ST. CROIX \u2014 A successful man-overboard demonstration has garnered the much anticipated Ferryboat between St. Croix and St. Thomas the green light to begin operation in the territory. The demonstration\u2014which was held on March, 24\u2014was the final test required to ensure that the vessel was in compliance with the Coast Guard\u2019s safety standards. The QE4\u2019s maiden voyage will be on Tuesday, April 4th.<\/p>\n
\u201c[It\u2019s] absolutely wonderful. Couldn\u2019t be happier for everybody that\u2019s been involved with it for this amount of time and the patience of the V.I. community, and Mr. Molser and his crew have been outstanding,\u201d said Jeffery Bisson, vice president of Gold Coast Yachts\u2014builder of the ferryboat\u2014in an interview with The Consortium.<\/p>\n
Although there are a few final items pending, Mr. Bisson says they have the COI in hand and signed by the Coast Guard, with everything projected to be finalized on Monday. He also stated that the ferryboat is currently docked at Salt River, and will move down to the Gallows Bay Port on Monday for permanent birth, where operations will begin on Tuesday. \u201cWebsite is up and running, that\u2019s the date we are pulling the trigger on everything,\u201d said Mr. Bisson.<\/p>\n
A brain child of local businessman Warren Molser, the QE4 has been highly anticipated because of its offer of allowing residents a more affordable alternative for inter-island travel.<\/p>\n
As originally announced, tickets will cost $50 one way. The QE4 will leave St. Croix at 7:00 a.m. and arrive in St. Thomas at 9:00 a.m., then leave St. Thomas at 9:30 a.m. and arrive in St Croix at 11:30 a.m. Its second trip from St. Croix will leave at 1:00 p.m. and arrive in St. Thomas at 3:00 p.m., with the final trip of the day leaving St. Thomas at 3:30 p.m and arriving in St. Croix at 5:30 p.m. It will seat approximately 54 passengers inside, with some outside standing room in the rear of the boat.<\/p>\n