HERTFORD, N.C. — Dozens of dignitaries, business owners and a few guests from Hertford North Carolina went for a spin on one of the new pedestrian ferries launching this summer.
“It's nice to be able to hop on the ferry and go down to Manteo for the day and then come back and not have to drive," said Georgeanne Midgette, who owns stores in Elizabeth City and Hertford. "We’re excited about it.”
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'There's a huge need:' HRT's new ferries almost ready for service
Several boats will operate between Manteo on the Outer Banks and Hertford, Elizabeth City, Columbia and Plymouth on the Inner Banks.
It's very exciting for business owners, especially on the Inner Banks, hoping to lure OBX tourists over to their side of the sound.
“I’m excited about it,” said Hertfold Mayor Ashley Hodges. "It's going to bring all the neighboring areas to be able to come and visit and spend time in our areas and shop with us and bring in revenue. It's going to be amazing for the community. If we don’t have that tourism revenue, then we’re trying to extract that through taxes and other fees, and that for a small town... is a significant burden."
North Carolina State Representative Ed Goodwin has been a champion of the ferry project and fought to get it funded.
Until now, there’s been no easy way to get from one side of the sound to towns on the other side.
Watch related story: HRT's new ferries almost ready for service
“[The ferry will be helpful] if you wanted to get there quicker and not have to worry about a ticket or heavy traffic,” said Goodwin. "The most ticketed highway for speeding in the state of North Carolina is 64 from Columbia to Manteo."
He wanted to make sure when new visitors came to the Inner Banks, they left with a good impression.
“We’re gonna give each one of these five towns $2 million to beautify their pretty little town,” said Goodwin.
Shop owners like Thomas Waller are anticipating a more lucrative summer season this year.
“Once they get on that ferry, they’ll find Hertford in between the other stops and want to venture, and people will see just how charming this joint is,” said Waller.
The cost for the one to two-hour round trip is $25 a person and children under a year old are free.
Once the ferries are open to the public, we’ll follow up to see how tourists like the ferry rides and the new destinations.
