Town of Lyme Seeks Injunction Against Closing the Ferries

Despite a tentative agreement between state unions and the governor that would avert layoffs and broad program cuts, Lyme has filed an injunction to block the state's plan to close two historic ferries.

“We’re not taking any chances,” Lyme First Selectman Ralph Eno had said in a meeting earlier in the week. He also argued that even if the state abandons the closure plan, it could revisit cutting the ferries next year if Malloy’s budget requires revisions. Eno said he doesn’t believe Malloy’s plan to balance the two-year budget with union concessions will work. He called the union deal a “mythological document” that doesn’t have the savings its backers believe and said he thinks the state will again seek to cut the ferry services if it runs short of cash.

The discontinuation of the state's ferries are part of Malloy's broader effort to close a $1.6 billion shortfall in his two-year budget if an agreement can not be reached with the unions. The possibility of the ferries closing down has angered officials, businesses and residents in the towns served by the ferries. They argue the ferries are essential to public safety, because they transport patients across the Connecticut River when local bridges are impassable.  The ferries, they say, are also historcally important and are a significant part of local tourism.

The appeal Lyme filed seeks an immediate stay of Malloy’s layoff notices to the ferries' eight workers.

The town argues Malloy’s plan is illegal under at least two separate state laws, one which mandates that the state maintain a ferry service, the other that requires the state to seek input before altering a scenic highway.

Both ferries are extensions of highways that end at the Connecticut River; Route 148 in Hadlyme and Tryon Street in South Glastonbury, both of which are designated as scenic roads.  Eliminating the ferries would be considered a “substantial change, a major change,” to both scenic roads.

Additionally, state law also requires towns to provide for adequate public safety. The ferries are used by ambulances, for example, when traffic is backed up on local bridges.

There will be a hearing on the injunction request in New Britain Superior Court on Thursday, Aug. 4.