In 2008, twenty-two visitors from the States came to spend anywhere from 48 hrs to 2 weeks at our home in SW Nova Scotia. Almost all of them came back again the next year and all planned to make Nova Scotia a regular destination. Visits to shops, restaurants, museums, etc, not to mention the extra groceries, were all contributing to the economy. In 2012, we had 4 visitors. That dramatic drop in visitors is directly attributable to the lack of a convenient ferry from Maine. When and if a ferry returns, our guests will return. Multiply that by all the homes owned by seasonal residents and the economic impact is crystal clear. No tourists--no tourist income.

My wife and I have owned 6 acres with a small cottage in Salmon River, Digby County for 37 years. We are now forced to sell, due to absence of ferry service. We live in Waterford, CT. We usually spend most of August at this seasonal NS residence and have spent many US dollars during our stay. It is sad commentary to see no Stateside ferry service into Yarmouth.

I have not been personally affected by the loss of the service, but want to supplement some points already made here: (1) The Digby-Saint John run has its merits, but it cannot replace the Yarmouth-New England service for getting Americans to Nova Scotia. It's too long a drive to Saint John. (2) There's talk of a Boston-Halifax run. Take a look at the map and you'll see why Yarmouth makes sense as a terminus: It's the closest point to New England for people who want to get here quickly. And anyone prone to sea sickness will never make a return run on a Halifax-Boston trip. (3) Flying? Flights from Yarmouth to New England make some sense, but the Maritimes are a low-volume destination, and cheap air tickets ain't gonna happen. As fuel prices rise, in fact, travel by air is just gonna get pricier. (4) A propos rising fuel prices: Conventional boat tends to use less fuel per kilometer-ton than any other form of transportation. (5) As a touristic destination, the five southwestern counties have an enormous amount to offer in terms of history and scenic and cultural diversity, and our geographic isolation makes us all the more interesting. (6) As others have said, we are competely mystified by the lack of interest shown by upper-level goernments in reviving this run, particularly in light of the dubious ventures they do support. We conclude that we don't matter.

We've been going back to NS from Illinois for the past 15 years. It's a leisurely drive for us with an overnight in Auburn, NY and a couple of days in Bar Harbor, ME. The Cat was next door to the Sun Spree Resort. Now we have to drive on to St. John and catch the ferry to Digby before making the final trek to our destination in Lockeport. Sure do miss the Cat and the driving time it saved us.

Our business has suffered greatly since the cancellation of the ferry (ferries) between Yarmouth & New England & I am at a loss to understand the reasoning behind the NDP’s decision not to help with this vital access that serves not just the Yarmouth area but the whole province. They should also be lobbying the Federal government for support on our behalf. This loss of revenue creates a domino effect on all business’s not just tourism. An overnight ferry service that serves both tourism & freight could & would help restore some of the economic downturn in Yarmouth Co & beyond. We are not asking for the government to pay all costs , all other ferry services within the province have some amount of funding, why not this one, which is a very important link to the US & beyond. I have had many calls from the US wanting to know “How do we get to you, now there are no ferries directly from the US, “When given alternatives complain that the extra drive or flights are not acceptable, due to time & extra costs that would be incurred. I am very annoyed & frustrated over this issue.

We Live in Montreal and have traveled to Yarmouth every year for the last 45 years by going through the states to Bar Harbor and then taking the ferry to Yarmouth. Now we have to go all the way around on land or to St john NB to get to Yarmouth. I think it is obserred Not to have ferry to that area, and completely inacceptable.

We drive from Florida to Shelburne, NS every summer to spend time in our cottage. Without ferry service from Portland, ME to Yarmouth, NS, we add two additional days of travel to our trip, each way. Upon arrival in Shelburne last summer, we were too exhausted to drive anywhere else in the Province. We stayed at the cottage and did not invigorate the local economy has we have done in past years. Dropping ferry service was "penny wise and pound foolish". We support bringing the ferry back!

The McHale family held a reunion in London, Ontario in July of 1993. 126 descendants registered. At that time it was agreed by the organizing committee that the next reunion would be in 2013. Since relatively few family members still reside in London, plans were for the reunion to move to White Point Beach since transportation links from the US and Canada were close to that community. Early registration was approaching 250 family members from all over the world. The loss of scheduled flights to Yarmouth didn't change the plan but when the committee found out, last year, that there was no ferry connection to the US they made a decision _ to return to London.

