N.S. Transportation Minister ‘hopeful’ CAT ferry passenger numbers will increase

Nova Scotia Transportation Minister Geoff MacLellan isn’t concerned that passenger numbers for the CAT ferry are well below target.

Earlier this week, Bay Ferries released numbers for the first few weeks of the 2016 Yarmouth-Maine ferry sailing season. The statistics show the highest number of passengers per day was 307.

READ: Yarmouth ferry passenger numbers well below target

The target number set out by the provincial government was 500 passengers daily. Despite this, MacLellan says the service still has a long way to go to get numbers up and points to the fact the average number of passengers has been steadily climbing.

READ MORE: Ferry deal best one for taxpayers: Bay Ferries responds to critics

“This is about the entire season. I think everyone would anticipate there may have been a slow start, given the realities of rebuilding the market,” he said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "This is about the entire season. I think everyone would anticipate there may have been a slow start, given the realities of rebuilding the market," he said.

MacLellan says he is hopeful that the ferry service will be able to peak with the target number of daily passengers in both August and September.

“The numbers will tell the final tale in October when we’re finished the entire season,” he said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "The numbers will tell the final tale in October when we're finished the entire season," he said.