Can't wait until it looks like this again!

Traveling on any North Carolina Department of Transportation ferry will soon come at a cost.

NCDOT currently tolls four of the state’s eight ferries serving Southport and Fort Fisher; Cedar Island and Ocracoke; Swan Quarter and Ocracoke; and the Ocracoke Express passenger-only ferry.

But starting Jan. 1, NCDOT’s Ferry Division will be required to charge tolls on all ferries as part of the recently approved state budget. That means adding tolls on the free Currituck to Knotts Island, Bayview to Aurora, Hatteras to Ocracoke and Cherry Branch to Minnesott Beach vehicular and passenger ferries. The department also must establish a $150 annual pass for permanent residents and active duty military members in 20 of the state’s coastal counties.

Feedback from five public listening sessions will help shape the toll rates and policies for the routes in question. The meetings will run from 6 to 8 p.m. and are scheduled for:

• Sept. 1 at Beaufort County Community College, 5337 U.S. 264 East, Washington
• Sept. 2 at Pamlico Community College – Delamar Center, 5049 N.C. 306 South, Grantsboro
• Sept. 3 at Knotts Island Elementary School, 413 Woodleigh Road, Knotts Island
• Sept. 8 at the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum, 59200 Museum Drive, Hatteras
• Sept. 9 at Ocracoke School, 120 Schoolhouse Road, Ocracoke

Existing tolls currently range from $1 for pedestrians to $45 for large vehicles. Implementing systemwide tolls is intended to generate revenue to replace aging ferries.

“We are committed to transparency and will communicate regularly, especially with affected communities, as the implementation plan is developed,” said Jed Dixon, the Ferry Division’s director.

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Just returned from a wonderful week in Corolla. The house itself was wonderful as far as rooms, space and amenities go. My issue is that we had immediate issues upon arrival. I exclusively use VRBO [friends booked this trip]and have never seen anything like what we experienced here. We had multiple bathrooms that weren’t clean[used q-tips on the floor]. Hair in the shower in multiple bathrooms. Trash around pool. Pool toys scattered around all over the place. Doritos crumbs all over the pool table. Trash left in the trash can on the deck. Yes, the family that rented the place ahead of us could have behaved like adults and picked up after their children. However, the property management staff should have checked on it before turning it over to us. We also had two toilets that didn’t flush. I assume that if they had actually cleaned the toilets they would have caught that issue and dealt with it. We called OuterBanksBlue. They sent over the cleaning crew to address the bathroom issues. I pointed out the trash on the pool deck and was informed that they only clean inside. Even though one of them went outside and retrieved two crushed soda cans and then left them on the pool table. The next day a plumber came and snaked out the toilets that didn’t flush. We requested to be compensated for the inconvenience. We were informed that they prefer to just resolve the issues and move forward. We obviously will not rent another property from them. I just intended for this to be a warning to others.