At the start of December 2020 shipbuilder Metal Shark announced the successful completion of its four-year run of production development for NYC Ferry, Operated by Hornblower, with the delivery of the final new vessel to be added to the fleet.
Time Traveler is the twelfth 85ft 150-passenger USCG Subchapter “T” NYC Ferry passenger vessel built at Metal Shark’s Franklin, Louisiana shipyard since deliveries to NYC Ferry commenced in April 2017.
In that timeframe Metal Shark’s Franklin yard also produced ten 97ft 350-passenger, USCG Subchapter “K” passenger vessels for the operator, for a total of 22 Metal Shark-built ferries for the NYC Ferry service.
“We are thrilled with the operations and production that the Metal Shark team has been able to deliver for NYC Ferry throughout the past four years by working together through the design process, regulatory changes, hurricanes, pandemics, and more,” said Junior Volpe, director of special projects, Hornblower Group.
“Throughout the process of delivering an astonishing 22 vessels to the NYC Ferry service fleet, Metal Shark has proven to be a valuable partner to Hornblower Group as we continue to deliver a reliable and best-in-service experience for our customers.”
The delivery marks the conclusion of a long and prolific production run. In July 2016, Metal Shark was one of two builders originally selected to build passenger vessels for the new NYC Ferry Service (the other builder, Horizon Shipbuilding in Bayou la Batre, Alabama, was acquired by Metal Shark in 2018).
With less than ten months’ time from project start to the delivery of the first vessel, Metal Shark delivered all six of the ferries on or ahead of schedule between April and June 2017.
NYC Ferry officially launched on 1 May 2017, with Metal Shark-built “Sunset Crossing” given the honors of ferrying the first load of customers on the new service’s inaugural revenue trip.
In September 2017 Metal Shark announced a second order of NYC Ferry vessels under construction. Multiple follow-on orders resulted in the continuous production of 150-passenger and 350-passenger NYC Ferry vessels at Metal Shark Franklin for four straight years.
