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Sydney Ferries

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Sydney Ferries is the government-controlled public transport ferry network serving the Australian city of Sydney, New South Wales. Services operate on Sydney Harbour and the connecting Parramatta River. The network is controlled by the New South Wales Government's transport authority, Transport for NSW, and is part of the authority's Opal ticketing system. In 2017-18, 15.3 million passenger journeys were made on the network.

Services are operated under contract by Transdev Sydney Ferries. Sydney Ferries Corporation is the state government agency that owns the ferry fleet.

History

Sydney Ferries can trace its origins as far back as the arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove where in 1789, the first ferry service was established from the Cove to the farming settlement of Parramatta. The first vessel, officially named the Rose Hill Packet (otherwise known as 'The Lump'), was crafted by convicts and powered by sails and oars. Trips inland from Sydney Cove to Parramatta typically took up to one week to complete. As time progressed, a series of rowboat ferrymen set up small operations to transport people from either side of Sydney Harbour. Formal, timetabled ferry services began with the advent of steam propulsion which enabled regularity, the first such service being operated on the Parramatta River by PS Surprise from 1831.

Cross-harbour services began in 1842 and this business grew to such an extent that a public company was formed, the North Shore Steam Ferry Co. Ltd. in 1878.[1]

In 1900, the North Shore company was reincorporated as Sydney Ferries Limited (SFL), which progressively took over most other harbour ferry services (except notably the Manly service operated by the Port Jackson & Manly Steamship Company), and became the world's largest ferry operator by fleet size. After the Sydney Harbour Bridge opened in March 1932, SFL patronage dropped almost overnight, decreasing from 44 to 20 million passengers per year.

In 1951, the NSW Government intervened in response to the financial difficulties of SFL and agreed to take over its fleet. The assets were taken over by the Sydney Harbour Transport Board with operations and maintenance contracted to the Port Jackson & Manly Steamship Company. This arrangement lasted until 1974, after which services were operated by government agencies; the Public Transport Commission (1974-1980), Urban Transit Authority (1980-1989), State Transit Authority (1989-2004) and Sydney Ferries Corporation (2004-2012).

The Walker Report

On 3 April 2007 the New South Wales Government appointed Bret Walker, a Senior Counsel, to undertake a commission of inquiry into Sydney Ferries' operations.[2] Submissions to Walker's inquiry were critical of many aspects of the operation of Sydney Ferries from fare levels and infrequent services to the design of gangways and the choice of potentially unsafe livery colours for some vessels.[3] Walker's report,[4] delivered in November 2007,[5] was highly critical of the Ferries management, industrial relations and government interference. Walker made several major recommendations including the urgent replacement of the entire ageing fleet of vessels and handing day-to-day operations over to a private sector operator. The New South Wales government would retain the fleet and other assets in public ownership.[6]

In 2008, the NSW Government called for private sector bids to provide ferry services under a services contract,[7] however the government later decided to keep Sydney Ferries as a state owned and operated entity. On 1 January 2009, Sydney Ferries became a New South Wales Government agency.

In February 2009, private operator Bass & Flinders Cruises took over the high speed jet cat service to Manly.[6][8] In April 2010, the NSW Government decided the service contract would remain with the Sydney Ferries Corporation.[7]

Contracting

In 2011, following a change in state government in an election held that year, it was decided to contract out the operation of Sydney Ferries to the private sector, with the government retaining ownership of both the Balmain maintenance facility and the ferry fleet.[9]

On 28 July 2012, Harbour City Ferries, originally a 50/50 joint venture between Transfield Services (later Broadspectrum) and multinational transport operator Transdev, began operating the services of Sydney Ferries under a seven-year contract.[10][11][12] In December 2016, Transdev exercised an option to purchase Broadspectrum's share.[13] Transdev was awarded a new contract in February 2019 which will see it continue to operate the network until 2028. To coincide with the announcement, Harbour City Ferries became known as Transdev Sydney Ferries.[14][15]

Operations

Network

Sydney Ferries operates services on eight routes:[16]

The hub of the network is at Circular Quay; seven routes terminate there, while the F4 route passes through.


