Legislation mandating state transportation officials to study the feasibility of a state-operated interisland ferry system cleared its final House vote Tuesday and is headed to conference. ADVERTISING Legislation mandating state transportation officials to study the feasibility of a state-operated interisland
Legislation mandating state transportation officials to study the feasibility of a state-operated interisland ferry system cleared its final House vote Tuesday and is headed to conference.
Senate Bill 2618 would allocate funding to the state Department of Transportation to study whether state-owned systems in Washington and Alaska could be replicated in Hawaii.
The bill also would examine whether a ferry service should be passenger-only or serve vehicles and cargo.
The state Senate passed a resolution last year seeking a similar study, but the measure never saw action.
Hawaii hosted the Superferry, a private venture, from 2007-09, when it was shut down after a judge ruled it unconstitutional to continue without a full environmental review.
