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After Pea Island road damage, emergency ferry carried 1,901 passengers in four days

NCDOT's final count shows 1,901 passengers, 998 vehicles and 67 departures on a temporary ferry link after September damage severed N.C. 12 access.

MANNS HARBOR – NCDOT says 1,901 people traveled on the temporary ferry route between Rodanthe and Stumpy Point after September storm damage closed N.C. Highway 12 on Pea Island, temporarily cutting the normal road connection to Hatteras Island.

The Ferry Division’s final count covers September 27 through September 30. During those four days, crews operated a three-vessel service around the clock, carrying 998 vehicles on 67 departures as well as the 1,901 passengers. The trip totals describe all four days combined, not daily averages or an ongoing schedule.

The North Carolina ferry Rodanthe underway, in the official NCDOT photograph accompanying its emergency-ferry ridership report.

State officials established the emergency crossing after assessing damage to N.C. 12. It carried permanent residents, essential workers and supplies while road crews repaired the access route. NCDOT says the route had not been activated in this form since 2013.

For coastal property owners and travelers, the numbers document how substantial demand can develop when a single shoreline road is unavailable. They do not establish that ferry capacity could fully replace road access during another storm, or that the September temporary route remains available now.

The final figures were released October 12. Anyone planning travel to Hatteras Island should verify present road conditions and any ferry service separately rather than relying on the September emergency timetable.

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