Fleet

The Sydney Ferries fleet consists of 32 vessels divided into six classes.

Planning had commenced for four new ferries for Parramatta River services,[17] but these plans were shelved in January 2019 due to the lack of availability of suitable vessels from shipbuilders.[18]

Sydney Ferries fleet[19][20]
Class Vessels Service Capacity Routes
Freshwater 4 1982-88 1100/1150 Manly
First Fleet 9 1984-86 393/403 Inner Harbour, Taronga Zoo, Eastern Suburbs
RiverCat 7 1992-95 230 Parramatta River
HarbourCat class ferry 2 1998 150 Inner Harbour, Parramatta River
SuperCat 4 2000-01 250 Eastern Suburbs
Emerald 6 2017 400 Eastern Suburbs, Inner Harbour

Patronage

The following table lists patronage figures for the network during the corresponding financial year. Australia's financial years start on 1 July and end on 30 June. Major events that affected the number of journeys made or how patronage is measured are included as notes.

Sydney Ferries patronage by financial year
Year 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18
Patronage
(millions) 		14.5 14.8 14.9 16.0
[lower-alpha 1][lower-alpha 2] 		14.8 15.4 14.9
[lower-alpha 3] 		15.3
Reference [21] [22] [23] [24]

Template:Graph:Chart

  1. ↑ Opal rollout completed in August 2013
  2. ↑ International Fleet Review held in October 2013
  3. ↑ Figures from 2016-17 onwards are based on Opal tap on and tap off data. Non-Opal tickets were discontinued in August 2016.
2018-19 Sydney Ferries patronage by line[n.b. 1][25]
Line Figure
F1
 4,414,000
F2
 1,458,000
F3
 2,651,000
F4
 4,184,000
F5
 573,000
F6
 747,000
F7
 224,000
F8
 598,000

2017-18 patronage of Transport for NSW's Sydney services by mode[26]
Template:Transport for NSW patronage in Sydney by mode
  1. ↑ Figures based on Opal tap on and tap off data.

Fares

Sydney Ferries uses the Opal ticketing system.[27] Opal is also valid on bus, train and light rail services but separate fares apply for these modes. The following table lists Opal fares for reusable smartcards and single trip tickets as of 2 July 2018:[28]

Ferry 0–9 km 9 km+
Adult cards & contactless $6.12 $7.65
Other cards $3.06^ $3.82^
Adult single trip $7.60 $9.40
Child/Youth single trip $3.80 $4.70

^ = $2.50 for Pensioner/Senior cardholders

Maintenance

Balmain Shipyard in Mort Bay was established about 1890 by Balmain Ferry Company as a depot, ferry wharf and ferry coaling wharf but through amalgamations and government takeovers, has become the present Sydney Ferries’ maintenance facility and training base and is leased to Transdev Sydney Ferries as part of their operating contract.

