ArchivesJuly 2003 ![]() Ferries and trains interconnected all over the Bay Area until roads metastasized and killed the system off. A pale imitation of national rail service staggers along in the form of Amtrak, though auto and gas servitors in Congress do their best to run it to ground. Eventually, ferries and trains will return (albeit at staggering cost). Our very own cantankerous Guy Span gives his take on how Amtrak has fared. More... ![]() It hasn’t been easy going for the Ferry Building development team Wilson/Meany. Their project got started just as the dot-com boom started to crater. Regulators, environmentalists and preservationists dogged their every step. Well, the Doubting Thomas’ and Sidewalk Superintendents were nowhere to be found the glorious June afternoon that saw time start again at the foot of Market Street. More... ![]() Every year the Port of Oakland throws a party to honor its waterfront and invites the City to come and party down. This year the bash was bigger, better and just plain badder than ever, confirming Portfest as the undisputed Champion of San Francisco Bay waterfront celebrations. More... ![]() Our WTA pages look at the burgeoning use of bikes on boats, and the many possibilities for even more recreational use. More... US Senate Democrats Introduce Ferry Transportation Enhancement ActSenator Patty Murray (D. Washington) introduced a bill on June 25 to increase the use of Federal Highway Trust Funds for ferry services from its current level of $38 million a year to $150 million a year. Cosponsors included both California Senators Feinstein and Boxer along with eight other Democratic Senators from coastal states. More... Bay Crossings JournalRuning the Green Mill More... LibationsWhat Ho? Real Ale? E N G L I S H Ale? Good Things are Brewing in Marin County More... Angel Island Announces Discounts for Bay Area ResidentsThis summer, residents of nine Bay Area counties are invited to tour beautiful Angel Island in the San Francisco Bay at half-price on designated Resident Appreciation Days during the week. More... Port Of San Francisco Awarded$3.4 Million Federal Transportation Security Grant Cruise and Ferry Terminal Security Enhancements Funded More... Pelosi Announces $2.5 million for Fuel Cell FerryToday House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi announced that the San Francisco Bay Area Water Transit Authority will receive $2,483,750 from the U.S. Department of Transportation to construct the first zero-emission passenger-only ferry in the world. Pelosi requested these funds in the 2003 federal Transportation appropriations bill, following the $100,000 she secured in 2002 for design work on the fuel cell ferry project. More... ![]() Patricia Breslin, Executive Director of the Golden Gate Restaurant Association More... Win a Princess Cruise to AlaskaDo you know what’s been around the San Francisco area longer than the Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman’s Wharf, and Coit Tower? The answer is world-famous Colombo and Parisian sourdough breads, More... State Sales Tax May Dampen Chances for Local MeasuresConfronted with a $38 billion state budget deficit — a debt accumulated over the past three years — Democratic lawmakers in Sacramento are looking favorably towards a temporary sales tax increase. More... Bruce Schwab to Speak at Corinthian Yacht ClubThe Corinthian Yacht Club is proud to announce that Bruce Schwab, local rock-star sailor and rigger extraordinaire, will be speaking in person at the Corinthian Yacht Club on Thursday, July 10. The public is cordially invited to attend this exciting talk on fast, short-handed sailing. More... Japanese Tall Ship is ComingNippon Maru II Arrives in July Tour the Largest Tall Ship FREE!! More... Port of Call: Jaffna, Sri Lanka"Does anyone know when we can catch the next ferry out of Jambukolapattana?" This was the question of the day in 1998 when a particular group of Sri Lankans were in need of a ferry boat ride to the other side of the island, which is about the same size as West Virginia, in a bad way. More... MTC Courts Public in Quest to Solve Transportation Planning MysteriesLike death and taxes — or a splendid view from the deck of a ferry — you can always count on transportation to rank at or near the top of Bay Area residents’ lists of concerns. Just as certain is that transportation bureaucrats have no monopoly on good ideas for solving our mobility problems. More... Summit Sows Seeds for New Funding Plans, But Political Winds May Blow IllWith more than three-quarters of the attendees at the Transportation 2030 Summit expressing support for raising new money to expand the Bay Area’s transportation infrastructure, there was no shortage of ideas for generating additional revenue. Less abundant, however, may be the political opportunities available to implement them. More... San Francisco Bay Master Mariners Benevolent Association Upcoming EventsSan Francisco Bay Master Mariners Benevolent Association Upcoming Events More... |