HSC Lake Express

Lake Express at Muskegon
History
Name: 2004 onwards: Lake Express
Operator: 2004 onwards: Lake Express
Port of registry: 2004 onwards: Milwaukee United States
Route: Milwaukee - Muskegon
Builder: Austal USA, Mobile
Yard number: US 614
Identification: IMO number: 9329253
Status: In service
General characteristics
Tonnage: 1,757 GT
Length: 191 ft 7 in (58.40 m)[1]
Beam: 57 ft 9 in (17.60 m)[1]
Draught: 8 ft 2 in (2.50 m) [1]
Installed power: 4 × MTU 16V 4000 M70 diesel engines[1]
Propulsion: 4 × Kamewa waterjets[1]
Speed: 34 kn (39 mph; 63 km/h)[1]
Capacity:
  • 248 passengers
  • 44 cars & 12 motorcycles[1]

Lake Express is a high-speed auto and passenger ferry that is in service on a route across Lake Michigan. Lake Express links the cities of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Muskegon, Michigan, from late spring to the fall of each year.

Background

The ship travels at a top speed of 34 knots (39 mph; 63 km/h)[1] and makes the 68-nautical-mile (78 mi; 126 km) trip three times daily from each side of the lake during the peak of its operational schedule. Lake Express is able to cross the lake in two and a half hours. It was constructed by Austal USA in Mobile, Alabama,[1] and began service on June 1, 2004.[2] It was one of the first high-speed catamaran-style auto/passenger ferries built in the United States. It was also the first high-speed car ferry to see service on the Great Lakes, beating out the Spirit of Ontario I, which was beset by a series of last-minute delays, by one month.

On August 21, 2005, the ferry rescued a man whose boat had capsized in the middle of Lake Michigan.[3]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Austal. "Austal Launches largest Vessel to date" (Press release). Austal. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
  2. ↑ Mulherin, Brian (June 2, 2004). "Fast, Quiet, But Not So Smooth: Lake Express Rolls into Service with Excitement". Ludington Daily News. pp. A1–A2 – via Google News.
  3. ↑ Sandler, Larry (August 21, 2005). "Ferry Rescues Boater from Lake". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. pp. 1B–2B – via Google News.
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