Bike ferry will not run this summer

COLCHESTER – A bicycle ferry that carries cyclists over a gap in an old railroad causeway across a section of Lake Champlain isn’t going to be running this year.

The causeway between Colchester and South Hero was heavily damaged by a storm earlier this month.

Officials from Local Motion, the organization that runs the 8-minute ferry for cyclists and pedestrians, says repairs to the causeway will require a major reconstruction project.

Local Motion Executive Director Karen Yacos says officials are hopeful the repairs will improve the infrastructure and a more sustainable bike ferry operation.

The May 4 storm caused the formation of sinkholes in the 4-mile-long causeway and structural damage to a bridge.

The town says preliminary repair estimates for the causeway and the bridge are $563,000.