Annapolis committee advances plans for federally funded hybrid ferry pilot amid questions on costs and routes

City staff and community groups on May 14 presented plans to use a Federal Transit Administration (FTA) grant to pilot a diesel-electric passenger ferry connecting downtown Annapolis and waterfront destinations, while committee members pressed for clearer estimates of ongoing operating costs and landing locations.

Director Johnson, speaking for the Department of Recreation and Parks, described the grant as more than a transportation project. "This investment represents much more than transportation," she said, adding that the ferry would expand access to Cars Beach and other waterfront sites and reduce pressure on neighborhood parking.

Why it matters: the grant funds would pay for vessels and terminal improvements that staff and advocates say could expand mobility options for seniors, residents without cars, and visitors, and link the city’s resilience and cultural projects — including restoration work at Cars Beach and interpretive programming developed by community groups.

Details and funding: staff said the FTA award totals about $2.975 million. Presentation slides and staff remarks allocated up to $1.8 million toward up to two vessels, $300,000 for design work, and roughly $1.4 million for renovation and landing improvements after reassigning about $200,000 that had been earmarked for dock charging infrastructure. With the local match recorded as staff time, the program’s total value was described as $3.5 million.

Community perspective: D. Strum, CEO of the Blacks of the Chesapeake Foundation, urged the committee to pursue the ferry as a way to increase equitable access and to connect visitors and residents to cultural sites at Cars Beach. "A hybrid ferry would provide clean, quiet, and modern alternative[s] to increased vehicle traffic," Strum said, adding that the connection would support interpretive and heritage programming for the Black maritime community.

Former officials including Ross Arnett and Gavin Buckley framed the pilot as a small but strategic first step toward a larger multimodal mobility network that could include bikes and a streetcar. Arnett urged the committee to treat the project as a "beta test" and not to forgo the federal funding.

Outstanding questions: committee members focused on three practical issues: - Operating costs: staff said the grant contains no operating subsidy and that the city is pursuing a private operator model; whether the operator or the city would assume ongoing maintenance and operations is to be defined through a forthcoming RFI/RFP process. Director Johnson said maintenance and operating costs will depend on procurement outcomes and that some operators could propose contracts that include maintenance. - Procurement and timing: staff said an updated design-build RFP for vessel propulsion is ready to issue pending mayoral authorization and recommended issuing an RFI to solicit operator business plans; the FTA grant requires encumbering funds by October 12, 2027, so staff said they must move quickly to align RFI/RFP timelines with that deadline. - Landing sites and community concerns: Fifth Street in Eastport was included in the grant application as a potential landing and as a candidate for bulkhead and terminal improvements; staff said the grant can fund improvements at Fifth Street or at alternate sites on Spa Creek and Cars Beach but that using grant money for Fifth Street carries an expectation the landing will be used. Several council members and residents raised parking and neighborhood-access concerns if ferry service operated to Fifth Street.

Procurement path: staff recommended running an RFI to collect operator models and preliminary cost estimates immediately and issuing an RFP for design-build work for the vessel propulsion system. Staff noted that switching from an all-electric to a diesel-hybrid configuration — a change he attributed to federal funding priorities — freed dock charging funds to be redirected to landing improvements.

Next steps: staff will circulate the committee packet and presentation and pursue an RFI to collect operating models and financial proposals; staff also said they will coordinate with county studies to avoid duplication and explore using other grant or foundation funds for supplemental studies. The committee did not take a formal vote on operating arrangements at the meeting.

The committee heard broad public support for moving forward while signaling that more detail is required about ongoing costs, who would operate and maintain vessels, and how landing sites will be chosen and mitigations for neighborhood impacts implemented.