Thursday, January 31, 2019

Weekend ferry service to SF this summer

Ferry arriving at new Richmond Terminal
     POINT RICHMOND - Weekend ferry service between Richmond and San Francisco will likely begin this summer, Thomas Hall of San Francisco Bay Ferry told the Point Richmond Neighborhood Council Wednesday night.
     "Hopefully by this summer," Hall said. "Hopefully in May."
     Hall came to the PRNC to give an update about the ferry service that began January 10 going from the newly constructed Richmond terminal to the San Francisco Ferry Building.
     The Richmond terminal is adjacent to the Craneway Pavilion on Harbor Way South.
     He said ridership has exceeded projections. "Overall, ridership of all the SF Bay Ferry service vessels has nearly doubled since 2012," he said.
     In his presentation, Hall also talked about about new ferries coming into service in the next year.
Schedule - click to enlarge
     The current weekday service runs ferries in the morning and in the afternoon, aimed at commuters.
     The trip takes about 35 minutes dock to dock.
    With the exception of a few dips in service (on rainy days), the ferries have been running with plenty of passengers, Hall said.
     He also noted that the new service is popular with bicyclists.
     "People like to bring bikes on the ferry and take them into the city to use."
     Bike lockers are available at the Richmond Ferry Terminal in the 352-space parking lot.
     Parking for motor vehicles is free there, for now.
     Hall can be contacted via email at hall@watertransit.org.

Traffic and road report

     The PRNC also heard a report from Dave Rodgers, a City of Richmond Traffic Engineer about a variety of traffic and road issues around The Point.
      In addition answering questions at the meeting, Rodgers gave PRNC attendees copies of questions and answers about traffic based on a list generated by the PRNC prior to Wednesday's meeting.
     Those questions and the City of Richmond's responses are below. Click on the documents to enlarge for easier reading.