I live and work in the Boston area and, along with my family, I've been traveling back and forth to SW Nova all my life. Fulfilling a dream, I built a home in Meteghan and have been counting the days until I can retire there. What was once a vibrant area with the bustle of vacationers year-round has become overshadowed by the specter of gloom and doom with the loss of the ferry and subsequent related businesses. SW Nova will perish a slow painful death without a link to the US. Visitors bring not only money but energy and ideas, and they go back and spread the word. There are many many out-of-province home owners in NS who have contributed to the tax base for many years. If all these seasonal homes are being put on the market, who will step in to full the tax void? There is NO marketing from NS Tourism in the Boston media this year, so don't look for vacationers. Please bring back a link to the US.

I've been in the real estate industry in Yarmouth for about five years now. When I first got into the business, our U.S. market was drying up because of the housing crisis that was just beginning to happen there. Many properties in this area are owned by Americans who bought them as an investment or who had long term plans to move here. Even though that area of the market was gone, and was beyond our control, we could still depend on our American cousins and friends who visited us every summer for anything from two weeks to three months. During that time, of course, they spent their money on all the basic items that we all do and as well, spent on upgrades to the properties they owned here, not to mention property taxes, insurance, etc. Now, with the ferry gone, I've had several Americans approach me to sell their property here in Yarmouth. The long two-day drive around through the New England states, through New Brunswick and then all the way south through Nova Scotia back to Yarmouth is just too much and has taken its toll. They are selling their properties, many at a loss because of the state of the economy in Yarmouth, and are never coming back. There is nothing much else that I can say. Yarmouth is but a shadow of what it once was when the ferry was running. There was a time when you could walk down Main Street and see more U.S. car plates that N.S. car plates. There were no vacant store fronts. All service industries benefited from the ferry, if not in Yarmouth, then somewhere down the road when they stopped to eat, or for gas, or to stay overnight, or to visit our areas of natural beauty, or dozens of other things they could spend their money on. It's all gone now. It's very sad indeed.

All of Nova Scotia has been negatively impacted by the closure of this service. I have two perspectives. I am a Realtor serving rural Cape Breton and I operate a business in Cape Breton Highlands National Park on Ingonish Beach in the summertime. Both my businesses have taken a big hit since the Ferry stopped operating. Tourism numbers have been in a continual decline since and the public policy response has been akin to re-arranging the Deck Chairs of the Titanic. I suppose decision makers would all be "On Board" if the plans included a Ferry link to Halifax. I've seen a big impact on CB real estate. There has been a long tradition of Americans buying NS properties. Now that it is that much harder to get here, they have generally disappeared as Buyers and abandoning us as tourists. The big loss is that many bought homes and developed vacant land, which provided a greater net gain for the economy and our dying communities. Also those Americans who purchased homes here over decades must feel somewhat ripped-off given the extra distances that now must be travelled to get here. I am seeing a marked decline in American visitors, particularly those summer residents that used to be more regular. They now come less frequent and stay for shorter periods. In closing, the Nova Scotia Association of Realtors recognizes the importance of this service to the economic well being of Nova Scotia. I believe the economic impact to this province of the closure of this service far exceeds the estimates being used. It is conceivable that hundreds of Americans have been turned-off buying property in NS because of the absence of this important Link--consider the opportunity losses here. Lastly, wouldn't it make good business sense and be worth many millions for the Province of Nova Scotia to have its own Entry Point into the largest population base in North America, let alone the World's largest economy? Bob Doucette Realtor Century 21 Bayside Real Estate Inc

I moved to Yarmouth from Massachusetts as a kid. We used to take the ferry back to visit family and family members used the ferry to come visit us. It was an integral part of keeping our family ties even though we lived in another country. I am sure there are still families like us in both countries who need the ferry to stay connected. I moved back to Massachusetts in 1981. I, and other family members, used the ferry to go back to Yarmouth to visit. I consider Yarmouth my home town and love going "home" for a visit. I was looking at visiting this summer. I have friends here who have never been to Nova Scotia and I was looking forward to showing off how beautiful it is and how friendly the people are. Without a ferry, we can't do that. We don't want to drive around because that would take a huge chunk of time out of our vacation. Please consider reinstating the ferry service. I want to be able to come home soon.

We at novi boat brokers had a good thing going with the ferry . When the ferry would come in we would go hang around the terminal and most days a passenger was coming to nova scotia looking to buy a used boat . It generated a boat sale for us plus made work for our local boat shops . We need the ferry back.

