Port Aransas ‘ferrily’ moving along with $9M vessel

​​​​PORT ARANSAS – Port Aransas will soon acquire a new, larger ferry.

Southwest
Shipyard in Houston will begin the construction of the new $9 million,
28-vehicle ferry for the Texas Department of Transportation ferry
operations in the fall.

Construction should take about two years
and will include design improvements below deck. The overall size,
appearance and deck layout will be nearly identical to the two current
ferries, the Behrens and the Heald.

"The new ferries are necessary
to help us keep up with increased traffic demands and at the same time
replace the older, less efficient, 20-car ferries that cost more to
maintain as they age," Port Aransas ferry operations manager Howard
Gillespie said.

One of the current vessels will be retired when
the new ferry goes into service, maintaining the fleet at eight ferries.
The eventual goal is to have a fleet made up entirely of the larger,
28-vehicle ferries.