Bay Ferries release:
On October 9, Bay Ferries Limited completed the last scheduled sailing of the 2023 season. The overall traffic carried was 38,399 passengers and 15,348 vehicles. This represents an increase of 2248 passengers over the prior season.
The vessel completed 96 round trips, with 17 weather cancellations, six of which were in the last 30 days of the season. The vessel performed very well from an operational perspective with no mechanical cancellations.
Overall, the 2023 season was significantly impacted by several extreme weather-related events. Nova
Scotia experienced a series of wildfires early in the season followed by dramatic record rainfall and
flooding over the summer along with three major tropical storm events. Weather has a major influence
on discretionary travel and the estimated impact of the significant weather events and wildfires was a loss in the order of 5,000 passengers.
The majority of passengers who travelled on the service were US citizens representing approximately 76% of overall total. Prior to the pandemic, the utilization of this service by US citizens was in the 80-85% range. This is not surprising as Statistics Canada is reporting that overall land border vehicle travel from the United States into Canada for the summer of 2023 is still down 19% from pre-pandemic levels.
Bay Ferries would like to thank our employees and our many partners and stakeholders for their efforts
and support this season, including the Province of Nova Scotia, the Towns of Yarmouth and Bar Harbor, the Municipalities of the Districts of Argyle and Yarmouth, and Nova Scotians from one end of the province to the other.
Please visit our website www.ferries.ca/thecat for updates on the schedule and reservations for our next
season. We look forward to welcoming you aboard The CAT in 2024.