The newer ferries on State Hwy 361 between Port Aransas and Aransas Pass carry 28 cars and have a bridge over the body of the boat. The 20-car ferries being phased out are distinguished by a central tower rising from the middle of the deck. Photo by Carrie Robertson Meyer/Third Coast Photo
Two new 28-car ferries slated for Port Aransas will soon be under construction. The ferries will replace two of the six 20-car ferries still being used. Another two of the eight-vessel fleet are already the bigger, newer boats.
The announcement means a total of three new ferries are coming to State Hwy 361 as it crosses the Corpus Christi Ship Channel. When the most recent purchases go online, a total of five of the eight ferries will be 28-car boats.
The free ferry service is run by the Texas Department of Transportation seven days a week, 24-hours a day. It connects Mustang Island and Port Aransas with the mainland via Aransas Pass.
Last year TxDOT announced that one new boat was in the works. It is expected to go online in about 14 months.
Recently, the state transportation agency told Port Aransas officials that money had been found to begin building two more. A call for bids will go out this fall and be awarded in January 2017. The vessels should be completed and in the water by Spring 2019.
Rather than adding to the eight-boat fleet, the ferries will replace existing smaller vessels. The three new ferries now in the works will cost around $9.5 million each.
