Final Days for the Ferries? Employees Given Pink Slips

Will the Connecticut DOT make good on its November 2010 announcement warning of elimination of our historic ferries crossing the Connecticut River?

Yet another sad indication of the possibility of ending that scenic transport happened yesterday, when ferry employees in both Chester-Hadlyme and Rocky Hill received termination notices as of Aug. 25. Possibly the last ferry crossings will occur on or about Aug. 15, according to Chester-Hadlyme ferry Captain John Marshall. 

Founded in 1769, the Hadlyme-Chester ferry and historic landmark currently runs April-November from 7 a.m. to 6:45 p.m. on weekdays.

Area residents on both sides of the river have been fighting that very decision ever since rumors of possible budget cuts that include axing the ferry have circulated -- in the news, via emails, in the rumor mill. There have even been several "Save the Ferry" meetings at the Hadlyme Hall, just shy of a half mile from the ferry slip.

Leif Nilsson, Impressionist paper and head of the Chester Merchant's Association, looked at the bright side: "August 25th is not here yet and I think now the people who have not spoken up will. The fight to save the ferry is not over yet."

Nilsson, a Chester resident and obvious fan of the ferry that has few visible detractors, has as much of a vested interest in keeping the historic and useful ferry running as any other area businessperson.

He continues, “The Hadlyme Hall people have been very vocal about this -- two people from Hadlyme Hall were at our Merchant's meeting yesterday. We really have to look at the economic impact of what will happen if the ferry closes. The Economic Development Commissions (EDCs) were looking into how much of an economic impact the ferries have on the area. If our towns lose revenue from selling things because the ferry's gone, we're losing even more revenue from the sales tax that they just raised from 6% to 6.35%."

Emotions ran high for many, especially local resident Marsha Orzech. She and husband Serge ride the ferry daily, as commuters to their Deep River printing business.

“We’ve gone through this before, again and again, with closing the ferry,” she shakes her head, “This is very disappointing.” 

Orzech also wonders about the wisdom of the governor allocating millions of dollars to advertise Connecticut’s tourism trade on one hand while cutting off a prime tourist attraction with the other. “It doesn’t make sense.”

Humphrey Tyler is on board of directors at the 30-plus-member Hadlyme Public Hall Assoc., spearheaders of the Save the Ferry effort.  Tyler, a very vocal advocate who had much to say about the looming doom for the Chester-Hadlyme ferry, agrees with Nilsson about the silver lining behind these pink slips for the ferry employees.

“The layoff notices, the closing date – this will all galvanize public opinion. As I understand it, there are ten ferry positions between the two ferries, but only eight of them that are currently filled.  So far, eight people have been given termination notices.”

Although the difficulty of balancing budgets is understood in these trying times, Tyler continues, “We’re very disappointed that the governor has decided to take this step and we’re hoping to convince him and his staff that this is not a wise step for either our communities or the state.”

Tyler mentions five compelling reasons for the ferry’s continuation:

1. Tourism and the money it brings to local economies;
2. Emergency vehicle access to Middlesex Hospital;
3. Geographical necessity (as a continuation of Route 148);
4. Commuter need;
5. Historic importance and aesthetic value;

He reiterates the indisputable fact that “The ferry is a very large tourist attraction; a lot of people use the ferry to get to Gillette Castle and a number of tourist attractions on each side of the river, and that tourist trade goes through these towns like Chester and those people stop and spend money at the shops. A lot of merchants rely on money from the tourist traffic.”

Another very important aspect: “Emergency vehicles need to get across the river – the closest emergency room to Hadlyme is Middlesex hospital in Middletown. The EMS vehicles and the ambulance can call the ferry and the captain can make sure that the ferry is on the Hadlyme slip side when the ambulance gets there.”

Thirdly, Chester-Hadlyme ferry service is a continuation of Route 148. “It’s part of the state transportation system; closing the ferry is like closing a mile of any state highway.  So people that use GPS wind up at the ferries; the GPS systems recognize that the ferry is part of the state highway route and people are often (pleasantly) surprised they wind up taking a ferry to continue on Route 148.”

“There is a section of the state transportation law, statute 13a-252, that requires the DOT to operate both ferries (Rocky Hill-Glastonbury & Chester-Hadlyme ferry) and that law has not been repealed. So by closing the ferries, the governor puts the state in the position of violating its own law.”

Finally, Tyler points out that part of the boundary of the Hadlyme Ferry District includes the route of the ferry. “Closing the ferry will be an alteration to the state historic district.”

During the Save the Ferry meeting at Hadlyme Hall on Dec. 16 of last year, public officials Eileen Daily, James Spallone (now Philip Miller) and Marilyn Giuliano attended the meeting and were very responsive to community concerns. “But it’s not their decision, it’s the governor’s decision.”

A last-ditch letter writing campaign to government officials is in the works, along with an emergency Save the Ferry meeting at the Hadlyme Hall in Hadlyme on July 17 at 7 p.m.. The feeling is tense, but history has proven that the end was near time and again. . . but the ferries have survived. Are these times that different? We’ll see.