The announcement comes just days after the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet and the Illinois Department of Transportation announced they had presented the Ohio River Ferry Authority with a two-year agreement that would continue state funding for the ferry through fiscal years 2027 and 2028. The proposed contract provides $1.878 million annually, matching the level of state funding provided during the past two fiscal years.
Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Goodman said the proposal reflects a commitment to maintain ferry service despite declining state budgets.
“Given the vital role the ferry serves in regional transportation, we’re offering to maintain the same level of funding even as our agency faces declining budgets,” Goodman said. “This is a substantial commitment to support not just the ferry but the businesses and residents who rely on it.”
However, Lonnie Ray Lewis, Inc., which owns and operates the privately owned ferry, said it has rejected both KYTC’s initial funding offer made several weeks ago and a proposed contract received Friday, June 26.
According to the company’s statement, the proposed agreement contains no increase in funding from the allocation provided two years ago despite what it described as sharply rising operating costs.
The release also notes the ferry operator had previously submitted a proposal seeking additional state funding. KYTC said that proposal requested a 47% increase in state support with no increase in service levels. The transportation cabinet said state reimbursements for the ferry have more than doubled since 2018, increasing from about $804,000 to $1.878 million annually, while noting that Kentucky’s other state-supported ferries have experienced much smaller cost increases and that some also charge user fees.
If no agreement is reached by Tuesday, June 30, the ferry’s final trip will depart the Kentucky landing at approximately 9:50 p.m. and dock on the Illinois side around 10 p.m., ending service.
The company said ferry operations will resume once an agreement is reached and a contract is fully executed.
The statement was addressed to Crittenden County Judge-Executive Perry Newcom and members of the Ohio River Ferry Authority.
The Cave-In-Rock Ferry has been owned and operated by Lonnie Ray Lewis, Inc. since September 1994. The ferry provides a free crossing between Crittenden County, Kentucky, and Hardin County, Illinois, and carries more than 200,000 vehicles each year through a funding partnership between Kentucky and Illinois.
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