Ferry System Governance: A Review of the Michigan Ferry System and Comparative Analysis of Governance Strategies Nationwide

Ferries play a crucial role in connecting island communities to mainland services. Thereby, ensuring equitable funding to these services is imperative. The Ferry Boat Program (FBP) is the primary federal funding source that allocates funding to ferry operators. Because of constrained financial resources, prudent fiscal governance is necessary to ensure the resiliency of the ferry systems. The primary objectives of this study are (i) to analyze the governance and funding requirements of ferry systems in Michigan, (ii) to conduct a comparative analysis of governance strategies with other state agencies, and (iii) to understand the effects of FBP formulation change under various legislative timeframes. A case study was conducted on four Michigan Islands. The study reveals that engine hours are a crucial metric for projecting funding needs. The nationwide survey highlights that Michigan has a relatively lower state funding per ridership, compared to other states. It is also observed that ferry services for residential islands exhibit inelastic demand, unlike tourism ferries, and budget allocations solely based on ridership volume might be insufficients. Consequently, the FBP formulation adjustment has affected funding competitiveness for operators serving mainly island residents. Overall, this study reveals that ferry governance models vary in their emphasis, from social cohesion to economic prosperity to mobility welfare. The study highlights the need for adaptive and dynamic governance models to account for demographic nuances to ensure equitable services for both residential and tourism-oriented ferry services. The research findings provide valuable resources for policy design concerning ferry system funding and governance.