Rolling On The River

BURLINGTON CITY - Residents soon may see a new kind of craft cruising along the waterfront that will provide transportation to destinations along the Delaware River all the way to Baltimore.

A hovercraft service that has been in development by Mid-Atlantic Hovercraft Operations, LLC over the past four years is nearing completion with Burlington City as its northernmost stop on a route that will take passengers south to Baltimore Harbor with several stops in between, according to founder Tom Anderson.

Anderson, who founded the Mount Holly-based venture in 2004, envisions a service that initially would ferry passengers to locations along the river including Bristol, Pa., Cinnaminson, North Camden, Philadelphia, Essington, Pa., Paulsboro, four sites in the Chesapeake Bay and a full landing site in the west port of Baltimore, utilizing four Griffon 8000 hovercraft.

A hovercraft, or air-cushion vehicle, is designed to travel over any smooth surface supported by a cushion of slow-moving, high-pressure air, ejected downward by fans against the surface below and contained within a "skirt." Propellers at the rear of the craft control direction and speed.

Because they are supported by a cushion of air, hovercrafts are unique among all forms of ground transportation in their ability to travel equally well over land, ice and water and are used for many applications both civil and military around the world.

Anderson said the hovercraft would carry 80 to 110 passengers in airline-type seats and up to 10,000 pounds of freight. It can travel at maximum speeds of 50 knots (about 60 mph) in ideal conditions, allowing passengers to reach Baltimore from Burlington City in two hours at a cost of $45 per passenger.

Anderson said he is still in negotiations with the state and the Delaware River Port Authority as well as various municipalities along the route.

Pending approvals, river trials on the Delaware could begin as soon as August with the service being in place by July 2010, Anderson said. One vessel under construction in Florida is being used for trials and another vessel is ready to be put in the water in southern Maryland, he said.

A hovercraft is the ideal vehicle for transportation along the river, Anderson said, because of its adaptability to existing infrastructure and because it lands and exits quietly without intruding on other boating traffic.

The craft will have a very low environmental footprint and will run on bio-diesel or diesel fuel, according to Anderson.

The proposed docking site at the Burlington City Promenade is advantageous because it is away from the environmentally sensitive areas south of the Burlington-Bristol Bridge and the north end of Burlington Island, he said.

The dock would be a terminal similar in size to a 40-foot shipping container "nestled into the landscaping," he said.

"This is passenger only so we don't need a big terminal to bring cars on," Anderson said.

Mayor James Fazzone said Anderson must have docking agreements with the landing-site host towns along the river, where terminals also would be installed.

From the city's perspective, the hovercraft will provide another way for people to reach Burlington.

"Once we're on the hovercraft route, you'll be able to get here by all means of transportation and we just want to make sure people know about us," Fazzone said.