BMT will design the passenger ferries, which will be operated by New Orleans Regional Transit Authority
By
Rebecca Gibson |
BMT Nigel Gee and sister company BMT Designers & Planners are to work with Louisiana, US-based shipyard Metal Shark to build two 149-passenger aluminum catamaran ferries for the New Orleans Regional Transit Authority (RTA).
BMT Nigel Gee will be responsible for creating both the initial design concept and the production design for the two 32-metre long high-speed, low wake wash ferries.
“The proven eco-friendly design will greatly improve passenger comfort and have extremely low wash to provide minimal environmental impact,” said John Bonafoux, BMT Nigel Gee’s managing director. “BMT has recently signed a contract for similar vessels to connect Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia. It’s fantastic to see this design being built, which could work well on many other city routes in the US.”
Currently, RTA operates two ferries which were built in 1937 and 1977 to transport passengers across the Mississippi River between Algiers Point and Canal Street, and Lower Algiers and Chalmette. The newbuilds will both be delivered in 2018.
BMT Designer & Planners will provide local design engineering support in the US during the project.
“We are extremely pleased to win this design contract with BMT Nigel Gee and Metal Shark drawing upon years of expertise and established collaboration,” said Kai Skvarla, BMT Designers & Planners’ president.