USA

Reporting on the latest developments from the USA’s maritime sector

USA

WETA awarded $14.9m to develop electric ferry network in San Francisco

On July 15th, the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA) had announced it has won a $14.9 million grant from the California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA) to develop a high-frequency network connecting some of San Francisco’s fastest growing neighbourhoods with battery-electric ferries.

The grant will fund the construction of ferries and shoreside charging infrastructure to support the San Francisco Clean Ferry Network, which will use zeroemission ferries to connect waterfront San Francisco neighbourhoods including Downtown, Treasure Island and Mission Bay.

This grant, which was awarded through CalSTA’s Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP), is the latest in a series of grant awards that have been secured to support the new service. In 2020, WETA was awarded $9 million from CalSTA to design and build its first zero-emission ferry along with shoreside infrastructure. In early 2022, WETA won a $3.4 million Federal Transit Administration (FTA) grant to add an additional battery-electric vessel to the network.

This $14.9 million award funds construction of a third vessel for what will eventually be a four-vessel network. The grant also includes funds for the charging infrastructure needed to operate the service.

“San Francisco’s waterfront is home to some of the region’s fastest-growing new neighbourhoods and this grant will help reduce traffic and improve air quality by connecting workers and residents with the country’s first high-speed, zero-emission ferry service,” said WETA Board of Directors Chair Jim Wunderman. “We owe thanks to Governor Gavin Newsom, CalSTA Secretary Toks Omishakin, our tireless Bay Area Legislative Caucus, and our strong support coalition for sharing our vision for a world class clean ferry network for the region.”

Transition to a zero-emission ferry service

The San Francisco Clean Ferry Network will be a major milestone in WETA’s transition to a zero-emission ferry service. The agency is currently completing a twopronged study investigating both clean marine propulsion technology and shoreside infrastructure needs that will inform policy decisions going forward. Ferries aging out of San Francisco Bay Ferry service will be replaced with new zero-emission vessels. WETA may also convert some current ferries to zero-emission propulsion systems over the next decade.

More than 3 million passengers rode WETA’s San Francisco Bay Ferry service in 2019. WETA has delivered eight new ferries with a combined 3,255 seats since 2017, with three more vessels under construction. Under WETA’s Pandemic Recovery Program, San Francisco Bay Ferry’s ridership in June 2022 reached 63% of pre-pandemic levels.

New ticketing system app launched

Following the above news, on July 19th, WETA launched a new integrated ticketing system and smartphone app for San Francisco Bay Ferry to improve and streamline the fare payment system for passengers.

Built on Hornblower Cruises’ Anchor platform, the ticketing system allows passengers to purchase ferry tickets for regular service as well as special event service to Oracle Park and Chase Center right from their smartphones in the new San Francisco Bay Ferry app or San Francisco Bay Ferry’s website at sanfranciscobayferry.com. Anchor now powers the ferry system’s paper ticket system as well.

San Francisco Bay Ferry encourages local and frequent passengers to use Clipper, the regional multi-agency transit fare product. Mobile and paper tickets can be an alternative solution for families and travellers visiting from outside the Bay Area, as well as to provide timed reservations for San Francisco Bay Ferry’s popular special event service.

“As we rebuild ridership we’re doing everything we can to make it as simple as possible to buy a ferry ticket,” said WETA Executive Director Seamus Murphy. “This is a simple one-stop shop for all your San Francisco Bay Ferry ticket needs. The new ticketing system improves the passenger experience and streamlines the system by bringing all non-Clipper forms of payment under one umbrella.”

WETA is on track to launch its real-time ferry information system soon. Real-time predictions and service notifications will be built into the SF Bay Ferry app. Integrations into popular third-party apps including Transit and Google Maps have begun. WETA is also building tools to improve its website experience using realtime information. n