20 SEPTEMBER 2018 • FOGHORN FOGHORNFOCUS: TECHNOLOGY T he U.S. ferry industry carried a reported 118.9 million passengers and 25 million vehicles in the year 2015 according to the 2016 National Census of Ferry Operators. Every two years, pursuant to federal law, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) surveys the nation’s ferry operators to obtain a “Polaroid” of the sector. Currently BTS is contacting ferry operators to participate in the 2018 National Census. The Passenger Vessel Association en- thusiastically supports this effort and urges every ferry operator – whether public or private – to participate. The National Census of Ferry Operators produces the most comprehensive compilation of ferry data, and the Passenger VesselAssociation uses it to advocate at national and state levels for policies that promote ferry transportation. National Ferry Database Shows Industry’s Characteristics By Zackery Reed, PV A Special Projects Manager Why Participation Matters An important use of the collected data is to allocate ferry capital grants under the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) formula program of aid to qualified ferry operators. Thus, any operator who receives annual FHWA capital funding is shortchanging itself if it fails to par- ticipate in the survey or if it reports fewer passengers or vehicles than it carries.Accurate reporting means more financial support under the Federal formula program! The information collected from the census is maintained in a National Ferry Database. It contains informa- tion regarding ferry systems, including routes, vessels, passengers and vehicles carried, funding sources and other in- formation. For all of you tech-savvy individuals out there, you can access (TOP RIGHT) Figure 1 shows the Passenger and Vehicle Boarding Totals by State in 2015.This gives a great visual of the scope of the in- dustry from the past Census, highlighting concentrated areas for both Passengers and Vehicles. (RIGHT) Figure 2 shows the breakdown by segment (passengers, vehicle, freight) that these vessels are carrying according to the Census. JULY 2017 • FOGHORN 37 MEMBERNEWS FLAGSHIP MARINE MARINE 5/3/07 Commercial Marine A/C by Flagship Marine www.flagshipmarine.com Flagship Marine, Inc. sales@flagshipmarine.com Phone: 772-283-1609 Fax: 772-283-4611 Watts: 800-316-6426 Stuart, Florida - USA 30 TON Chiller Variety of Air Handlers including this 12 inch tall 36000 BTU unit Copyright © 2007 Donnelly Advertising & Publishing No expensive proprietary printed circuit boards !!! Lowest Long Term Maintenance Cost in the Industry! 3 TON Self Contained "Since 1995" Lowest Long Term Maintenance Cost in the Industry ! No Expensive proprietary printed circuit boards !! 3 Ton Self Contained 30 Ton Chiller "Since 1995" Variety of Air Handler Units in both chilled water and split systems including this 12" tall 36000 BTU Unit Flagship Marine, Inc www.flagshipmarine.com sales@flagshipmarine.com Phone 772-283-1609 FAX-772-283-4611 800-316-6426 Stuart - FL- USA Commercial Marine HVAC by Flagship Marine NOTES: Interstate segment boardings are assigned to the state of origin. BC and ON are included on the map as there was reported ferry traffic destined to a U.S. ferry terminal from these Canadian provinces. A state’s data is suppressed when all reporting operators in the state chose for their data to not be disclosed to the public. States with no data have no ferry operations. (*) Arizona has 1 ferry operation, which submitted to the NCFO, but did not report boarding counts. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Transportation, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, National Census of Ferry Operators 2016. Appendix A. Table 1. Available at www.bts.gov as of October 2017. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Transportation, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, National Census of Ferry Operators 2016. Appendix A. Table 6. Available at www.bts.gov as of October 2017.