Metal Shark Completes New Passenger Ferries For New Orleans Regional Transit Authority
Nov 28, 2018 12:20PM ● By Camille Mosley
Jeanerette, LA – Shipbuilder Metal Shark announce that both new 105-foot, 150-passenger, high-speed aluminum catamaran passenger ferries constructed for the New Orleans Regional Transit Authority (RTA) have been completed and are ready to enter service.
The first of the two new ferries was completed earlier this year and delivered to New Orleans. The second vessel is 100% complete at Metal Shark’s Franklin, Louisiana shipyard where it successfully passed U.S. Coast Guard inspections at the beginning of October and is ready for delivery to New Orleans at RTA’s discretion.
The new passenger ferries, RTA 1 and RTA 2, will replace the decades-old ferries currently operated in New Orleans and will usher in entirely new standards of comfort, safety, reliability, and efficiency.
“In the past 18 months, we have delivered over fourteen 150-passenger and 350-passenger ferries to New York, Washington, DC, and now, New Orleans,” said Metal Shark CEO Chris Allard. “As a local Louisiana company, it has been an honor to build these modern, comfortable new vessels for the people of New Orleans and visitors from around the world.”
Metal Shark is a diversified shipbuilder specializing in the design and efficient high-quality construction of welded aluminum and steel vessels from 16’ to over 300’ for defense, law enforcement, and commercial operators. Key customers include the United States Coast Guard, Navy, Air Force, Army, foreign militaries, law enforcement agencies, fire departments, passenger vessel operators, pilot associations, towboat operators, and other clients worldwide. With three fully self-contained shipbuilding facilities in Alabama and Louisiana spanning over 75 total acres, Metal Shark’s 500+ employees produce over 200 vessels per year with a proud and proven track record of high quality, on-time deliveries.
