In late October, the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA) held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new North Bay Operations and Maintenance Facility.
On October 26, a ribbon-cutting ceremony was held on Mare Island in Vallejo for the new WETA North Bay Operations and Maintenance Facility. From left to right: Timothy Donovan, WETA Board of Directors; Tom Sheaff, Vice president, Lennar Mare Island; Mike Thompson, Congressman, 5th District; Osby Davis, Mayor, City of Vallejo; Anthony Intintoli, WETA Board of Directors; Nina Rannells, executive director, WETA; and Jody A. Breckenridge, Chair, WETA Board of Directors. Photo by Joel Williams
BC Staff Report
Published: November, 2016
In late October, the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA) held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new North Bay Operations and Maintenance Facility. Located within the area of the former Mare Island Naval Shipyard, the facility will serve as the northern anchor of WETA’s San Francisco Bay Ferry region-wide operations.
Highlights of the new facility include:
• An operations control center and an emergency operations center
• Routine maintenance and repair service facilities and capabilities
• Three full-service waterside berths to accommodate maintenance and passenger activities for up to six vessels
• Maintenance, repair and equipment shops
• Administration and operations offices
• 48,000-gallon fuel farm
• Passenger boarding facility for future service between Mare Island, Vallejo and San Francisco
• Construction cost: $31 million
In the event of an emergency that disrupts regional transportation systems, WETA would function as both an operator of emergency ferry services and as coordinator of the region’s water transit response.
“The new facility is one facet of WETA’s overall investment in infrastructure and maintenance,” said Nina Rannells, executive director of WETA. “The North Bay Operations and Maintenance Facility, and the Ron Cowan Central Bay Operations and Maintenance Facility in Alameda, which will open in 2018, will increase WETA’s efficiency by consolidating operations and providing dedicated maintenance sites for the Central and North Bay routes, ensuring that ferry service remains a reliable, safe and convenient choice for all who choose SF Bay Ferry to cross the Bay.”
The ribbon-cutting ceremony was attended by more than 150 local officials, including Vallejo Mayor Osby Davis and Congressman Mike Thompson.
WETA was established by the state legislature to operate an integrated regional ferry service, expand ferry service on the Bay, and coordinate the water transit response to a regional emergency. Under the San Francisco Bay Ferry brand, WETA operates daily passenger ferry service to the cities of Alameda, Oakland, San Francisco, Vallejo and South San Francisco.
The new WETA facility on Mare Island in Vallejo will help consolidate operations with a dedicated maintenance site. Photo by Alain McLaughlin
Engine repairs and replacements are one of the many things that the maintenance facility can provide. Photo by Joel Williams