I am a Realtor in Halifax N.S. and recently( April 2012) had a request from a friend client in Sask.to be shown some propertys for sale on the South Shore of N.S. for a retirement home.I went down to the Shelburne area with my clients and was surprised at the number of properties for sale and the length of time that they were on the market with no buyers.I have in the last 6 mo.been to Yarmouth N.S. and see a great change in both the attitude of the people and their bleak outlook for the future something that I have not seen before after traveling to this area for over 25 years. I feel that a great injustice has been done the people of Nova Scotia by the loss of this important International connection. and has affected not just Nova Scotia but all the Atlantic Provinces in the Tourism industry.

Since the discontinuation of the Yarmouth ferry service in 2010, I have seen fewer visitors, and consequently my sales have declined by 40% in 2010 and 60% + in 2011, during the peak tourist season from May 15 to Labour Day Weekend. Nova Scotia is a peninsula, and I do not understand why a government would deprive its business community and visitors, by closing one of the four entrances that tourists can access our beautiful province. In essence Nova Scotia has lost many thousands of visitors, visitors who spend new monies that circulate throughout the provincial economy. The town of Yarmouth is dying, as well as the surrounding areas. History will remember this government as narrow-minded, by giving priority to its capital city, and ignoring the rest of the province at its expense. Claude Chaloux Art et Minéraux (art gallery) Anse-des-Belliveau / Belliveau Cove

Its so very sad to drive down our Yarmouth streets and see all the real estate for sale signs. Our elderly that just want to live in maintainence free homes.Our young people ,familys that have to split up because partners have to go elsewhere to work ,waiting for their home to sell. We know that our homes are not going to sell,not in the near future thats for sure. The fact remains there are no jobs here so we have to hold on our real estate and pay our property tax, a tax that will not be lowered to accomondate our new sad desperate times. We are told that these conditions were not a direct impact from the loss of our ferry ,but ,thats when the downward economic spiral began for Yarmouth.

I am a small business owner in Glace Bay, NS . While not affected by the service as a local business, we in Cape Breton are very familiar with the impact of such governmenrt decisions. I personally used the service the last 8 years it was operating. Myself and between two or ten business associates travel New England and eastern Canada by motorcycle every June. We always used the service one way or the other. We have not travelled to that part of the province since the service stopped. We miss it and I am sure everyone in the area would appreciate any money we would spend along the way. All the best.

I am a 71 year old USA citizen, who foolishly built a lovely a Nova Scotia summer home (Shelburne 2005 ). I LOVE my place, but access without a ferry from the USA has become intolerable. I cancelled a very expensive planned wharf project last year ( I won't spend many thousands more on a rapidly sinking real estate value ) I shall list my place for sale in 2013, expecting to take a substantial loss. I can certainly appreciate your plight as well. If you go to the Claussen Walters real estate website, you will note that they have THREE of the beautiful B&B's in Annapolis Royal listed for sale. No access = no business! You may not be aware, but prior to 2010, Bay Ferries ran majestic TV ads for Nova Scotia on the Boston TV stations. NOW ...... NOTHING !!! Where the hell is Nova Scotia anyway??? Can't get there from here?? SAD !!!!

A ferry service is a much needed service between Yarmouth and the United States. I attended a Heritage Talk at the Yar. Co. Museum in February. Years ago Yarmouth, N.S. was booming with ships plying their way to the Boston States and other places. It was a bustling place back then. Yarmouth and the rest of Nova Scotia are truly suffering because of the lack of this this very important link. It is just about high time that this link was re-established. If things keep on the way they are, Yarmouth will be a ghost town and many tourism operators and businesses will be facing bankruptcy, not only in Yarmouth but the rest of the Atlantic provinces as well.

All the way to Cape Breton Island, we felt the importance of the ferry service from Maine to Nova Scotia. It's simple! It brings people to our province. I have been in the retail business for over thirty years and I truly value the tourist dollars spent in Nova Scotia. Our province needs to encourage tourist to come and when they travel via the "CAT" they experienced a newer mode of travel...they saw the entire province (if they travelled to CB) with all its different cultures and scenic views. My wife and I also cater to the Cruise Ship passengers that come into Sydney. Our big goal is to bring them back via the "rubber tire" method and when the Cat was running...it offered a unique experience. Of all services that could be cut by the government of the day...this was not one. This service just offers to much to our province let alone Yarmouth and area. Please reconsider and Bring back this very important service.