Progress but no promises after talks on Kingston, Ont. area ferry services

The mayor of the Township of Frontenac Islands and deputy mayor of Loyalist Township both feel that talks with the province are progressing, but there are still no definitive start dates for ferry services to Wolfe and Amherst islands.

The politicians were in London, Ont., this week for the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) conference and had the opportunity to speak with Transportation Minister Caroline Mulroney.

“We received a number of assurances that give us confidence that the (Amherst Islander II) should be in service as soon as possible,” Nathan Townend, deputy mayor of Loyalist Township said Friday.

Judy Greenwood-Speers, mayor of Frontenac Islands, also felt that progress has been made towards getting the Wolfe Islander IV up and running after having the opportunity to raise concerns about the negative impacts of poor ferry service on economic development, tourism, agriculture and health and safety.

“Many of my seniors that have lived their whole life on the island, they should not have to be selling and trying to get an apartment in Kingston because they don’t feel safe,” she said.

“I think we made some headway. We’ve got a long way to go. But at least she has a better understanding and she certainly can’t say that she hasn’t heard about the issues.”

The Wolfe Islander IV has been in Kingston since October of 2021 while construction on the Amherst Islander II was completed all the way back in 2020. While the ferries have been waiting to begin service, residents have had to rely on the old Wolfe Islander III and Frontenac II.

While Greenwood-Speers believes there has been progress, she noted that residents of Wolfe Island have waited long enough.

“We were promised dual ferry service from their own study back in 2011, we’re twelve years into it, we’re still waiting for the dual ferry service,” she said.

1:37 Wolfe Islander IV ferry service deadline pushed back by Ministry of Transportation

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• Wolfe Island Ferry workers union says they aren’t at fault for staffing shortages
• New Wolfe Island ferry will be only boat running when it comes into service
• Loyalist Township gets delegation with Minister of Transportation
• Staffing shortages among issues facing new Wolfe Island, Amherst Island ferries

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She also commented on the possibility of introducing the Wolfe Islander IV and taking the Wolfe Islander III out of service instead of using both ferries.

“They can’t turn around and give us a slower ferry with a longer turn around time, I don’t care if it does carry more cars… that isn’t how we live life.”

A spokesperson with the Ministry of Transportation has previously cited staffing issues and a wait for final approvals from Transport Canada as reasons for the service delays, which Townend also referenced.

“A lot of the challenges that we currently face are with respect to training to meet the higher staffing and qualification regulations that are required by Transport Canada to operate the new vessels,” he said.

Global News has reached out to the MTO for further comment.

with files from Global News’ Fawwaz Muhammad-Yusuf, John Lawless and Ryan Peddigrew.