Instructor David Canarie Jr. says the group started out with a short-term project on the topic but spontaneously expanded its scope and decided to take a more in-depth approach.
“Ultimately, the class ran out of time before it came up with a version of the study that was suitable for release/publication--that's why we went with the short piece in the Portland Press Herald,” said Canarie Jr.
“The students were passionate about publishing a longer piece, and part of the educational process was for them to experience how demanding the editing process is and to get a sense of working with deadlines.”
The class released the following comments on challenges facing the ferry service:
Many factors conspired to doom the service. Some of them had been building for years and others--like the recession--were very recent.
One cannot underestimate the impact of significant fluctuations in the exchange rates between the US and Canadian dollars. It's a rather technical issue, but it really matters.
Air service between Maine and Nova Scotia is an important new factor in the competitive landscape for a company seeking to resume ferry service. Query whether a co-marketing arrangement between the airline and ferry (sail one way and fly back the other) could work in the future.
The students felt that given all the business risk factors facing the ferry service it was very important for the next service to have a more dynamic stream of revenue. A revenue stream that is contingent upon passenger fares, alone, is too volatile.
Given that both Maine and Nova Scotia benefit from the ferry service (and given that subsidies may not be feasible in the current economic climate), we thought it was reasonable for the next ferry operator to seek technical assistance and support from both governments in any re-launch of the service. This should be done in the context of comprehensive support plan.
This is a tough, complex, business with a lot challenges. Future efforts to re-start the service need a reasonable and well thought-out business plan that recognizes why the service has failed in the past and also considers "best practices" from other ferry services worldwide.
