Ferry ticket prices to and from the United States Virgin Islands will likely increase by $5 beginning on April 1 due to fee increases from the USVI Port Authority, an official said last month.

 

Unlike in this territory, the USVI has no means of taxing passengers separately and levies fees directly on the companies, which include them in ticket prices, USVIPA Executive Director Carlton Dow said.

He added that the funds will be used for dock repairs and to construct a customs station in Red Hook that will eliminate the need for Red Hook-bound travellers to stop first in St. John.

“We have a vast amount of capital projects. Some of the facilities are in considerable disrepair,” Mr. Dow said.

He added that the USVIPA has met three times previously with the four ferry operators that will be affected by the increase. Some of the operators spoke out on the issue at a public meeting held on St. Thomas Friday, he said.

“They’re not surprised because they know it’s been 20 years since they’ve been moved,” he said of the fees.

The specific fees to be increased, he said, include ships’ dues, which since 1994 have remained at 85 cents per passenger. That charge will increase to $2 per passenger. Wharfage per passenger, a $2 fee last increased in 1996, will increase to $6.

In a recent meeting, the USVIPA has met its legal obligations for public consultation about the proposed increase and it can now be implemented, Mr. Dow said.

“We’re scheduled to have them take effect April 1,” he said.

Some of the ferry operators affected said they don’t like having to pass along the fee hike to passengers.

“Who gonna get the blame? It’s gonna be the ferries. When your ticket goes from $55 to $60, people aren’t going to take the time to realise that the money is going to the American government,” Ira Smith of Smith’s Ferry Services said yesterday. “The fact that I don’t like is the fact that we will be expected to collect it.”

He added, though, that he would like to see additional dredging done at the St. Thomas dock and he doubts the increase will dissuade passengers from travelling to the USVI.

James Smith, the president of Native Son Ferry Services, spoke similarly.

“We’re always concerned when there’s an increase, but we can see the reason for it. The docks are in bad shape and need of repair,” he said.

Thin margins

He added that ferry companies operate on thin margins that are affected not just by taxes and fees in the USVI and VI but also by the fluctuating cost of fuel. For many years, ferry operators and USVI residents generally benefitted from reduced fuel prices due to the close proximity to St. Croix’s HOVENSA oil refinery. When the refinery closed in 2012, fuel prices increased by about 10 cents per gallon, he said.

“It did affect us,” Mr. Smith added.

The BVI Ports Authority has also increased its taxes in recent months as a way to generate revenue to fund renovations to docks and passenger facilities. Last year the sea departure tax increased from $5 to $10 for residents and from $5 to $15 for non-residents.

Mr. Smith of Native Son said he hopes that the BVIPA doesn’t follow the USVIPA’s example.

“I’m keeping my fingers crossed that the BVI doesn’t increase its prices for dock access,” he said.

 

This article was originally published in the March 13, 2014 edition of the Beacon.

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