Shoring up security
Addition of guards may shorten wait to board ferries by 30-40 seconds

Ferry passengers may find themselves waiting in line for shorter times before the end of the year.

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), which owns and operates the ferries, will have security guards on ferries sometime within the next 30 days, according to a department announcement.

That means that ferry deckhands will no longer have to make a security circuit of the boat each time it docks at a loading ramp. The security circuit is required by the U.S. Homeland Security Department.

Once the security guards are aboard the boats, they will take over checking each boat, meaning the deckhand can begin loading vehicles as soon as the ferry is emptied.

An informal survey last year showed the security circuit added 30-40 seconds to the time each boat was at the loading ramp.