The San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA) announced in April that it has been awarded a $4 million competitive grant from the Federal Transit Administration for its San Francisco Ferry Terminal expansion project.
Photo by Joel Williams
Published: May, 2016
The San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA) announced in April that it has been awarded a $4 million competitive grant from the Federal Transit Administration for its San Francisco Ferry Terminal expansion project.
The expansion project, which is scheduled to begin construction in summer 2017, includes construction of up to three new ferry gates and vessel berthing facilities to support new ferry services from San Francisco to Richmond and Treasure Island, as well other potential locations currently under study, both in the East Bay and South Bay.
The project will also improve landside conditions at the Ferry Terminal by providing new amenities, including weather-protected canopies, a new plaza area south of the Ferry Building, extensions of pedestrian promenade areas and other public access improvements. The expansion will also enable WETA to stage emergency water transit services in the event of a regional transportation disruption or disaster—part of its state charter.
“This grant is due to the great leadership we received from 13 members of the U.S. Congress, including Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, and Representatives Nancy Pelosi and Mark DeSaulnier,” said Nina Rannells, executive director of WETA. “We thank each of them for their support, and for helping WETA realize our strategic, long-term goal of bringing additional ferry service to the Bay Area, while executing on our emergency response commitments.”
Also supporting the WETA grant were Representatives Barbara Lee, Jared Huffman, Jackie Speier, Mike Thompson, John Garamendi, Eric Swalwell, Zoe Lofgren, Anna Eshoo, and Jerry McNerney.
Rannells said, “Improvements to the San Francisco Ferry Building ‘hub’ is a key element to expanding our services on the Bay, and validation of the important role ferry service will play in the future of the Bay Area’s transit infrastructure.”
