only surface
transportation access for island residents, commuters, tourists, and the
transport of goods and services to and from the islands of Martha’s
Vineyard, Nantucket, Cuttyhunk, and certain Boston Harbor Islands; and
WHEREAS, the Ports of Boston, Fall River, Hingham, Hull, Hyannis,
Lynn, Nantucket, New Bedford, Oak Bluffs, Plymouth, Provincetown,
Quincy, Salem, Vineyard Haven, Winthrop, and Woods Hole are current
and emerging centers of water-based passenger and/or vehicle
transportation in the Commonwealth; and
WHEREAS, the Legislature has created agencies, councils and
independent authorities that are charged with the responsibility to plan,
design, construct, operate, fund, support, and maintain the ferry
transportation infrastructure facilities in the Commonwealth in partnership
with seaport cities, towns, and communities; and
WHEREAS, the effective development and use of water ferry
infrastructure assets and services at the Commonwealth’s ports can reduce
roadway congestion and have a beneficial impact on both air and water
quality and our public health; and
WHEREAS, there is a growing awareness and increased demand for
water transportation services necessitating further investment of public
funds to support the operating and capital expenses for existing and new
ferry services throughout the Commonwealth; and
WHEREAS, by the various municipalities, agencies, and authorities
working together cooperatively respecting each other’s unique role and
market sensibilities, the state's transportation modal agencies, authorities,
and ferry service communities seek to improve the various systems of
water transportation services serving the Commonwealth’s ferry
passengers, including island residents, commuters, tourists, and freight
shippers, in a safe, secure, environmentally sustainable, and efficient
manner;
NOW THEREFORE, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation,
the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Transportation, the Seaport Advisory
Council, the Woods Hole, Martha’s Vineyard, and Nantucket Steamship
Authority, the Massachusetts Port Authority, the Massachusetts Bay
Transportation Authority, the Boston Harbor Association, the Boston Harbor
Island Alliance, the City of Boston, the City of Lynn, the City of New
Bedford, the City of Salem, the Town of Hull, the Town of Winthrop, the
Town of Provincetown, and the Private Ferry Operators’ Group hereby
agree as follows:
Section 1. There is hereby created the Massachusetts Ferry
Transportation Compact, to be chaired by the Secretary of Transportation,
and administratively supported by the Office of Transportation Planning
within the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, and whose
membership shall consist of the signatories hereto as may be expanded as
considered appropriate upon consent of the signatories. The Compact will
work in close coordination with all relevant federal agencies, including but
not limited to, the Federal Highway Administration, the Federal Transit
Administration, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, the United States
Coast Guard, and the Maritime Administration.
Section 2. The Compact’s principal mission shall be to identify a
collectively agreed upon overall vision for the various ferry systems in
Massachusetts which improves the transportation of people, goods and
vehicles by water. The Compact will also develop and collectively agree
upon a series of goals and objectives to support this overall vision which
will be used to identify implementable policies and improvements.
Information needed to support the Compact’s principal mission will be
supplied by the staff of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation’s
Office of Transportation Planning, with the assistance of consultant
services as needed, through the publication of technical reports as
requested by the Compact.
Section 3. The Secretary of Transportation shall conduct regular
meetings of the members of the Compact not less than every three months.
The Compact, with the assistance from staff of the Massachusetts
Department of Transportation’s Office of Transportation Planning, shall
prepare and make available to the public a report summarizing its work not
less than every six months.
Section 4. This Memorandum of Understanding shall take effect
immediately and shall continue in effect until amended, superseded, or
revoked by a subsequent Memorandum or Memoranda with the consent of
the signatories.
On this 20th day of March, 2013, the following persons hereby
acknowledge the institution of the Massachusetts Ferry Transportation
Compact, and pledge the cooperation of themselves and their respective
entities in executing the above elements of this Memorandum of
Understanding:
MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT OF
TRANSPORTATION
MASSACHUSETTS PORT
AUTHORITY
Richard A. Davey, Secretary & CEO
Thomas Glynn, CEO
MEMBERS OF THE GENERAL
COURT
MASSACHUSETTS BAY
TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY
Senator Thomas M. McGee
Beverly A. Scott Ph.D., General Manager
BOSTON HARBOR ASSOCIATION
Representative William M. Straus
SEAPORT ADVISORY COUNCIL
Vivien Li, President
Louis Elisa, Executive Director
CITY OF BOSTON
WOODS HOLE, MARTHA’S
VINEYARD AND NANTUCKET
STEAMSHIP AUTHORITY
Thomas M. Menino, Mayor
CITY OF LYNN
Wayne C. Lamson, General Manager
James M. Cowdell, Executive Director
EDIC/Lynn
CITY OF NEW BEDFORD
Jonathan F. Mitchell, Mayor
PRIVATE FERRY OPERATORS’
REPRESENTATIVE
William Walker, President Boston’s Best
Cruises
CITY OF SALEM
BOSTON HARBOR ISLAND
ALLIANCE
Kimberley Driscoll, Mayor
TOWN OF HULL
Thomas Powers, President
TOWN OF PROVINCETOWN
John Reilly Jr., Chairman Board of
Selectmen
TOWN OF WINTHROP
James M. McKenna, Town Manager
____________________________________
Sharon Lynn, Town Manager