Smooth sailing at last

Superferry reports high loads over holiday weekend, more cargo service

By HARRY EAGAR, Staff Writer
The ferry Alakai has enjoyed calm seas for several weeks, and her owner, Hawaii Superferry, also has enjoyed a peaceful period since getting Alakai back in service.

“The weather has been very good for three weeks,” said President Thomas Fargo on Thursday, and business was good, especially over the Memorial Day weekend.

The 350-foot Alakai still is not making calls at Kauai, but Superferry is trying quietly to engage the community there.

“The very best thing we can do right now is to be a regular, reliable and responsible operator between Maui and Oahu,” Fargo said.

Between storms in court, outside Nawiliwili and Kahului harbors and on the ocean, the first seven months after Alakai’s introduction were rough sailing — on the days when the ferry could sail.

Since coming out of dry-dock to resume service on April 7, the ferry has not missed a day, and between last Friday and Memorial Day, the ferry carried more than 5,500 passengers and 1,500 vehicles.

The company projects more than 21,000 passengers and 5,800 by the end of its first full month of operations.

Much has changed in the four years since a group of New York investors said they would realize a goal that had been enunciated by every governor and Legislature back to the administration of John Waihee: a regular interisland ferry service to provide an alternative and a backup to the state’s dependence on airplanes and barges.

One thing that has changed recently is the price of fuel. The Alakai, which can run as fast as 40 miles an hour, is a thirsty vessel, but Fargo, a retired Navy admiral, says that “shipping has always been a very efficient user of energy.”

Superferry is testing the Alakai at different speeds and in varying conditions to determine the most economical operating speed. “We’re working hard to find the most efficient speed for fuel consumption,” Fargo said in a telephone interview from Honolulu.

Four years ago, Superferry’s investors claimed that they could charge half what airlines did to move a passenger between islands and make money even running half loaded.

Airfares have fallen and risen since, and fuel costs have multiplied. But Fargo said that the Superferry can be profitable even when selling only half its 866 passenger seats.

Right now, because of promotional fares for passenger vehicles, the commercial sector is the better earner. For one thing, commercial customers are paying a fuel adjustment fee that is being waived for passenger vehicles.

“The commercial is looking to be a bigger part than we had anticipated before,” Fargo says. Companies like CFI, Love’s and FedEx are using the ferry.

The collapse of Aloha Airlines drove cargo business to the ferry.

“We are pleased to report a steady increase in passenger and vehicle bookings during the last month, and are happy to see people taking advantage of our service and spending time with their families,” said Fargo, after looking at the Memorial Day bookings.

“With the recent addition of our afternoon service four days a week and our $49 summer passenger fare special, we anticipate passenger loads between Maui and Oahu will continue to increase.”

The $49 fare will be an increase from the promotional rate Superferry adopted when it returned to service April 7, after undergoing lengthy repairs. The promotional fare is $39 for passengers and $55 for passenger vehicles one-way. Beginning June 7, the passenger fare is $49 and a passenger vehicle is $65.

The passenger vehicle fare will also apply to rental vehicles, the company announced Thursday, with agreements with seven rental companies to provide customers with the ability to conveniently drive rental cars on and off the Alakai.

The seven companies that will allow their customers to take rental cars aboard the ferry are Hertz Rent A Car, Dollar/Thrifty Automotive Group, Alamo/National Rent A Car, Avis/Budget Group, U-Haul, Ryder and JN Car & Truck Rental. Contact information can be found at www.Hawaii Superferry.com.

The summer fares will be in effect through Sept. 30 with taxes and fees added. But Superferry will continue to waive the fuel surcharges during the promotional periods.

Seniors (62 and over), children (2 to 12), and retired military promotional fares are available for as low as $39.

There are other hurdles besides fuel costs and marketing to build passenger loads. The Department of Transportation is scheduled to report to 2nd Circuit Judge Joel August on June 6 on traffic flows in and out of Kahului Harbor since the ferry resumed operations.

The Superferry company is not involved in this lawsuit, except as an interested spectator, which concerns inadequacies found in an environmental impact statement for changes made by the state at Kahului Harbor.

The changes were not only to accommodate a ferry but also to adapt to increased flows of interisland container cargo over Pier 2.

As Superferry continues to refine its operations, the Kahului Harbor docking barge still requires a tugboat to hold it against the pier whenever the ferry docks. Surge in the harbor during the winter caused damage to the barge and to Pier 2.

The Harbors Division sought $350,000 to pay for the tug service through the end of this year. That was before the second voyage was begun.

Fargo says the tug continues to be used, although the need for stabilizing the docking barge during the calm summer months is under review.

He says the company and the state are “in dialogues” about who will pay for the tug service. Mike Formby, deputy director of transportation for harbors, could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Fargo, who was named Superferry chief executive officer in April, said he is still studying the flexibility of the system he took over.

Next year, he will have a second vessel for interisland service. It is under construction “on budget and on time” in Alabama.

Fargo commanded a much bigger fleet, the Navy’s Pacific Fleet, until his retirement.

One issue that has tarnished the Superferry’s public image is the accusation that it might strike a humpback whale.

No other merchant vessel is known to have hit a whale in Hawaiian waters, at least for the last several decades. The Navy also operates big, fast ships in island waters.

Fargo said he cannot recall any whale incident involving Navy vessels in Hawaii during his six years in command at Pearl Harbor.

A decision by the state Department of Transportation to waive an environmental assessment for $40 million in harbor improvements to accommodate the Superferry is the basis for ongoing legal challenges to the ferry operations. The Hawaii Supreme Court ruled the department was in error in August last year, just as Superferry was setting up to begin service.

Fargo said one of his goals is to demonstrate that the ferry operation meets every requirement of environmental and maritime laws — and not just the letter of the regulations “but the spirit and intent. We are completely meeting, exceeding them.”

• Harry Eagar can be reached at heagar@mauinews.com.