Legislation to Raise Block Island Ferry Fees Advance at R.I. State House

The Block Island ferry fees could be costing travelers more. Legislation to increase traveler landing fees to and from the island for the first time in nearly four decades is under consideration in the Rhode Island State House.

Two sister proposals in the Rhode Island General Assembly — each with a Senate and House version, comprising a total of four separate bills — would authorize a 50-cent increase in the landing fees charged to passengers ages 12 and older who arrive at Narragansett's Port of Galilee and Block Island's Old Harbor. In essence, this total increase would be approximately $1 per passenger for a round trip to and from the island.

“For every person that steps off the ferry, there is assessed a landing fee to help the municipalities cover expenses that they are responsible for on both sides of that journey, from police details to garbage pickup to area maintenance and things like that,” Sen. Alana DiMario, a Narragansett Democrat and sponsor of the two Senate bills, said at a committee hearing on Tuesday, May 27.

According to a report by The Rhode Island Current, the Senate passed its version of the Narragansett bill on Tuesday, June 3. The House and Senate floors were voting on their respective versions of the bill to increase the fee on Block Island's side on Tuesday, June 10, while the House Committee on Municipal Government and Housing will review the bill to raise the cost at Narragansett's port.

The price of a round-trip ticket for riders aged 12 and older is between $16.60 and $20.60 for the traditional speed ferry, which takes approximately an hour from Galilee. The high-speed ferry takes approximately half an hour and costs $57 with the landing fee. Traditional ferry service runs throughout the year, while the high-speed service operates on a limited time schedule during the off-season months.

At both ports, these prices add a 50-cent surcharge for each passenger arriving by boat, which is collected from private vessels and ferry operators. The latter converts this surcharge into ticket prices. While Narragansett raised its landing fees from 35 cents to 50 cents in 2022, New Shoreham's fee has not changed since 1991.