{
  "id": 6158827,
  "title": "Week with no passengers as Spirit of Tasmania tests new ferries",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/07/week-with-no-passengers-as-spirit-of-tasmania-tests-new-ferries",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-07T19:12:48.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "ABC News AU",
    "slug": "abc-news-au",
    "url": "https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-09-08/spirit-of-tasmania-ferries-no-passengers-week-in-october/107108758"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Spirit of Tasmania ferry service will undergo a week-long shutdown without paying passengers between October 23 and 30, 2024, as the operator conducts operational testing on the newly launched ferries. The older ships, Spirit I and II, will be unavailable for service during this period due to extensive testing and training of the new ferries IV and V. TT-Line, the ferry operator, also confirmed the discontinuation of day sailings due to the increased capacity of the new vessels. This change will affect regular ferry users like Amelia Clifford, who relies on the service to visit her daughter in Tasmania. The government has completed a new purpose-built infrastructure to accommodate the larger ships at berth 3 in Devonport, four months ahead of schedule. TT-Line's CEO, Chris Carbone, stated that the transition period is necessary to ensure a smooth and safe service from day one, with the new ferries undertaking 12 trips between Geelong and Devonport during the transition week.",
  "summary": "The Spirit of Tasmania ferry service between Tasmania and the mainland will take no paying passengers for a week in late October as new ships are tested.",
  "key_points": [
    "Spirit of Tasmania to test new ferries from Oct 23-30, 2024",
    "Older ships Spirit I and II unavailable for service",
    "Day sailings discontinued due to increased vessel capacity"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}