b'Asifthesechallengeswerentenough,thereisalsotheon- dependsonwheretheferryisandwhattheattractionsgoingissueofridership.Whilepassengervesselsprovidea are,hesays.Unfortunately,therearesomanyfactorsscenicandsometimesfasteralternativetobridgesorcon- rightnowthataredrivingpeopleawayfrombuildingnewgestedroads,ridershipcanbehighlyvariable.Ridership passengervessels.GrantmoneyfromtheFederalTransitonU.S.passengervesselscanfluctuatesignificantly,with Administration(FTA),states,andthefederalgovernmentsome routes experiencing peak seasons that are double help,butthesefundsarecomplicatedtouseandarentoreventripletheiroff-seasonridership.Thisseasonality alwaysagoodsolution.makesitdifficultforoperatorstoconsistentlyjustifythehighoperatingcostsassociatedwithrunningaferryservice. InApril,theFTAannouncedanopportunityforop-Additionally,ridershipcanbeheavilyreliantontourism. eratorstoapplyforapproximately$51millionincom-Disruptionsinthetourismindustry,liketheonecausedby petitivegrantsfromthePassengerFerryGrantProgram,theCOVID-19pandemic,havehadadevastatingimpact $49millionfortheLow-NoFerryProgram,andapprox-onferryoperatorsrevenuestreams,coupledwithremote imately$216millionfromtheRuralFerryProgram.Ac-workoptionsformanydailycommuters. cordingtotheFTAwebsite,thisfundingisdesignedtoimproveandexpandferryserviceincommunitiesacrossWhile some reports indicate a trend towards ridership thecountrytohelppeopleconnecttojobsandopportu-resumingpre-pandemiclevels,ZFsDavidSantos,senior nity.Muchofthisgrantmoneyisalsohelpingtodrivesalesmanager,commercial/fastcraftindustrialtechnology conversionsfromdieselenginestoinnovativehybridordivision,questionsthis. electricsystems.Everyone says ridership is returning to pre-pandemic Customerstakeadvantageofthegrantswhentheycan,levels,butImjustnotsureaboutthat.Ithinkitreally butitsnotalwayseasy,Duclosadds.Therequirements11 JULY 2024'