Last week I described how Haines got short-changed with the Essential Air Service Act in the 1970s as well as biased Juneau northbound ferry scheduling. Our governor is now soliciting public input to reduce the high cost of ferry service. Here is our solution for the Upper Lynn Canal. Base the Aurora and its crew in Haines (similarly to Cordova), build an inexpensive bulkhead/floating ramp system in Berners Bay at the end of the north Juneau highway, thus cutting travel time by half. Using Aurora’s side- or aft-loading capabilities (drive on/drive off), cutting turn-around times by half. Depart Haines at 7 a.m., arrive at north Juneau at 9 a.m., depart Juneau 9:30 a.m., arriving at Haines 11:30 a.m .; layover for three hours then do a second round-trip at 2:30 p.m. Every other day, do a mid-day roundtrip to Skagway. Cutting travel time to Juneau by half would cut travel cost by half and allow for two roundtrips to Juneau per day. Thus, twice as many passengers and vehicles per day could generate twice the revenue. Juneau passengers would purchase tickets at Auke Bay before driving or shuttle busing to Berners Bay. (Huge haul-back potential.) Vending machines could cut staff by two. Operating within the 12-hour limit could cut crew cost by almost half.
Dave Werner