Tagged: NC DOT

The state DOT says Hatteras Inlet remains impassible in some areas as ferries prepare to switch to a busier summer schedule. 

A series of storms clogged the channel between Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands this winter, forcing crews to clear a longer detour.  A dredge has been clearing the original route, but officials say a boat bottomed out during a trial run last week.

"It's hard to say what's causing the changes there," says Jed Dixon, deputy director of the NC Ferry Division.

Governor Pat McCrory wants a new method of funding transportation projects in order to spur economic growth.  He says the way the state has approached transportation projects has not favored areas that need an economic boost.

"We have struggled to keep pace with the needs of our growing areas and to bring jobs to our most economic-challenges areas of this state.  So right now it's time to think differently," McCrory says.

A bi-partisan group of state lawmakers has introduced a bill that would allow for sponsorship of ferry lines along the North Carolina coast.

Last year the state’s seven ferry lines ran a deficit of more than $30 million. The ferry system is consistently in the red, and fuel costs are only making it worse. Leaders have discussed raising fares, but a new bill would avoid that by seeking about $4 million in sponsorship from large corporations. Think the Pepsi-Cola line instead of Hatteras-Ocracoke.