Manly ferry: One Freshwater Class boat to operate, remainder scrapped
The iconic Manly ferry will continue to grace Sydney Harbour for years to come, but only on certain days. Read the full details.
NSW
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A single Freshwater Class Manly Ferry will operate on weekends and public holidays but the remaining three boats could be sold potentially seeing them sunk or stripped for parts.
The newest Freshwater Class vessel, the Collaroy, will run every 1.5 hours on weekends and public holidays while smaller Emerald Class boats will operate commuter services to Manly every 15 minutes.
Transport Minister Andrew Constance committed to keeping the Collaroy in service permanently, following anger from unions, locals, and ferry lovers that the iconic Freshwater Class could be scrapped.
“This government’s giving a commitment to run this ferry forever and a day, it’s not going to be taken off the harbour,” he said.
The move to keep one Manly ferry in service while running smaller, faster boats for commuters comes after a campaign from The Daily Telegraph to save the Sydney icon.
The Collaroy is the newest of the government’s four Freshwater Class ferries, and is not due for another service until 2023.
However when the ferry does need a major service it could cost between $3 million and $5 million to stay operational, senior public servant Steve Issa said.
The remaining three Freshwater Class boats will be retired from service on the F1 Manly route, and could be sold for private tours or sunk to create a diving attraction.
Mr Constance said “ideally” tourist operators will take the boats on, but he said “there might be a demand for parts”.
“There‘s a lot of sentiment attached to the freshwaters, and that’s what we’ve tried to compromise,” Mr Constance said.
The Collaroy vessel will not run on weekdays or even on school holidays.
Instead, a fleet of newer Emerald Class vessels will operate on the F1 route, bringing more frequent faster services.
“So the community will get the benefit of having the Freshwater still on the water, and then of course the benefit of actually having a faster service,” Mr Constance said.
The boats have been designed to operate in swells of up to 4.5 metres in order to handle rough water on the Manly route.
The government insists the current Freshwater Class ferry doesn’t run in swells larger than 4.5 metres because it is too uncomfortable for passengers, but the older boats do not have a formal limit at which they don’t operate.
However the Maritime Union of Australia’s Paul Garrett raised concerns the new foreign-built boats won’t be safe.
“The last four river vessels made in Indonesia can‘t get under bridges and (are) full of asbestos, (so) we’ll wait to test these ferries when they get on Sydney Harbour,” he said.
Manly MP James Griffin – who has been advocating for the Freshwater to remain in service – welcomed a commitment that one iconic boat will continue to operate.
“Long live the Freshwater Class ferry! From today it will be a sight that will remain on the Harbour for future generations to come,” he said.
However Northern Beaches Deputy Mayor Candy Bingham said the move to keep only one Freshwater vessel running on weekends and public holidays wasn’t good enough.
“The world class Manly ferries have to remain, we cannot just scrap them to save a few dollars,” she said.
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