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The North Carolina Senate passed a state budget proposal that would create tolls for ferries that are currently free. If passed, the tolls would be enacted for the next two years. 

A portion of the 2025 Appropriations Act (S257) would begin charging passengers on all ferry routes which includes the Aurora-Bayview route used primarily by Nutrien employees in Aurora. (The section on ferry tolls begins on page 449.)

Passengers will be charged $1, vehicles less than 20 feet will be charged $3, but vehicles more than 20 feet will be charged $6 on the Aurora-Bayview route. Passengers who utilize ferry routes to get to and from work will be able to purchase a commuter pass for $150 annually. 

A Nutrien spokesperson shared with the Daily News that “a number of employees at Nutrien’s Aurora facility rely on ferry transportation and we are opposed to ferry tolls.” 

In addition to the Aurora-Bayview route, the Cherry Branch-Minnesott, the Currituck-Knotts Island and the Hatteras-Ocracoke routes will be charged if the proposed budget passes in the North Carolina House.

Cherry Branch-Minnesott will charge passengers $1, vehicles less than 20 feet $5, and $10 for vehicles greater than 20 feet. The Currituck-Knotts Island route will have the same ticket prices as Aurora-Bayview; however, the Hatteras-Ocracoke route will charge passengers $1, $20 for vehicles under 20 feet and $40 for vehicles over 20 feet. 

Routes that already charge a fare include: the Ocracoke Express, Cedar Island-Ocracoke, Swan Quarter-Ocracoke and ​Southport-Fort Fisher. 

The Daily News contacted Beaufort County legislators who are working to take out ferry tolls from the state’s budget. Sen. Bob Brinson (R-Beaufort, Craven, Lenoir) with Senators Bobby Hanig and Norman Sanderson proposed amendments that would remove the tolls, but the amendment failed. The budget passed on the third reading on April 17. 

This is not the first time ferry tolls have been proposed in a state budget. They were proposed in 2023. Brinson speculated that the tolls are being proposed again, because money is needed for maintenance and replacement of ferries. He added that the “gross expected revenues of the tolls is $7 million, annually. Given that a ferry is $70 million to $400 million based on size and capabilities, the tolls will not present a substantial effort toward replacements.” 

Brinson and Rep. Keith Kidwell (R-Beaufort, Dare, Hyde, Pamlico) oppose the tolls, because they believe ferry routes should be treated like highways. 

Brinson wrote in an email to the Daily News, “Ferry routes are part of the transportation system. I am told these ferries were put in place because a bridge was too costly. I have never seen a new toll put on an existing highway. This is not a new service so there should not be new tolls. The two ferries in my district (Bayview-Aurora and Cherry Branch-Minnesott) are not ‘tourist’ ferries. They are primarily ferries for working people to get to their jobs. Tolls would be an additional burden on them without much of a choice to avoid the charge. Unlike normal toll roads where there are other route options, driving around the body of water to a bridge is anywhere from an hour to [an hour-and-a-half] additional time. It is my understanding that at one point DOT completed a study concerning the implementation of a ferry toll, and I am still trying to get a copy of the study, but I heard the costs were more than the revenue received.”

Kidwell responded similarly, writing, “The ferries are part of the NC Highway system. Therefore we should not toll the ferries that are used to cross our rivers unless the senators would like to toll the bridges in western NC and pay tolls for the snow plows that they use for 85% of the entire state snow removal budget.” 

On Tuesday, April 29, the budget passed on the first reading in the House. It was then sent to the House committee on Appropriations for review, according to the General Assembly’s website. The bill has not yet been enacted. 

Established in 1966, the Aurora-Bayview ferry route connects Highway 306 across the Pamlico River. This provided workers at mining companies in Aurora a way to travel from their homes on the north side of the river. The route spans 3.5 miles and takes an estimated 30 minutes to cross. According to the North Carolina Department of Transportation, 92% of its passengers are Beaufort County residents. Visitors make up seven percent of the ferry’s passengers and the remaining one percent are seasonal residents. Over 40% of passengers use the ferry to travel to work. 

Data from a 2020 North Carolina Department of Transportation study shows the ferry system generating $17.9 million and $400,000 in state and local tax revenue while employing 120 people. 

“About 800,000 vehicles and 1.8 million passengers, each year, cross the rivers and sounds of Eastern North Carolina, making the ferry system a vital lifeline for those who live and work in the region and an economic necessity for businesses,” according to NCDOT in 2023. “The ferry system also plays a crucial role during coastal emergencies, moving thousands of people out of harm’s way in advance of hurricanes. An emergency route also runs between Stumpy Point and Rodanthe, when N.C. 12 is damaged due to storms and other issues.”