NEW FERRY SYSTEM TO LAUNCH ON SAN FRANCISCO BAY

It is transition time at the Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA). Earlier this year, two existing ferry services—Alameda/Oakland and Harbor Bay—were transitioned to WETA. WETA is also currently working with the City of Vallejo on the transition of Vallejo’s Baylink ferry system. With the construction of a new ferry terminal at Oyster Point in South San Francisco, the new future route between the East Bay and South San Francisco will culminate the short-term transition for WETA’s growing responsibilities.

In the long term, WETA is planning ferry services to San Francisco from as far away as Antioch in the Delta and Redwood City in the South Bay. The City of Berkeley will most likely be the home of the next new ferry terminal. WETA (and its predecessor the Water Transit Authority) have been building the foundation for a regional ferry system since its creation by the state legislature in 1999.

While WETA is the entity responsible for operating the consolidated ferry services, at its July meeting the WETA Board of Directors decided to give the growing system a more recognizable name. Commuters, tourists, the transit community and the general public will soon know WETA’s regional ferry system as San Francisco Bay Ferry.

Over time, we hope that our new name and graphic identity will become instantly recognizable and promote the use of our services, said Nina Rannells, executive director of WETA. Another significant milestone for WETA is to engage an experienced operator for the day-to-day running of the San Francisco Bay Ferry system. Earlier this year, the WETA Board issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the operation and maintenance of the system. Proposals have been received, and the WETA board is expected to select an operator for the new service at an upcoming meeting.

In the meantime, some of the vessels used for services are reaching mid-life and, as a consequence, are requiring re-powering and refurbishing.

Last year, the Bay Breeze from the Harbor Bay service was dry-docked at Bay Ship & Yacht in Alameda for replacement of the main engines; WETA will issue a RFP to complete the mid-life refurbishment. The vessel’s passenger cabin, major systems and navigation electronics will be renovated.

For the Vallejo’s Baylink service, one of the ferries is at Nichols Brothers in Washington State for refurbishing, with a second vessel to follow.

With plans to build several new terminals and expand service, there is a need for new ferry vessels. Plans for more ferries are tied to service expansion, said Rannells. We have already built two boats for South San Francisco and our next boats are likely to be for proposed new services from Berkeley or Richmond currently under development. But that may be a couple of years out, and we will be looking at larger capacity ferries than the 149 passenger vessels recently built.

There is a lot going on as the San Francisco Bay Ferry is born; watch for more news in the near future.