Northumberland Ferries sailings between P.E.I. and Nova Scotia off until at least Friday

Following the unexpected failure of a temporary repair on MV Saaremaa, that ferry has been pulled from service, leaving no boats to serve the route between Nova Scotia and P.E.I. given that MV Confederationis undergoing hull work in Pictou.

There have been problems with two of the four main engines on Saaremaa this summer. A temporary fix was in place on one of them, and more-permanent repairs were being done on the other. In the meantime, the leased ship was running on just three engines.

But the temporary fix failed during the vessel's last run Monday evening, leaving the ferry with just two functioning engines.

"As a result, the vessel has to tie up and we're putting all our efforts into fixing that main engine that was already being repaired," said Jeff Joyce, general manager of Northumberland Ferries.

On Tuesday morning,Northumberland Ferries cancelled all sailings until at least Friday.

Technicians from the company that manufactured the engine were already on board Saaremaawhen the second engine failed, Joyce told Island Morning. The plan is to complete the permanent repairthat was already underway, at which point the vessel will be able to run again.

Later Tuesday, Joyce told CBC News the hope is to have the Saaremaa repaired by Saturday at the earliest. He said NFL hasn't found any ships it can bring in to restore service before then.

"We're quite confident that Saaremaa will be fixed in the short term," he said.

"There aren't any vessels out there in the short term anyway, and there would be a training requirement [for a replacementferry] as well, so it makes sense to bank on Saaremaa getting fixed hopefully this weekend and back in service so we can get our customers to the destinations that they choose."

MV Confederation still out

Meanwhile, the service's other ferry continues to undergo repairsafter a collision with the wharf on Sept. 15.

The collision was caused by a technical problem that affected MV Confederation'sability to brake, and left the bow door or visorof the roll-on roll-off ferry inoperable.

Northumberland Ferries 'quite confident' MV Saaremaa will be fixed and running soon

8 days ago

Duration 1:25

Both MV Confederation and MV Saaremaa are out of service right now, but Northumberland Ferries is not looking for a temporary ferry to take over the route between Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia. NFL's Jeff Joyce says he's 'quite confident' the Saaremaa will be fixed and back in operation soon.

Northumberland Ferries said a week ago that the Confederation would be out of service until at least the end of the month.

Joyce said he is waiting for an update from the shipyard in Pictou about when that repair will be completed. He expects to have a more firm timeline by Fridayor early next week.

"When it ran into the fender in Wood Islands, as you can appreciate, the frames behind the structure where you saw the hole were bent somewhat," saidJoyce.

"The visor actually has to be lifted off the vessel and the repairs will take place ashore. That's the most efficient way to do this, and then the visor will be put back on."

Replacements for replacements

Concerns about the reliability of the service have been growing this summer.

Crossings of the strait by MV Saaremaa have been regularly cancelled due to rough weather.The Saaremaa was built in Norway and is less suited forthe often-choppy waters of the Northumberland Strait.

Northumberland Ferries is leasing Saaremaafrom Quebec as a replacement for MV Holiday Island, whichcaught fire during a crossing in 2022 and had to be scrapped.

Holiday Island was already due for replacement. A new ferry was announced in the 2019 federal budget, but at last report that ferry is still in the design stages. It is not due to be delivered until 2028.

In the meantime, the federal government purchased a ferry from Norway, the MV Fanafjord, to take the place of Saaremaa. That boat was originally supposed to arrivethis year, but it remains in Norway being retrofitted.

There are no plans currently to replace the 31-year-old Confederation.

'Nobody can trust it'

The Saaremaa's breakdown this week is affecting not just travellers to and from the Island, but also the residents and businesses in eastern P.E.I. that rely on traffic from the ferry service.

Trish Carter, who owns the Galla Designsgift shop near the Wood Islands ferry terminal, said her business has been down by about a quarter this year. At least part of the blame for that lies with the ferry service's lack of reliability, she said.

"We've seen it, you know; there's no traffic coming down here, people don't want to take it. Locals that have taken it for years aren't taking it this summer. Nobody can trust it, and it's discouraging," she said.

"I feel bad, too, for Northumberland Ferries because they are really trying to continually plug holes on a sinking ship. They have old ferries, they have old infrastructure, and the government is not stepping up to help them, they are not bringing in the ferries that have been promised for years."

Joyce said Northumberland Ferries has heard the concerns and empathizes with both travellers and the surrounding community.

"I fully appreciate our customers are scratching their heads wondering if Northumberland can actually sail vessels back and forth. And it's been a series of unfortunate events here," he said. "We want to regain the public trust here. We aim to get Saaremaa back on route as soon as possible."

CBC News has made multipleinterview requests throughTransport Canada to speak to the federal transport ministerabout the future of the ferry service this month, but the minister has not been made available.