References

  1. ↑ North Shore Council, "Ferry Services and Travel on the North Side from the days of the Watermen to the opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge", "Taking the Ferry", accessed 2 March 2011.
  2. ↑ "Crash ferries face special inquiry". The Daily Telegraph. 3 April 2007. http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,21496834-5001021,00.html. 
  3. ↑ Action for Public Transport (NSW) (2009-12-06). "Submission to The Special Commission of Inquiry into Sydney Ferries.". Action for Public Transport (NSW). http://www.aptnsw.org.au/documents/walker.html. Retrieved 2013-01-20. 
  4. ↑ Bret Walker (2007). "Sydney Ferries Report". NSW Transport. Archived from the original on 25 March 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120325091608/http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/sites/default/file/inquiries/walker-ferry-report.pdf. Retrieved 2013-01-20. 
  5. ↑ Linton Bessera & Robert Wainwright (2001-11-01). "Sydney Ferries' day of reckoning.". Sydney Morning Herald. http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/sydney-ferries-day-of-reckoning/2007/10/31/1193618974052.html. Retrieved 2013-01-20. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Deborah Cornwall (2009-04-20). "Rees paralysed over Sydney Ferry reform.". ABC 7.30 Report. http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2009/s2547849.htm. Retrieved 2013-01-20. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 The Infrastructure Journal (2011-05-20). "Let the private sector improve Sydney Ferry services.". ClaytonUtz. http://www.claytonutz.com/publications/news/201105/30/let_the_private_sector_improve_sydney_ferry_services.page. Retrieved 2013-01-20. 
  8. ↑ Battle to be the last fast ferry on the harbour Sydney Morning Herald 9 April 2010
  9. ↑ Transport for NSW 2016-17 Annual Report page 122, Transport for NSW, Retrieved 19 January 2018
  10. ↑ "Harbour City Ferries". Harbour City Ferries. 2013. http://www.harbourcityferries.com.au/. Retrieved 2013-01-20. 
  11. ↑ Private Operator to take control of ferry services Sydney Morning Herald 3 May 2012
  12. ↑ Steady as he goes: ferries sail into private hands Sydney Morning Herald 28 July 2012
  13. ↑ Transdev Australasia Acquires 100% of Harbour City Ferries Transdev Australasia 8 December 2016
  14. ↑ "Transdev to deliver new benefits for customers, securing Sydney Ferries contract until 2028" (PDF). Transdev Australasia. 27 February 2019. https://www.transdev.com.au/media/14136/190227_press-release-transdev-australasia-to-operate-sydney-ferries_final.pdf. 
  15. ↑ O'Sullivan, Matt (27 February 2019). "More ferry services for Sydney after government awards $1.3b contract". The Sydney Morning Herald. https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/more-ferry-services-for-sydney-after-government-awards-1-3b-contract-20190227-p510ia.html. 
  16. ↑ Sydney Ferry Map Template:Webarchive Transport NSW Information
  17. ↑ "Budget delivers $10.5 billion for public transport". Transport for NSW. 21 June 2016. http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/media-releases/budget-delivers-10-5-billion-public-transport. 
  18. ↑ Purchase of new ferries for Sydney's busy Parramatta River shelved Sydney Morning Herald 2 January 2019
  19. ↑ Sydney Ferries Fleet Facts Template:Webarchive Transport for NSW 15 April 2014
  20. ↑ "Hull 082 - 35m Passenger Catamaran on the Derwent River". Incat. February 2018. https://www.incat.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/082071eh.jpg. 
  21. ↑ "Transport for NSW Annual Report 2013-14". Transport for NSW. p. 395. Archived from the original on 29 May 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150529174646/http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/sites/default/files/b2b/publications/annual_reports/tfnsw-annual-report-2013-2014.pdf. Retrieved 1 August 2016. 
  22. ↑ "Transport for NSW Annual Report 2014-15". Transport for NSW. p. 131. http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/sites/default/files/b2b/publications/annual_reports/tfnsw-annual-report-2014-15-volume-1.pdf. Retrieved 1 August 2016. 
  23. ↑ "Ferry Patronage". Transport Performance and Analytics - Transport for NSW. December 2016. p. Top Level Charts. https://public.tableau.com/profile/bureau.of.transport.statistics#!/vizhome/PTVisualisation-Ferry-2_7_2Nov16/Welcome. Retrieved 27 December 2016. 
  24. ↑ "Ferry Patronage - Monthly Comparison". Transport for NSW. https://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/data-and-research/passenger-travel/ferry-patronage/ferry-patronage-monthly-comparison. Retrieved 13 September 2018. 
  25. ↑ "Ferry Patronage - Monthly Comparison". Transport for NSW. https://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/data-and-research/passenger-travel/ferry-patronage/ferry-patronage-monthly-comparison. Retrieved 24 August 2019. 
  26. ↑ See Transport for NSW patronage in Sydney by mode for sources
  27. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 3 March 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140303140325/https://www.opal.com.au/en/about-opal/what-services-can-i-use-it-on/Trains/. Retrieved 2014-03-28. 
  28. ↑ "Opal fares". Transport for NSW. https://www.opal.com.au/en/opal-fares/. Retrieved 2 July 2018. 

Attribution

The first revision of this article was based on the following revision of the English Wikipedia article "Sydney Ferries": https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sydney_Ferries&oldid=881282192.

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