The high-speed CAT ferry is back sailing again between Bar Harbor and Yarmouth, Nova Scotia.
Bay Ferries Ltd., which operates the service, said pre-season reservations are up nearly 30% as compared to last year. As of mid-May, about 17,770 passengers have made reservations, for an increase of roughly 4,000 bookings.
Bay Ferries said the increase is primarily driven by strong interest from Americans wanting to travel to Nova Scotia.
The province’s current contract with Bay Ferries runs through the end of this season in mid-October, but after that, the future of the service is uncertain. Canadians have criticized the $21 million operating subsidy paid by Nova Scotia, but a recent economic analysis concludes the ferry has a positive economic impact on the region.
“Nova Scotia needs every possible option available to bring visitors to our province, and we need predictability and stability of the transportation network,” Darlene Grant Fiander, president of the Tourism Industry Association of Nova Scotia, said in a release.
This story appears through a media partnership with Maine Public.
