LEWES — One of the three vessels in the Cape May-Lewes Ferry fleet, the MV New Jersey, returned home following a yearlong, $20 million dry-docking, overhaul and repowering program, the Delaware River & Bay Authority announced.

DRBA said the New Jersey’s new Electro-Motive Division engines are expected to reduce emissions by approximately 40%.

The ferry’s repowering program is meant to drastically reduce pollutants emitted by World War II-era technology. DRBA also expects to save around $130,000 per year in maintenance costs associated with the old engines.

The existing Fairbanks Morse engines are overhauled every 10,000 hours compared to every 30,000 hours for the new machinery. Ferry officials said this is the most comprehensive, complex and expensive project in more than two decades for the vessels.

Other improvements include exterior repairs, replacing bulkheads and exterior windows, and modernizing the passenger galley area. The Federal Transit Administration’s Passenger Ferry Grant program funded $3 million out of the total cost of the project. FTA grants resources that fund the repowering component of this project, which will increase reliability of the service, improve operational capability by permitting better maneuverability, and reduce maintenance needs.