Changes coming for Daufuskie Island ferry service

Dating back to the early '90s, Beaufort County and the state of South Carolina have paid for limited ferry service for Daufuskie Island residents. The service is expected to continue, but a community panel hopes a new identification card system will make it harder for non-residents and private contractors to ride for free.

What the Daufuskie Island Community Improvement Club -- the island's de facto governing body -- came up with is anID system that allows the club to create a list of full-time residents eligible to use the ferry.

More than 100 people posed in recent weeks for the photo IDs, which Terri Painter, who's coordinating the effort for the Daufuskie club, says will prevent non-residents from using up pricey vouchers.

"In my opinion, if they don't live here full time, they shouldn't get an ID because they'd be wasting the (resident) taxpayers' ... money," Painter said.

She said that in the past, contractors working on the island and non-residents abused the subsidized ferries, driving up the cost for the county and state.

The newest county contract with Palmetto Ferry Company provides access to at least six round-trip rides to Hilton Head Island each weekday between Squire Pope Road on Hilton Head and Melrose Landing on Daufuskie.

The county also purchased vouchers from J & W Corp. and Daufuskie Island Resort and Breathe Spa for nighttime and weekend trips, in cases of emergency.

Ervin Simmons, a Daufuskie native islander, said the ID system is unfair to native families. Simmons said access to subsidized ferries is crucial to maintaining the ties of native families who in many cases have children living off of Daufuskie.

"I'm from Daufuskie and I work out of Savannah, but I still have ... family over there and it's just home to me," Simmons said.

Under the new system, residents can call in ferry vouchers for friends and family members, but must do so for every visit and with 24-hours advance notice.

While Simmons gets back and forth on a private boat, he said many native islanders rely on ferries to visit family on Daufuskie.

"Not many of us can afford the boat fee for going back and forth."

Visitors to Daufuskie have to pay up to $40 for private round-trip fares.

Morris Campbell, Beaufort County deputy administrator and the county's liaison to Daufuskie, said the $100,000 the county and state were putting toward Daufuskie ferries for the year wouldn't meet the growing demand for ferries.

"It's going to always be a challenge because of the isolation of the island," Campbell said.