WASHINGTON, DC—Today, Senator Angus King (I-Maine) and Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) announced a $3,600,000 U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Transit Administration (FTA) grant for the Casco Bay Island Transit District (CBITD) to replace an outdated, aging ferry in their fleet with a new, hybrid vessel. The funding, awarded through FTA’s competitive Passenger Ferry Grant Program and supported by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, will replace the Maquoit II, a passenger and freight ferry built in 1994, with a new ferry equipped with a diesel electric hybrid propulsion system. It’s estimated this will eliminate 1,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions annually. 

“Casco Bay Island Transit District’s ferries are an essential transportation artery for both our year-round and seasonal residents. The Maquoit II is without a doubt the workhorse of their fleet, carrying passengers, mail, and other cargo 50 miles a day, 365 days a year to and from Casco Bay’s rural islands. But this vessel is nearly three decades old, and the area is ready for a 21st century, environmentally sound replacement,” said Senator King and Congresswoman Pingree. “With the use of innovative battery-powered propulsion technology, this new vessel will not only dramatically improve passengers’ experience by eliminating exhaust fumes and excessive engine noise and vibrations, it will reduce CO2 emissions, improving the ferry’s environmental impact. We’re thrilled the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded this grant to the Casco Bay Island Transit District. With it, our communities and environment will be better served.”

The Passenger Ferry Grant Program funds capital projects that support existing passenger ferry service, establish new ferry service, and upgrade ferry boats, terminals, and related facilities and equipment. The grants also help transit agencies and ferry companies offset the considerable cost of introducing new, climate-friendly propulsion technologies. Under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, supported in Congress by King and Pingree and signed by President Biden on November 15, 2021, this program will not only continue but will also be complemented by two new passenger ferry competitive grant programs. 

Funding for CBITD was among $45.3 million in grants awarded to projects in 11 states to help buy, repair, and modernize ferry boats and terminals that communities like Maine depend on. Funding through the Passenger Ferry Grant Program included the annually authorized $30 million, plus an additional $8 million appropriated under the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021. Additional funding was available from prior year authorizations for a total amount available of $45.3 million. 

In October 2021, King and Pingree both wrote a letters of support for CBITD’s project to FTA Administrator Nuria Fernandez.