Board explores ways to rescue Hatton Ferry
The Albemarle County Board of Supervisors is exploring ways to save the historic Hatton Ferry, a pole-driven ferry on the James River that is poised to fall victim to Virginia Department of Transportation budget cuts.
The ferry — said to be one of only two pole-driven ferries still in operation in the United States — has existed at its site near Scottsville since the 1870s. VDOT included the ferry in a proposed $44 million package of budget cuts that will be considered this month by the Commonwealth Transpor-tation Board.
On Wednesday, the Albemarle supervisors voted unanimously to send a letter about the Hatton Ferry to John J. “Butch” Davies III, who represents the Charlottesville area on the CTB, a 17-member board that allocates funding for Virginia’s transportation projects.
“We’ve made it through 200 years of floods, storms and high water,” said Supervisor Lindsay G. Dorrier Jr., who represents the Scottsville district. “And now VDOT is just going to cut it off.”
The letter will express the county’s dismay that the historic ferry is on the chopping block and will emphasize the ferry’s value as a tourist destination and cultural asset.
The ferry’s annual operating budget is $21,000, according to VDOT. Often, however, the ferry’s operation costs much less. In 2008, the state spent between $7,000 and $8,000 to run the ferry, as low water levels limited its operation.
Yet keeping the ferry afloat has not been cheap. Over the winter, VDOT spent around $40,000 to rehabilitate the boat. And the transportation agency expects that similarly expensive repairs of the ferry’s cable system and support towers will be needed in the next one or two years.
“[The elimination of the ferry] is unfortunately due to the economic times that we are in,” said Allan D. Sumpter, VDOT’s Charlottesville residency administrator. “As an agency we have to look at every dollar we’re spending. ... Every single dollar is precious at this time.”
If the CTB moves forward with plans to scuttle the Hatton Ferry, the county may try to find a donor in the community who is willing to finance its operation. Alternatively, the county could pick up the tab itself.
The supervisors asked two VDOT officials to investigate how much it would cost to keep the ferry running, even if only on a limited schedule. They also asked VDOT to consider if it would be willing to operate the ferry under a contract funded by Albemarle County or some other entity.
“A number of us would like to see this historic relic continue operating,” board Chairman David Slutzky said.
Yet several board members were clearly reluctant to tap into the county’s reserves to pay for the ferry’s operation. “I’m not committing to spending a nickel on it and neither is VDOT,” Slutzky said. “There isn’t any money.”
Still, the supervisors left the door open to the possibility that they might decide to fund the ferry with county tax dollars if no better option presents itself.
If the CTB approves VDOT’s budget cut plan, the ferry will cease operation June 30.
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Reader Reactions
Since the Ferry runs to Buckingham County, shouldn’t they be in on this conversation? Nowhere have I seen mention of Buckingham County joining us in efforts to preserve the ferry. I would think they benefit from it as well.
The Hatton Ferry is a very miniscule amount of money that is incurred in the grand scheme of things. The proposed budget cut of 2.6 billion dollars to transportation costs would not be greatly affected by this closure. The current steel ferry that is being operated was placed in the James River in 1986. The ferry has been primarily maintenance free other than preventative maintenance such as greasing winches and cables on the ferry, as this unique ferry uses the river current and a pole to move it across the James River. The Hatton Ferry is the only one of its kind in the country to operate on this principle, making it a true example of eco-friendly transportation from a bygone-era. The Hatton Ferry is also the least expensive of the Ferries that are in operation in Virginia. It has an annual budget of $21,000 dollars of which only half was used each year, over the past seven years.
The Hatton Ferry has been in existence since 1870 and was one of 140 ferries that were along the James River in a survey conducted in 1870. The Ferry provides educational value to citizens and a free history lesson to elementary school children that frequent the ferry on field trips. Citizens come from the local, state and foreign communities to learn about some of the rich history that our great state has to offer such as the Hatton Ferry.
The Hatton Ferry just this spring received a new paint job and inspection of the cable system that is in place. This cost was around $35,000 dollars and has allowed the ferry to be in great condition for the next 20-30 years of service. It would not make business sense to spend the money on this maintenance and then remove it out of service. There is no other cost related to maintianing the ferry! There are hundreds of motorized vehicles that use this ferry and thousands of pedestrians that use and frequent the Hatton Ferry. Local businesses and tourism will greatly be affected in the Scottsville and Charlottesville communities if this closure is allowed.
The Hatton Ferry has been maintained by the State of Virginia since 1941 when it purchased the ferry from James B. Tindall. One of the first questions asked by those inquiring about its service is.“How much does it cost?“ and when they find that it is paid through their tax dollars and is free of charge they are happy to receive some benefit directly from the state and the Department of Transportation. It gives people a sense of gratification to have this service.
There has not been enough time allocated to hearing the public and the constituents of the State of Virginia to make such a quick decision.
In the big picture of things, the Hatton Ferry is just a grain of sand on a beach as far as the cost savings to the state is concerned and the benefit far outweighs the cost. This closure will be similar to farmland lost, which once is gone, it is gone forever. We need to preserve this very important landmark, piece of history and invaluable asset.
What the Board needs to consider is finding some decent riverfront property to be used as a park. The resulting tourism would more than pay for this Historic Ferry.
Perhaps they could also work to schedule field trips from other county school systems that involve a history lesson about the Ferry and the old kanawa canal that operated until around the time the ferry started.(where the railroad now runs) The river is historic and relevant in both the revolutionary and civil wars.
I am sure with the existing tubing business there they whould be more than willing to lease (cheaply) picnic area and parking for students since during the school day their is little business.
We need people to be creative. The amount of money needed to meet the budget is 25 cents per person in C-ville and Albemarle.
Of course they could always use the money better refurnishing some administrators office.
The operating costs of the ferry are so small that they may not even amount to a rounding error in the VDOT budget. The real costs are incurred in the off-season when maintenance of the ferry and its ancillary equipment takes place. VDOT is notoriously insensitive to the wishes and needs of residents of the Commonwealth (or at least this part of the Commonwealth), but by cancelling ferry service this early in the season they may be doing ferry riders a favor. They now have more opportunity to find alternative funding for the boat before the high-cost season begins.
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