Daily Ferry Service Begins Between Miami Port, Grand Bahama.

Publication: The Miami Herald (Miami, Florida) (via Knight-Ridder/Tribune Business News)

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COPYRIGHT 2001 The Miami Herald

Apr. 27--Betting it can succeed where others have failed, Fred Olsen Express this month launched daily ferry service between the Port of Miami and Freeport, Grand Bahama.

The fast ferry, which can carry 650 passengers and cargo, skims across the water at 43 miles per hour, completing the 100-mile journey to Freeport in three hours.

Fred Olsen Express -- owned by two major, publicly traded Norwegian corporations controlled by shipping magnate Fred Olsen -- is counting on attracting Bahamian travelers who come to South Florida to shop and Bahamian businesses that rely on U.S. imports, as well as U.S. tourists, said Jorn Rokaas, managing director of Fred Olsen Express.

"The Bahamians import everything," Rokaas said. "And with tourism they need fresh produce every day, and this type of activity fits in very well with a service that runs every day, seven days a week."

But so far, the biggest challenge is filling the ferry with...

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